Article by Cameron Spink

 

The thing about the Narnian books is that they are primarily aimed at children and the movies are no different. Perhaps this is why, in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the ideals that translate from the book are more blatant than the interwoven messages from the first two.

 

This movie centres on Lucy (Georgie Henley) and Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and they don't take long to re-enter the mystical land of Narnia. Unfortunately they are followed by their very annoying cousin Eustace Scrubb (Will Poulter). But no matter, as straight away they are rescued from their water-filled picture frame by their old friend King Caspian (Ben Barnes).

 

 The story is not explained particularly well from here, however, it seems King Caspian is on a quest to find seven lost lords who fled deep into the Narnian seas. With this explanation the adventure begins. The Dawn Treader is whisked to countless islands and many different adventures. From slavers dens to magician's gardens, past dragon hoards to the end of the world.

 

This instalment contains several improvements from its predecessors. To begin with, the Christian themes that overflow through C.S. Lewis' books are more prevalent in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. For example, Aslan alludes to himself being known by another name in the physical world and the character of Reepicheep exemplifies the spiritual journey of a Christian. Beyond that director Michael Apted managed to get the series out of the rut of having excessively large battles for limited purposes. The fighting is shorter with greater purpose (this also might account for the more modest running time).

 

Of all the performances it is Will Poulter who stands out the most. While his role is sizeably less than his character in the book Poulter makes an excellent Eustace Scrubb. He transforms from a selfish child whose decisions put all his sea mates in danger to a responsible teen who saves the day. Such a conversion is due to the actions of Aslan who interjects at just the right time. Another performance worth noting is Eustace's sidekick Reepicheep, voiced by Simon Pegg. Pegg is quickly becoming one of the most reliable comedy actors in Hollywood.

 

However, it is not all good news for this movie. This film appears, at times, half-hearted. The characters are only reasonably accessible, the storyline is messy and the antagonist spawns from Edmund's fantasies. It seems that what works well in a book doesn't translate so well onto a movie. In this case I am referring to the climax. While, in the book, the climax is the meeting with Aslan at the world's end the movie cuts corners and makes the climax an epic fight with a sea serpent that comes across as ... well, wet.

 

Furthermore, the special effects are ordinary. The dragon looks droopy, the sea serpent overdone and, worst of all, the world is too crisp. That's right, it's all just too perfect. The director would do well to take a page out of Peter Jackson's book on how to make a great fantasy. The test is not to make perfection but to make realism and that requires a grittiness that The Voyage of the Dawn Treader does not possess. Instead, the world seems limp and this severally limits the adventurous nature of this movie.

 

Unfortunately, with these shortcomings, the movie is only mildly enjoyable and has no real lasting value.

 

2.5 / 5 stars