Dawn Treader sails into uncharted waters [The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader]

Watching The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, it occurred to me that C.S. Lewis didn’t write for modern movie studios. His Narnia stories, of course, are heavily laden with Christian metaphor, which doesn’t usually make for blockbuster films.

And he does something else no screenwriter would dare do in the third installment of a film series: He gets rid of two main characters.

One might argue that Lucy Pevensie (Georgie Henley) and her brother Edmund (Skandar Keynes) were the main characters of all three movies. But the truth is that C.S. Lewis’ books are not made with today’s movie-going audience in mind. The Narnia books do not have a single hero tying them together, unless one considers the lion Aslan to be that common bond.

In Dawn Treader, the characters of Peter and Susan are left behind (having traveled with their mother to America). Lucy and Edmund are unwelcome guests in the home of their cousin, Eustace Scrubbs (Will Poulter). Each unhappy with their current situation, the three children find themselves transported through a magical painting to begin a new adventure in Narnia.

Lucy (Georgie Henley), Caspian (Ben Barnes) and Edmund (Skandar Keynes) meet a heavenly woman on the island of Ramandu. (©2010 Fox-Walden)

They find themselves adrift in the Eastern Ocean, where a passing vessel rescues them. The Dawn Treader and her crew — captained by Caspian (Ben Barnes), who is now king of Narnia — are searching for seven missing lords who went out to find the source of a great evil and never returned.

Returning to the magical land of Narnia for a third time brings with it some struggles. As with any trilogy or film series, the audience comes with preconceived ideas about what they will see. It’s hard to “wow” an audience when they’ve seen fauns and giants before.

Instead of trying to one-up the past films, director Michael Apted makes a smaller film that centers on story rather than large battle scenes or strange, magical creatures.

If there is a downside to Dawn Treader, it is the fact that this story varies so far from the novel. The first two films were loving adaptations, adding to the story but never subtracting from it. Dawn Treader makes the mistake of condensing too much to make room for plot that doesn’t exist in the book.

As a result, memorable events in the book are reduced to nearly nothing. Along the way, the magic and wonder of the story is lost. The scene in the magician’s house, for example, loses its suspense. Instead of being one of the most memorable and frightening parts of the story, it’s almost a footnote.

In its defense, the characters remain true. Lucy is still the believer in Aslan, willing to follow him and terrified when he doesn’t immediately show up to help. Edmund is still living in someone’s shadow, though it is now Caspian rather than Peter.

In fact, even the mouse Reepicheep (voiced by Simon Pegg) comes across as familiar friend. One forgets he is a work of digital wizardry. Likewise, the Minotaur (Tamati Rangi) is so realistic he is just another crewmember aboard the ship.

Young Eustace is every bit the whiny brat that Edmund was in the first film, and it is quite evident he will be the most changed by his visit to Narnia. And it is his chance to be “born again” that helps fuel the Christian message of the story.

Without the Disney magic behind it, however, Dawn Treader suffers from a variety of inconsistencies with the other films. Caspian, for example, no longer has an accent.

The unexpected success of the first film in the series, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe brought with it a certain pressure for its sequels to match its success. Sadly, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian did not do as well. As a result, Disney Pictures asked that the budget for Dawn Treader be cut by a third. Walden Media balked and found a new partner in 20th Century Fox.

Sadly, it may be that 20th Century Fox has only prolonged the death of the franchise by one film. Dawn Treader seems to be a final voyage for the Pevensies and young Eustace. This is heartbreaking to those – like me – who are waiting to see the next film in the franchise: The Silver Chair.

Rated for some frightening images and sequences of fantasy action.
115 minutes
FilmGuru’s Rating: 3 out of 5 stars