Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Last weekend I watched the first two Narnia films to get ready for the new installment that opened Friday.  I am really glad that I did, as there was one part, at the beginning of Dawn Treader, where Edmund receives something and if I hadn't just watched the films I may have forgotten why he was given that.  So I do highly suggest that you see the first two again, before seeing the new film.

I haven't read these books, so I can't tell you how well it follows that story.  I can tell you that this film is pretty good, especially if you enjoyed the first two--though Prince Caspian is widely disliked, I honestly liked it more than the first--I think the final battle scene is pretty awesome.  This film is very different than the first two, really.  The entire story takes place at sea.  The plot is a quest to find 7 swords.  I will be honest, I found it rushed in some parts, but alas, I understand, as they have to fit the story into an allotted amount of time.

Edmund and Lucy return to Narnia, without Susan and Peter (who make extremely brief appearances in the film--though I understand it's a part of the story that they aren't in it, it was like they were missing from the adventure).  The fall up into the ocean, and are met by the Dawn Treader.  Their mission is to help to find the swords and get them to Aslan's table before evil takes over, or I should say the evil green mist.

We are introduced to a brat cousin of Edmund and Lucy's that ends up accidentally, on purpose, following them to Narnia.  At first, he really was annoying, and the fellow playing him, did a great job of making him that way, but then he becomes a hero (I will not tell you how, as it will ruin it for you, if you don't know the story--which happened to me), and somewhat likable.

There are a few returning characters: Reepicheep, the Head Mouse of Narnia, who is a delight on the screen and Prince, now King, Caspian, who seems to have changed his accent from Spanish to British--interesting--though I was disappointed that the Caspian character is rather flat in this film.

I guess that with never reading the books, or following the media around the films, I never really realized all the Christian undertones in this series.  Yes, I get it in the first film, Aslan sacrificed himself for the sinner, and then was resurrected--but I never put the pieces together (I must be slow minded, or the first movie was so well done it wasn't obvious).  But in this film's ending, it's kinda thrown at you, and frankly, it caught me off guard, and it pulled me out of the fantasy of the film, so that was a disappointment.  Yet, then again, knowing this now, it answers the question of why Aslan doesn't just fix the problems of Narnia himself...the "people" of the world must learn their lessons as they live their lives.

Overall, Dawn Treader is a great fantasy, adventure film; and I really hope that they continue to make the rest of the series (though first Disney dropped it, and now I've heard that Fox has too)...though I am saddened that since Edmund and Lucy have now learned their lessons, they will not be returning to Narnia, like their older siblings.  I know that's part of the story of the book, but honestly, I don't like it.  I have grown to love Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy...I would like to see what happens to them.  Though in the last scene of the film, we do hear a bit of an epilogue about them, I feel that it won't be the same without them.

This is a definite see, especially if you are a Narnia film fan...but honestly, there is no need to waste the extra money for 3D...don't see a lot of 3D in it; plus it wasn't filmed in 3D, it was added afterward with the CGI.