The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

[rs_milo_whatever]

I'm glad William Moseley and Anna Popplewell are making an appearance on this movie. I read somewhere that Popplewell's role in Prince Caspian would be her last since she was giving up acting to study law.



I can't wait for this.

[SmartAleck25]

I love it! Everything's so classy and epic! Did anyone else notice that Edmund seems to like the Star Queen too, and both him and Caspian notice the other? Or is that just me?

[MichaeLeah]

I got to go to a special screening of this film. I was part of the first screening on the east coast. I think they did a great job making the third Narnia film. The Voyage is much better than Prince Caspian (the book from which they are based is much better too). I highly recommend everybody seeing it. I think Disney has been incredibly foolish to drop this series and they are going to regret it. Now I look forward to the Silver Chair. If anyone wants to ask me any questions about the film, I will do my best to answer.

[Disneykid]

Color me jealous! Feel free to answer only what you want.

* What was the running time of the film? Would you say it's closer to two hours or two and a half?

* What's up with the Peter and Susan cameo? I've read reports that in one scene, Lucy says the beauty spell to turn herself into Susan, and we see what life would be like if Lucy never existed. Is that true, and if so, is that the bit from the TV spot where we see Edmund, Susan, and Peter in 1940s clothing at some garden party? Where does the trailer bit with all four Pevensies in Narnian clothing fit in, then?

* How does Eustace the dragon turn back into a boy? In the book, Aslan physically claws at his scales to reveal the boy underneath, but some movie storybook adaptations are saying he roars and there's a flash of light.

* Do we find out exactly where this weird green mist originated from?

* Are there any allusions to The Silver Chair such as The Lady of the Green Kirtle? The filmmakers have said they've borrowed elements from that book to help establish continuity.

* How long is the White Witch's cameo and what exactly is going on with Edmund in that scene? I've heard he's not really tempted by her as the trailer suggests. Is that true?

Thanks a bunch in advance!

[MichaeLeah]

Sorry about the slow response. I have had too much going on. I am putting your answers in the quote.

Color me jealous! Feel free to answer only what you want.

* What was the running time of the film? Would you say it's closer to two hours or two and a half?
I think it was closer to 2 hours.

* What's up with the Peter and Susan cameo? I've read reports that in one scene, Lucy says the beauty spell to turn herself into Susan, and we see what life would be like if Lucy never existed. Is that true, and if so, is that the bit from the TV spot where we see Edmund, Susan, and Peter in 1940s clothing at some garden party? Where does the trailer bit with all four Pevensies in Narnian clothing fit in, then?
Yes, Lucy wants to "be beautiful like Susan" so she has a vision of being in England and looking like Susan. So technically, it isn't a Susan cameo in that part of that film, it is Lucy transformed into Susan's body. I can't remember when all four Pevensies wore Narnia clothes...I think they did, I just can't remember when. Sorry.

* How does Eustace the dragon turn back into a boy? In the book, Aslan physically claws at his scales to reveal the boy underneath, but some movie storybook adaptations are saying he roars and there's a flash of light.
Aslan roars and there is a flash of light. A little bit later, Eustace describes the transformation to Lucy and Edmund.

* Do we find out exactly where this weird green mist originated from?
Sort of....it originates from an evil island our heroes reach toward the end of the story. They don't really explain it very well, though. I made a note of that on my comment card.

* Are there any allusions to The Silver Chair such as The Lady of the Green Kirtle? The filmmakers have said they've borrowed elements from that book to help establish continuity.
I don't believe they mentioned "The Lady" however, they did mention that Eustace's friend (I am forgetting her name right now) was coming over to play...or something like that. So her name is mentioned, but we don't see her.

* How long is the White Witch's cameo and what exactly is going on with Edmund in that scene? I've heard he's not really tempted by her as the trailer suggests. Is that true?
A theme in the story is that all the characters will be tempted. The temptation increases as they approach the evil island (I'm sorry I am not clear on the name of that island.) The white witch basically tells Edmund that he can rule over her if she would like. I mentioned earlier about Lucy's temptation...she wants to become beautiful like Susan. She fails to recognize her own inherent value in her longing to be like Susan. Edmund always struggles with wanting to be in control. Remember, he had to reign under Peter and now he is under King Caspian. This brings a bit of conflict between them. There is so much action surrounding the White Witches appearance, it doesn't seem that significant to the plot....it only creates a more intense atmosphere for the climax of the film.

Thanks a bunch in advance!

I hope you got some of your questions answered. I will try to get online here again soon in case you have any follow-up questions. I have no problem with answering any questions you might have. There is a chance the film might be slightly editted in its final form in comparison to what I saw. I am not sure.

