Review in a Hurry: Rejoice, Narnians! This action-packed sequel is bigger and better than The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It's also sexier, thanks to the dashing Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), who—with help from the Pevensie poppets—attempts to unite the kingdom of Narnia. You can almost hear princess' hearts everywhere flutter.
The Bigger Picture: The lion and the witch make only cameos, and the wardrobe is nowhere in sight. But this second installment, based on the C.S. Lewis classic, features entertaining new characters—and enough magic and adventure to please children and adults.
Sure, the 2005 hit had its charms, but it also got bogged down by stiff acting and stilted dialog between siblings Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Popplewell), Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and Lucy (Georgie Henley). This time, director Andrew Adamson keeps those scenes to a minimum, as we and the wee ones are quickly whisked from WWII-era London to Narnia—via subway.
It's been a year since their last visit, but 1,300 years have passed in Narnia. What a difference a millennium makes: The land has been conquered by Telmarines—a bunch of glowering, black-bearded guys who speak with a vague Mediterranean accent. And their leader, King Miraz (terrific Sergio Castellitto), has usurped the throne from the rightful heir, his nephew Caspian (Barnes).
So the prince, the Pevensies and plenty of cool creatures take on the swarthy army in several spectacular battles. The CGI effects here are slicker, blending more seamlessly with the live action and the backgrounds. And amazingly, even with all the violence, the film remains virtually bloodless, snagging a PG rating.
Though darker in tone, Caspian still generates more laughs, with amusing turns by Peter Dinklage as cranky dwarf Trumpkin and Eddie Izzard as the voice of swashbuckling mouse Reepicheep, reminiscent of Puss In Boots (not surprising, since Adamson also helmed Shrek and Shrek 2).
Just ignore all the chin pubes, dueling accents and heavy-handed Christian allegories and you'll enjoy this kick-Aslan sequel. Here's hoping the Chronicles keep getting better.
The 180—a Second Opinion: First, Speed Racer spins its wheels for a mind-numbing 135 minutes, and now Prince Caspian wages war for a butt-numbing 144 minutes. Kids barely have the attention span to sit through a Skittles commercial, so why subject them to such bloated running times?