Summary

The Chronicles of Narnia continues in good spirit with this second instalment of the series. Production values and cinematography are of a high standard, as too is the understated acting of those portraying the Pevensie twins once more.  Though the story of Prince Caspian is not as alluring as the enchanting Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, this is still a film that should be well received amongst its target audience of older children, adolescents and fantasy film fans.

BBFC Rating: PG (SFC Opinion: PG)

The Plot

The characters of CS Lewis’s timeless fantasy comes to life once again in this newest instalment of the ‘Chronicles of Narnia’ series, in which the Pevensie siblings are magically transported back from England to the world of Narnia; this time whilst standing on the platform of London’s Strand underground station. Once in Narnia a thrilling, perilous new adventure and an even greater test of their faith and courage awaits them. The four siblings: Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, are pulled back into the land of Narnia, where a thousand years have passed since they left. The children are once again enlisted to join the colourful creatures of Narnia, along with heir to the throne Prince Caspian, in combating an evil villain who prevents the rightful Prince from ruling the land.

Artistic and Technical Merit

The estimated $200 million budget for Prince Caspian certainly shows through. Both the scale and quality of the production are impressive; from the opening sweeping shots of the land of Narnia at twilight to the closing scenes aside the mighty river, the production is very striking. And once more, thankfully, the action mostly takes place during daylight – allowing the beauty of the land to emanate through in its full glory. The scene of the dancing leaves in particular was quite remarkable; even if produced entirely through CGI.

The actors portraying the four siblings: Peter (William Moseley, b.1987); Susan (Anna Popplewell, b.1988); Edmund (Skandar Keynes, b.1991) and Lucy (Georgie Henley, b.1995) were easy to watch and their performances commendably understated. Ben Barnes’s (b.1981) performance as Prince Caspian was not quite so modest, though in the main he was also easy to watch and managed to avoid giving off a distracting Hollywood aura. 

Story-wise there can be little denying that this latest offering doesn’t offer quite the same enchanting appeal as the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. In the first of the series the children battled their way through a smothering of fur coats in an otherwise ordinary wardrobe, to make their way to a snow-covered land of talking animals only to be tempted by the White Witch with the allure of Turkish Delight. In Prince Caspian, the alluring fantasy elements and symbolism are lacking a little. The talking animals are still present but the originality for this film comes mainly in the forms of Peter Dinklage as Trumpkin (one of the smaller citizens of Narnia), the fighting mice, and the river saviour. Still, the good spirit of the first in the series has been recaptured and the ending is pleasantly satisfactory. 

Moral and Ethical Merit

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian communicates a strong message that good triumphs over evil, and that we shouldn’t do things out of impatience or by relying on our own strength.

There are continuous fighting and battle scenes throughout the production. The guilt of the evil King Miraz and the innocence of Prince Caspian are made clear early on in the film and therefore the following fighting is placed in an understandable, if still not ideal, context. For the most part, the sight of blood is kept to a minimum.

In the showdown between Peter and King Miraz, and then Prince Caspian and King Miraz, the message is clear that revenge is not an answer to anger and that one should not take an eye for an eye – or in this case, a life for a life.

There is an underlying theme throughout the film that if you treat children as adults they will rise to the occasion and mature in an appropriate way. But by stripping them of responsibility, frustration will grow, and their anger will manifest itself in forms such as the fighting witnessed in the underground station.

Redemptive and Spiritual Merit

One of the main messages to be taken from the film can be found in Peter’s ill-advised plan to attack the castle. Peter proclaims “we’ve waited for Aslan long enough – it’s up to us now!” before moving on to attack the king in his castle stronghold. Going by his own strength and knowledge Peter hatches a plan and leads the Narnians into battle. Though making some progress Peter is eventually forced to fall back – leaving some of his comrades to martyr themselves in the process. The episode is a clear reminder that we should wait for God’s plans to unfold and not take things upon ourselves out of impatience.

A few verses that illustrate the case can be found in Deuteronomy chapter one; where the Israelites, having not trusted in God, lose his good favour. Once they realise what has happened they then decide to go up to the Hill Country to fight the Amorites, but through Moses the Lord tells them “Do not go up and fight, because I will not be with you. You will be defeated by your enemies". Despite this, they go ahead anyway and in their arrogance march up to the Hill Country. However, without the Lord’s help they are chased back down again and fail in their plans to conquer the land and its people. The message is clear that if we act solely on our own knowledge, out of our own impulses or out of our own impatience, we will fail in our plans – quite possibly with devastating results. It is a clear reminder to wait upon the Lord and to trust His plans for us.

The other clear messages to be taken from The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, are the same as those found in the first of the series. The first of these is that there is an evil one out there that will tempt us with all number of appealing things to pull us away from doing what is right. And second, that the One who is ultimately in charge of our lives is indeed all powerful and all capable, yet at the same time is fair, just and approachable.

We are also given a trademark CS Lewis style reminder that the time we most think we are not ready for the task ahead of us is most likely the time when we actually are ready.

Content and Age Appropriateness

Younger children may find the battle scenes a little too much and may even find them frightening. There is little other objectionable content. The BBFC has rated this film PG. SFC concurs, though the film lies more towards the PG/12 end of the scale then the U/PG end.