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MY RATING: 8.5

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)

DIRECTED BY: Michael Apted

STARRING: Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, Will Poulter, Ben Barnes, Liam Neeson.

BRIEF SYNOPSIS: Lucy, Edmund, and their cousin Eustace are pulled into Narnia to accompany Prince Caspian on his voyage aboard the Dawn Treader.

PROS: Excellent adaptation of the book; Wittingly fun and magical.

CONS: Rather episodic; Motives could have been higher.

BOTTOM LINE: Whether you're a fan of the book or not, Voyage of the Dawn Treader will light up your imagination.

When I went in to see Voyage of the Dawn Treader I had low expectations. The film was based on what was probably my least favorite of the Narnia books. I was surprised to find that my expectations were unnecessary. In fact, I'd say this film gave me a better appreciation of the book.

Lucy and Edmund are forced to live in the house of their relatives. The nasty side to this is their cousin Eustace, an annoying practical boy with no use for fairy stories. The three of them are then magically drawn into the world of Narnia to the Dawn Treader, a Narnian ship commanded by their old friend Prince Caspian. Together they must sail into uncharted lands to find seven lost Narnian lords. To do so, they must travel to lands where no Narnian has ever returned.

The book supplies a number of difficulties when you are trying to adapt it to the screen. The book is very episodic. Okay, we're done here, now on to adventure number...which one are we on now? This makes is very difficult to provide cohesion between each adventure. Some of this was still translated to the screen, and unfortunately the film can feel a little disjointed. However, it is obvious that the filmmakers did their best to avoid this problem.

Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a very pretty film. Much of the focus of the story is spent admiring the magical beauty around them, not to mention the many sunsets and sunrises witnessed aboard the Dawn Treader. This makes the film exceptionally suited for children and those wishing to escape into a magical world.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was beautifully adapted. Normally I'm not one who supports deviation from the book, but in this case the filmmakers were able to add a lot of story elements that made it much more cohesive and enjoyable. First, would be the elaboration on the green mist, and weaving this theme through the entire plot. Second, the prolonging of Eustace's imprisonment as a dragon really aided the development of the character and made for a much better ending when battling the sea serpent. The ending in general was dramatized much more than it was in the book, which I thought was a huge improvement.

Much of the book and the film is spent with wild fantasy stories each with a certain allegory to them. Many themes of greed and jealousy run throughout the plot. Much of the story is spent moving on from one of these lessons to another. This, however, presents a problem in the motives of the characters. It often seems as if their primary motive is to continue on. This is a bit of a weak motive, and though it was improved in the telling of the film, the character motives could be a little stronger.

Overall, I'd say that Voyage of the Dawn Treader was an excellent new chapter in the film adaptations of The Chronicles of Narnia. Does the franchise deserve to continue? Absolutely!