media Narnia

Just got back from seeing The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It was just lovely, faster and harder than I was expecting, and scarier, and it was just about right. I read the book so recently that I was kind of afraid I’d remember it too well and resent the movie for anything it changed. The only thing I remember thinking was odd was that they moved Santa’s appearance to a slightly different part of the story, but I may even be remembering that wrong. They definitely stretched out the battle longer than it is in the book, but that works too, because it shows a couple of things about Peter that we didn’t really think to realize.

As far as the battle goes, I was thrilled with the centaur cavalry—just imagine not having to control your horse, as you are your horse!—and I liked that the cheetahs outran the front line before the first clash. I kept thinking, as I always do during movies with fantasy or period battles (Lord of the Rings, Kingdom of Heaven, and so on), “use more fire, you morons.”

So I was especially pleased with the phoenix.