[MichaeLeah]

Sorry about the slow response. I have had too much going on. I am putting your answers in the quote.

Color me jealous! Feel free to answer only what you want.

* What was the running time of the film? Would you say it's closer to two hours or two and a half?
I think it was closer to 2 hours.

* What's up with the Peter and Susan cameo? I've read reports that in one scene, Lucy says the beauty spell to turn herself into Susan, and we see what life would be like if Lucy never existed. Is that true, and if so, is that the bit from the TV spot where we see Edmund, Susan, and Peter in 1940s clothing at some garden party? Where does the trailer bit with all four Pevensies in Narnian clothing fit in, then?
Yes, Lucy wants to "be beautiful like Susan" so she has a vision of being in England and looking like Susan. So technically, it isn't a Susan cameo in that part of that film, it is Lucy transformed into Susan's body. I can't remember when all four Pevensies wore Narnia clothes...I think they did, I just can't remember when. Sorry.

* How does Eustace the dragon turn back into a boy? In the book, Aslan physically claws at his scales to reveal the boy underneath, but some movie storybook adaptations are saying he roars and there's a flash of light.
Aslan roars and there is a flash of light. A little bit later, Eustace describes the transformation to Lucy and Edmund.

* Do we find out exactly where this weird green mist originated from?
Sort of....it originates from an evil island our heroes reach toward the end of the story. They don't really explain it very well, though. I made a note of that on my comment card.

* Are there any allusions to The Silver Chair such as The Lady of the Green Kirtle? The filmmakers have said they've borrowed elements from that book to help establish continuity.
I don't believe they mentioned "The Lady" however, they did mention that Eustace's friend (I am forgetting her name right now) was coming over to play...or something like that. So her name is mentioned, but we don't see her.

* How long is the White Witch's cameo and what exactly is going on with Edmund in that scene? I've heard he's not really tempted by her as the trailer suggests. Is that true?
A theme in the story is that all the characters will be tempted. The temptation increases as they approach the evil island (I'm sorry I am not clear on the name of that island.) The white witch basically tells Edmund that he can rule over her if she would like. I mentioned earlier about Lucy's temptation...she wants to become beautiful like Susan. She fails to recognize her own inherent value in her longing to be like Susan. Edmund always struggles with wanting to be in control. Remember, he had to reign under Peter and now he is under King Caspian. This brings a bit of conflict between them. There is so much action surrounding the White Witches appearance, it doesn't seem that significant to the plot....it only creates a more intense atmosphere for the climax of the film.

Thanks a bunch in advance!

I hope you got some of your questions answered. I will try to get online here again soon in case you have any follow-up questions. I have no problem with answering any questions you might have. There is a chance the film might be slightly editted in its final form in comparison to what I saw. I am not sure.

[SmartAleck25]

My family and I are going to see it opening night! Excited cause I'm missing out on Tangled , but Narnia's just so darn epic!

[milojthatch]

It's almost here! And can I just say that I really love the newest trailer?

[Disneykid]

Thanks for answering all my questions, MichaelLeah! Those were the only things I was wondering about, so anything else that comes to mind can just wait till the film's release since it's only 8 days away.

And in some late news, we've got a bunch of clips.

Eustace vs. Reepicheep
The Book of Incantations
Goldwater and the Dufflepuds

Behind-the-Scenes #1
Behind-the-Scenes #2

[Barbossa]

Dawn Treader had a royal premiere:
BBC: Queen braves cold for Chronicles of Narnia premiere
The link has an article and a video.

[Kyle]

Yikes, 50% on RottenTomatoes.
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chronic ... n_treader/

About to see it in a couple of hours, hope I don't end up hating it.

[TheValentineBros]

I hope I don't end up hating it neither when I see it.

[milojthatch]

I saw the midnight show and loved it! The theater was packed with collage kids and older adults mostly, which was fun seeing the age differences (I'm sure screens that where not at late hours of the night had tons of kids) and it seems like everyone enjoyed it. People clapped at the end. I hope it turns out that it dose well (and that "Tron" tanks) so that Disney will feel really stupid for letting it go like they did. Time will tell.

[dvdjunkie]

Just saw this fabulous flick and I can tell all the nay-sayers out there that they are barking up the wrong tree. This movie rocks from the very opening scenes until the credits roll. And make it a point to see this in 3-D. It's the first live-action film that uses 3-D to it most value. Really enjoyed this film.

One hour and 50 minutes of great entertainment. And this time it is totally a family movie that anyone from 6 to 106 will thoroughly enjoy. The photography, editing, sound, and story are all top notch.

