Potter-ing About at Sea
With Susan (Anna Popplewell) and Peter (William Moseley) in America with their father, Lucy (Georgie Henley) and Edmund (Skandar Keynes) have gone to stay with their annoying cousin Eustace Scrubb (Will Poulter) and his parents. It is there that whilst all three look at a painting of a ship that they get drawn into the land of Narnia and aboard King Caspian's (Ben Barnes) boat the Dawn Treader which is a huge shock to Eustace when he comes face to face with a talking mouse. It seems that Caspian is on a quest to track down the seven Lords and their seven swords and now Lucy and Edmund as well as the reluctant Eustace are joining him.
I actually quite enjoyed "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian" it felt like the franchise had attempted to grow up and provide something which would appeal to an older crowd. Then comes along "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" and we have another evolution as it seems to be trying to do "Pirates of the Caribbean" with this sea bound quest for Seven Lords and there Seven Swords which constantly reminds me of the riddle of the man going to St. Ives with seven wives. But I digress which is easy to do as whilst young children may enjoy this third movie and its shorter running length I found myself drifting.
The trouble with "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is the sea bound quest where we have several little adventures which include a battle with sea creatures has been done before and so whilst it is based on C.S. Lewis' story it feels far too familiar. It also seems like it is trying to use a bit of "Harry Potter" style magic as well such as a scene where we have a library where snow suddenly falls from the ceiling. It probably works for young children but for grown ups it is sadly all too familiar.
In fact the best thing about "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is the casting of Will Poulter as Eustace because he generally comes across as annoying and at least that means he is a character which sadly isn't the case elsewhere.
What this all boils down to is that "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" probably does appeal to a young audience who love the special effects of the early "Harry Potter" movies but for anyone else it feels too familiar and ordinary.
