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

Did you ever wonder why children are so cruel to one another? Why do they automatically reject those who look, act or seem different? I’m sure the scientific answer lies deep within the confines of psychology textbooks, but films like “The Chronicles of Narnia” do not help. You see, the film itself is a grand achievement in acting, cinematography, music, special effects, even costume and art design. But the folks at Disney, who probably aren’t even aware of the fact, made one faulty judgment.

The film revolves around a power struggle in the Kingdom of Narnia, between the White Witch, played brilliantly by Tilda Swinton, and Aslan, a lion played by Liam Neeson, whose voice teeters on the edge of a full-fledged James Earl Jones narration. The four children, Lucy, Susan, Edmund, and Peter, literally stumble upon the kingdom, whose gateway lies inside a wardrobe in Professor Kirke’s house. Jim Broadbent graces the screen as the Professor for all of four minutes; time enough for the producers to garner extra credibility by featuring an Academy Award winner.

As the children make their way through the Kingdom, they are befriended by the good creatures, who immediately enlighten them about the struggle within Narnia between the White Witch, who makes everything winter, and all the other good-hearted animals (the lion, Aslan, included). Here lies the intrinsic problem with the film. We all love the eternal good versus evil struggle. Seeing the light shine above the darkness is embedded into most people with beating hearts. And the film does a wonderful job at promoting that fact. However, in typical Disney fashion, there is a tragic difference between the good creatures and the bad, one that tears away at the very fabric of society. Every single good animal is well groomed, attractive and perfectly loyal. This includes a golden lion, unicorns, a phoenix, the eerily pale children, even the centaurs are groomed and fortunate looking. And all the bad animals are deformed, dark-skinned, and obviously evil. Their group includes dwarves, ogres, giants and wolves. The only odd member is the White Witch herself.

Of course, I don’t need to worry about spoiling the ending for you, since you’ve either read the book or figured out by now that this is a Disney film. It just pains this critic to see the continuation of a mass social problem in one of the most popular children’s stories. It wouldn’t have hurt Disney in the least to at least mix up the colors slightly, including some of the lesser attractive animals on the good side and well-groomed baddies. At the very least, don’t exploit the fact that the bad guys only have one eye, and the absolute best, most supreme characters are both golden blonde. One of the scenes final shots shows the golden lion placing a crown upon the head of Peter, the eldest child and hero of the film. And Peter is white, blonde and has blue eyes. That says it all.

I have to say, I’m not surprised at Disney’s choice of creature, and they are retelling a 1950 children’s story, not a modern one. But Disney does have enough creative control that they could have taken at least one of my suggestions. All seriousness aside, Narnia is an enjoyable, worthwhile film, as long as you educate you children on the age-old fact that everyone is different, and good and evil lies not with our appearance, but our hearts.

Written by: Jason Villemez

Reviewers Rating: 8
Reader's Rating: 9.33
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