I could care less about what Rotten Tomatoes thinks, they have never guessed right on any movie that I like. Just shows that they are collectively just one opinion along with all the other 'nimrod' critics who think movies need foul language and nudity to make a good film.

Prince Caspian looks cool with his new facial hair and he got rid of that god-awful accent from the last movie. Our favorite White Witch makes a brief cameo appearance (Tilda Swinton) and the rest of the cast is back to entertain us all.

I will definitely see this one again before it leaves the theater, and it now sits at the top of my "must have" Blu-ray list of DVD's.

[DancingCrab]

Ouch @ the box office intake on Friday. Not even $9 million. If this doesn't pick up steam the next couple of days we are looking at a big financial flop.

I'm gonna try and catch a showing tonight. At least with the bad reviews and low attendance, my expectations are low going in, so I will probably end up enjoying what may be the last of the Narnia films now.

[Disneykid]

I really enjoyed the film for what it was, but it was a definite step down in quality from the first two. With the Disney/Adamson films, Narnia felt like a real, grand place. Everything was very natural and realistic, and the performances were convincing. With Fox/Apted's film, however, Narnia feels stagey and dare I say hammy. I also feel the first two were beautifully subtle in their themes and character development. In this one, everything's spelled out for you, and in case you miss a scene where they spell something out for you, you're outright bludgeoned over the head with it later on.

I'm also not a fan of the digital photography used in this film. Certain scenes exhibit a weird motion blur like if they were from some old BBC program, and all of the dark shots are crawling with noise. It makes the film look cheaper than the first two.

Random thoughts of mine under the spoilers:

* I love the opening shot and how it merged with the Walden Media logo, continuing what was started in Prince Caspian.

* The transitions both to and from Narnia at the beginning and end of the film were really well done.

* Will Poulter was decent as Eustace, but I didn't find him as amazing as most people seemed to. I thought he overacted the part a bit too much. Skandar Keynes was a more convincing brat in LWW. I do, however, think Poulter did a great job with Eustace's good side and am confident that his performance in Silver Chair and Last Battle (should those ever get made) will be fantastic.

* Simon Pegg did a very good job of Reepicheep. He sounded like Eddie Izzard more than I thought.

* I was happy to see Edmund's torch back. It makes for nice continuity from the second film.

* Eustace's girly screaming (which I honestly thought was Lucy till they cut to him) gets a thumbs up from me along with his personal hygiene award.

* The Magician's Island sequence was a mixed bag. I liked the Dufflepuds and the effect with the doors opening in the invisible house. However, Corakin's exposition about the green mist and seven swords was heavy-handed and hokey.

* I understand why they added the green mist and seven swords subplot, but why add something if you're going to do it half-heartedly? That whole connective issue addition didn't seem to have a great deal of thought put behind it. Why are people being fed to the green mist? Where is it coming from? Why would Aslan give the seven lords swords to protect Narnia when the Telmarines thought Narnia and Aslan were myths? If The Silver Chair ever gets made, they're going to have to really tie all this in with the Lady of the Green Kirtle and give us a heck of a lot of exposition.

* I really liked the "It's A Wonderful Life" moment with Lucy but felt it was far too short. It was nice to see Susan and Peter again (and the return of 1940s music). The transition from Lucy to Susan, which I realize is very easy to accomplish nowadays, was still impressive.

* The temptation of Caspian and Edmund at Goldwater wasn't convincing at all. It just felt forced, which is odd considering Skandar's the most natural actor of the four Pevensies.

* The effects on dragon Eustace was better than I expected, and the night scene between him and Reepicheep was sweet.

* Wow, the relationship between Caspian and Lilliandil was brief in the book, but in the film it was even more so. She doesn't serve much of a purpose other than to revalidate what Coriakin said and to let them know the seventh sword is at the Dark Island. After the sea serpent was defeated, Caspian should've returned to Ramundu's Island to find Eustace and exchange a few words with Lilliandil that helps solidify their relationship.

* So the green mist can take on the form of your worst fears. I like that concept, but why on earth did it materialize into a sea serpent? Edmund's spent the whole movie scoffing at the idea of sea serpents, and once they're at the Dark Island, he's worrying about the White Witch (more on her later). So why would he suddenly get anxious about the sea serpent? He never so much as says it.

* Now, as for the White Witch, I'm kind of iffy on her cameo. I adore Tilda Swinton and loved her cameo in Prince Caspian. Here, though, something felt off about her performance. Perhaps this would've felt less odd if we saw more of Caspian's father via the green mist, and maybe even a last attempt from the mist at tempting Lucy by morphing into Susan or something.

