By Katey Rich
With Speed Racer considered basically a non-contender at this point, there's only one man who can save families and give them all something to cheer for this weekend: Prince Caspian. The latest installment of the Chronicles of Narnia will surely be the movie to dethrone Iron Man this weekend, and may manage to best its predecessor by debuting in a highly lucrative summertime window. Or, to talk about it in non-movie jargon, it's got swords! And battles! Who won't love it? Plus, Caspian is the only wide release of the weekend, which means most Americans looking for something new will love it, dollar-wise, whether they like it or not.
PRINCE CASPIAN. Opening in 3,800 theatres. Taking place 1300 years after the events of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian finds the titular hero exiled from his own kingdom when his evil uncle Lord Miraz usurps the throne, which is rightfully Caspian's. Endowed with a magical horn, Caspian summons help from the ancient kings and queens of Narnia, who, in our world, are children-- Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Popplewell), Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and Lucy (Georgie Henley) Pevensie. Magically transported back to the kingdom they loved, the Pevensies team up with Caspian to defeat Lord Miraz and restore Narnia, which has changed since Miraz banished all magical creatures to the forest. Eventually returning to help them in their quest is the noble lion Aslan (voiced by Liam Neeson). Peter Dinklage appears as the dwarf Trumpkin, and Eddie Izzard voices a gallant mouse named Reepicheep.
Largely unmoved by the first film, I wrote in my review that Caspian is more dramatic than its predecessor, but still lacks a certain verve: "Caspian feels like another trip to Middle Earth, absent the pulsing heartbeat that made Peter Jackson's films so glorious." The Hollywood Reporter calls the film "less wondrous" than Wardrobe, but concludes that "the return to Narnia still casts a transporting spell." Owen Glieberman at Entertainment Weekly writes, "Creatures or no creatures, we've seen it before," and Peter Travers at Rolling Stone chimes in by writing "No sense in complaining that you're watching Lord of the Rings lite. That's the point." And The San Francisco Chronicle's review is especially downbeat, calling it "one of this year's biggest disappointments."
No comments:
Post a Comment