Review of the Movie The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Hide in the wardrobe and you'll step in to the realm of fantasy.

Afraid for the safety of her family during bombing raids of the war, Mrs. Pevensie (Judy McIntosh) sends her four children; Lucy (Georgie Henley), Edmund (Skandar Keynes), Susan (Anna Popplewell) and Peter (William Moseley) to the home of the Professor Kirke (Jim Broadbent) out in the country.

The children out of boredom play a game of hide and seek. Lucy finds a room housing a large old wardrobe where she decides to hide. Inside of the wardrobe, she discovers snow, a pine tree, the outdoors, in fact the whole amazing world of Narnia.
Her brothers and sister do not believe the tall tales of young Lucy, but they soon discover that her stories are all true as they find their way into Narnia.

Now the young explorers find out that their arrival had been prophesized and they are to take part in a war to end the century long winter of Narnia. All of the inhabitants of the land have been awaiting them and have all chosen sides for the coming war out of courage or fear. The side of evil is ruled by the White Witch (Tilda Swinton), the self proclaimed queen, while the side of good is lead by the brave Aslan who has finally returned.

This movie is one of wonder, discovery and adventure. The world of Narnia is amazing. It is a living fantasy world filled with mythical beasts. The zoo of the fantastic comes to life including creatures such as centaurs, griffins, cyclopes, dwarves, giants and satyrs. Humans are the oddities in Narnia and are referred to as the "Sons of Adam" and the "Daughters of Eve", an obvious religious reference.

The movie is definitely geared specifically to children. The whole story is one of children growing to meet the challenges of this fantasy world. It also addresses personal growth past issues of rebellion and treachery. The drawback though is that the story shows battle scenes with a great deal of violence that may not be appropriate for all children (happily though, no gore).

The only weakness of this story is found in the obvious foreshadowing of the gifts and weapons presented to our four adventurers by Father Christmas. Don't ask how he got into this… Each has a more than an obvious purpose and the presentation of their value is shoved into focus at every possible moment.

Go and see this. The story was worth the wait and the visuals demand the big screen. Enjoy.