* Speaking of Caspian's father, this is another case of good idea, vague execution. If Caspian spent more time worrying about being a good king and living up to his father's legacy, the temptation would've worked better.

* The sea serpent battle was excellent.

* I wasn't big on Eustace's undragoning. I like how it started with Eustace trying to tear his skin off and Aslan doing it for him by clawing the ground. But this only lasted for a few seconds before the transformation turned into something from Beauty and the Beast.

* Eustace swiping the last sword at the green mist. Umm....what? This would've made more sense and looked less silly had the mist physically tried to assault Eustace by moving objects around the table or something. We know the mist is capable of doing this because it flipped the pages of Corakin's book to the beauty spell for Lucy.

* The scene at Aslan's country (or, rather, the beach right before it) was perfect. The effects here were excellent, and the dialogue was straight from the book. I knew beforehand that they included Aslan's dialogue about his other name, but I was still happy to hear it. This whole scene is almost too good for the rest of the film that came before it. Had more of the themes that are tied together here been fleshed out earlier, this sequence would've packed more of a punch.

* I love the Jill Pole reference at the end, and the shot of Lucy looking behind her at the painting as the door closes was potent.

* The end credits with Pauline Baynes' illustrations were beautiful.

So overall, I'm happy the film got made and felt entertained by it. That said, it has too many shortcomings to sit comfortably alongside the first two. I still want The Silver Chair to get greenlit, but that's looking less and less likely. Ah, well. At least the Lucy trilogy's complete as the series will both begin and end with her, and that's a better stopping point than with any of the remaining ones (save for Last Battle).

[rs_milo_whatever]

Disneykid, I honestly agree with you with everyone of your points, there. I stand in the same position of "loved but could have loved way more". I did not like Eustace's acting for the first half, it was way too dramatically overacted (redundance both intended and necessary); it was very "theater" with a slap of 1920's "that rat should not, be acting, see, it should be eating cheese, see" and at the same time talking while clutching his own throat. Mind you, he would be an amazing stage actor, but in film it felt too "in your face" and especially in this film, which was a long string of close-ups (medium shots where a very close-up shot of a group of three or for people and hardly even showing the edge of their bodies and the wide shots being close-ups of an island may be), so it was a film that intimately used facial expressions.

I'm really glad the people who did see it loved it. There was may be five different sets of people in my showing, including me and my cousin. I'm planning on seeing it again with other people, and this film needs those extra $10.


Also, wasn't the Dawn Treader itself so campy? The most important prop in the whole movie and they made it look like something out of an Adam Lambert music video.

[LucilleBallFilms]

Saw it today with my mom who went in not seeing 1 and 2 and expecting to not like it, and when she came out she couldn't stop talking about how much she loved it
I loved it too and I almost cried at the end scene where Reepicheep goes of into Aslan's land and them saying goodbye

3D: The 3D for me, I barely noticed it most of the time and when I did it wasn't amazing so I myself don't recommended 3D

Also, didn't Ben Barnes/Caspian have a spanish-ish accent in Caspian? I didn't hear any here and it threw me off If he didn't my minds sleepy and I imagine things

Annd I really hope they do make Silver Chair after seeing this one improve, but if they don't, they wrapped it up very well while leaving it open for SC. I was very impressed with the whole film, but I did have low expectations helping me along to like it

[Kyle]

Saw it in 2D. No one should be supporting these 3D conversion movies. at least not new movies like this.

Anyway, I came away a bit disappointed. The effects/eye candy were nice, but the plot came across as a fetch quest video game. And the last act felt like it dragged, with the sea serpent mainly. My problem wasn't even with Eustace as much as the overall plot and pacing.

I liked moments, but not how they all added up.

And judging from the box office this could very well be our last venture into Narnia. I was really hoping to see more.

[dvdjunkie]

Somebody is seeing a different movie than the full houses at our theaters are seeing. I haven't read a bad review anywhere, except Rotten Tomatoes and I never pay attention to them because they have never liked a movie that I did.

"Dawn Treader" was a big step above the first two. Remember Disney had nothing to do with the first two except the distribution rights. Walden Media is behind these films all the way, and I hope that they keep up the same tempo with "Silver Chair", which I am sure will be made.

And I have now seen this film three times in just two days. Once in 3-D and twice in 2-D and I will definitely agree with those who say that you aren't missing anything by seeing it in 2-D. It was just a novelty for me, as I haven't been able to see many of the 3-D releases except for "Despicable Me" and "Megamind", which I thought were amazing in their 3-D presentations. My next adventure will be in our World Class IMAX Theater when I go see TRON Legacy in IMAX 3-D.