Prinz Cazpian

Nikki had a take and wanted to know what I thought about the Prince Caspian movie.

To answer that question, I have to first say that Prince Caspian was not my favorite book in the series, but that it has quite a few interesting aspects. The permeability of Narnia is introduced, for the Telmarines are men. The appeal and danger of power is explored in a few ways: the White Witch has her admirers, so many generations later; the intrigue of the Telmarine court seems much more realistic than the “two kings and two queens” all getting along in Narnia (this incongruity is nicely touched on in the movie); the power that forgetting gives to one’s own agenda; the mystery of why even the faithful sometimes feel deserted; the difficulty in doing the right thing in the face of external (and internal) doubt about what the right thing is.

So I was curious about what would survive in the film adaptation.

From this point, there will be spoilers.

I think the movie handles all these issues admirably. It is remarkably unfaithful to the book in many ways, startlingly so in some.

Peter Dinklage, despite having apparently had his eyebrows surgically furrowed, does a nice job with his role as an exceptionally cynical, observant, acerbically quipping Trumpkin. I thought Sergio Castellitto made a wonderful (terrifying, appalling, and believable) Miraz, and Pierfrancsesco Favino is compelling in his screen time as a more promising, if not exactly kinder and gentler, Lord Glozelle. Both have beefier roles than one might have expected.

But then, so does Miraz’s castle. I agree with the Plugged In review that this is a war movie, and the makers filled it to bursting with battle. That’s okay, despite siege engines whose physics appear to be at best unseen and at worst impossible. All the same, everyone involved in this movie should have taken a couple more months off after seeing Return of the King, because this film echoes that one in tone, in look, and in feeling.

C.S. Lewis was a WWI veteran, and his book describes pursuits, skirmishes, and what I’d pictured as a pitched battle. It also has an interminable sequence of the children and Trumpkin navigating terrain and bickering over whether Aslan exists, whether he has been seen, and where they should go. I think the filmmakers did us all a favor by abbreviating the pitched battle elements and the cross-country, cross-with-each-other journeys. Whether the castle sneak attack, a temple (complete with standing pools of oil, ready to be lit by a Caspian who somehow knows about these details) at Aslan’s How, Susan as a frecklier and poutier lipped Legolas, and a personal appearance by the White Witch were really necessary, I don’t know. I was able to enjoy these changes without being bothered by them, perhaps in part because Prince Caspian wasn’t my favorite book in the series.

Some of those changes also give opportunities for some nice moments: Edmund’s total lack of interest in what the White Witch is selling; the Minotaur holding the gate; the anguish of leaving troops (and family, and friends) behind.

On the other hand, I thought the attraction between Susan and Caspian was flimsy. Caspian’s castle confrontation of Miraz was unnecessary. The do-it-yourself cavalry trap should have been shot down while it was still an idea. Even the fistfight at the train station seems ill-conceived; I don’t think Lewis didn’t consider the ramifications of having been a king and going back to being a schoolboy, he just didn’t think that was the story. And I don’t think the movie’s take on what that means, for Peter, anyway, makes a lot of sense. The filmmakers seem to think that having been a king makes him martial without granting him any dignity. If that’s the case, he must have been an unpleasant sovereign.

One thing I should add is that I watched a portion of the BBC production the night before seeing this movie. Heavens to Betsy, that was appalling. By comparison, I’m glad to say, Aslan and the animals are spectacularly well done. Aslan actually talks intelligibly instead of muttering, and when he roars it doesn’t make me feel sorry for him. Reepicheep is a charming flavor of pompous, and the special effects folks did a nice job realizing him and his posse as a lethal crew.

I imagine that Ben Barnes is nice to look at, if your tastes run to the tall and handsome (and men). But I fear that Kevin Costner might have done his accent coaching. And my impression was that his look was too blank, too often. But my mental picture may just be incompatible with what I was seeing on the screen, and I can’t reconcile the two.

Since we only see a movie or two per year, I’m glad this was one of them. It was very enjoyable, and faithful in important ways without being slavish about it. I’ll look forward to Voyage of the Dawn Treader, which has a stronger book to work from and is thus quite promising (including opportunities for CGI that doesn’t have to remind one instantly of LOTR).