I was not expecting 'Narnia' to be anything more than another failed attempt for Disney to draw in a fanbase with a Fantasy/Adventure film that kids could enjoy. I was plesently surprised by a film that I would consider the 'Lord of the Rings'? for a younger audience. I have never been a fan of C.S. Lewis' 'The Chronicles of Narnia' however I found myself drawn into the film due to its visual effects and wit.

From the opening scene I could tell the film would be more than I expected. A World War Two German Air Raid kicks off the film showing that Disney was not just trying to make another cheesy kids movie that parents would roll their eyes at. During this brief opening we meet the characters and can identify with their personalities immediately. While fleeing their house the second youngest of the children, Edmond, runs back in to grab a picture of their father. Peter, the oldest, begins yelling for the younger brother to come back and when Edmond doesn't listen Peter starts lecturing him about how he never listens to their mother. Being an older brother I can easilly identify with this situation.

The two sisters take a little longer to get to know. We first begin to understand Lucy's character when the children are sent away to live with 'The Professor' so that they aren't caught in the middle of the war. While playing hide and seek Lucy finds an old wardrobe and decides to hide inside it. She soon finds herself transported to the kingdom of Narnia. Upon returning to the professor's house she tells her siblings what happened. Naturally no one believes such a far out story.

I was actually surprised as to who long it took for all four children to go into Narnia. Edmond was the second to go through the wardrobe when he followed Lucy through at night. His experience is much different than Lucy's. He meets up with The White Witch who tells Edmond that she is the queen of Narnia. She then convinces him to lure his siblings into Narnia so that they can be 'servants.' Little does he know that she plans to kill them all in order to stop a prophecy and become the TRUE queen of Narnia.

When Peter and Susan finally go through the wardrobe with Edmond and Lucy they find out that there is a prophecy. The prophecy says that Two Sons of Adam and Two Daughters of Eve will come into Narnia to lead an army to war against the white witch. Susan's character is never explained well, but after the children find out about the prophecy Peter makes a brief comment about her always trying to be smart. Her character was the only one that needed work.

The best character in the film was the white witch. She was ugly, terrifying yet, during the scenes where she tries to trick Edmond, she could almost convince YOU that she was the rightful queen of Narnia. Her part was cast perfectly.

This film is long, but very well made. I never really liked the story of "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" and none of the movies made about it were at all impressive, however I found this film both entertaining and thought provoking. My favorite thing about the film was that there was a little bit for everyone. The kids had the mystical, fantasy half of the film while the teenagers and adults had the battle sequences and hidden meanings behind the story. I just learned today that the Lion in the film is a biblical allusion. According to several sources the Lion's sacrifice represents Jesus' sacrifice for man kinds sins. I didn't know this when I saw the film, but looking back on it now, it makes perfect sense.

Overall I suggest you see the movie. Though I don't believe it will be winning any Oscars, it is a great film to take kids to.

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