Reminiscing Narnia
Missing my childhood life has brought me to the stage of re-watching classic fantasy movies that everyone’s love, Narnia.
When i think of this movie, the otherworldly opening gate of this unimaginable world always comes first to mind. The intersection between the real world and Narnia is never fails to amaze me. It was remarkable.
But, after re-watching it as an adult, as much as i love the Narnia world, i found some minus points (don’t judge me please) that i couldn’t notice when i was younger, and they’re kinda bother me.
As a casual enjoyer (not a film critic, nor the books reader), the start of the series, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for me really has a great and strong plot, but lacks of emotions building, and that is the closeness between the four and Narnian, Aslan especially.
I first watched Narnia on TV, and there were always an ads every 15 or 30 minutes, so i didn’t really notice the details. But after watching it again without ads, i noticed and felt a bit of dissatisfaction.
Aslan is The Leader of them all. When he sacrificed himself at The Stone Table, Lucy and Susan were there watching from afar and then they cried so badly.
Although i too feel sad, i don’t really feel the loss. That's because in the movie, they don’t interact a lot. They only showed really few moments between the four and Aslan, like very very few. It almost feels like they were only there for a day.
Also, their closeness with the Narnian army. For the Narnian to fully put their trust and faith in the four when there was actually little to none bonding shown between them, i think it was strange and rushed.
I wish there were montages of them, especially Peter, preparing for the battle. Scenes where they trained together with the Narnian, Peter with the centaur who was beside him and trusting him as the commander when Aslan was gone.
If that exists, we could’ve seen their closeness, the attachment between them, so that the emotions would be richer.
Ah, yes, the battle. The final battle with The White Witch. It’s great, but somehow it feels anticlimactic. It just went like that, ended like that.
At least i wanted to see more dramatic battle between Aslan and The White Witch, or between The White Witch and Peter or Edmund, but it ended so quickly. I wished to see an iconic battle scene…
The sequel is my favourite from all of the series. I don’t have much to say, cause for me, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is everything. The vibes, the bonding between each character, the magic, the battle, they’re all level up.
And the Prince Caspian. Oh.. Caspian. I don’t know how he was described in the book, but, he’s perfect. They’re genius to cast Ben Barnes as Caspian (sorry Andrew Garfield). The ending, the goodbye, The Call being played in the background…
Only IF they had given Susan and Caspian more moments together (which i believe they did in the book), the goodbye would be more moving, hurtful and impactful.
For me, I’m 100% okay if that’s really the ending of Narnia. It’s perfect. Too perfect, too beautiful that I’m too afraid they might destroy it in the next movie.
And... i hate that i was right. After watching that perfect one, the third movie is like a huge downfall for me. I feel like they shouldn’t have continued it. I don’t know about the book, but personally, this movie is unnecessary.
I somewhat feel that the production values are decreased. From the simplest thing like the uniform of the ship’s crew. They were sailing for months, had been through storms and all, but the shirts they wore are still extremely new and white.
It was just a small detail and it really bothers me a lot till the end. The visual effects too in some parts, like the green mist, it looks weird and unnatural.
The magic. The magic of Narnia. The key point, the main and most important thing in Narnia. The third movie kinda lost that thing. The magic like what’s in the land of Narnia, like what was in the first and second movies. And no, don’t tell me it happened because of an evil spirit that had something to do with the seven lords. I know that.
But, still… it was too bland, the world was too quiet for it to be Narnia. The atmosphere was just very different… I wish they had shown more of magical things in the ocean, on the island, everywhere they went.
But apart from that, i love the ending. I think the best thing that happened in this movie is the ending. I almost cried watching it. Maybe because finally, Aslan came and the magic I’ve talked about is finally there. The Narnia I’ve been longing for.
The magical waves and the peace, the farewell, it’s... very heavenly, heartwarming and touching. Only if they put more into this movie, this will become the best closure of Narnia.
All of those things making me wanna read the books. I wanna read all of the seven books just to prove that I was wrong about all that.
I wanna experience the real Narnia, the ideal Narnia that might not be represented in the movies.
I might feel dissatisfied in some parts, but, Narnia still and will always have a special place in my heart.
