| The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical Poster | |
| Directed by | Andrew Adamson |
| Produced by | Mark Johnson Phillip Steuer |
| Written by | Ann Peacock Andrew Adamson Christopher Markus Stephen McFeely |
| Based on | The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis |
| Starring | William Moseley Anna Popplewell Skandar Keynes Georgie Henley Liam Neeson Tilda Swinton James McAvoy Jim Broadbent Ray Winstone Dawn French |
| Music by | Harry Gregson-Williams |
| Cinematography | Donald McAlpine |
| Editing by | Sim Evan-Jones Jim May |
| Studio | Walden Media |
| Distributed by | Walt Disney Pictures |
| Release date(s) | December 8, 2005(United Kingdom) December 9, 2005(United States) |
| Running time | 143 minutes |
| Country | United States United Kingdom |
| Language | English German |
| Budget | $180 million[1] |
| Box office | $745,013,115[1] |
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a 2005 epic fantasy adventure film directed by Andrew Adamson and based on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first published and second chronological novel in C. S. Lewis's children's epic fantasy series, The Chronicles of Narnia. It was co-produced by Walden Media and Walt Disney Pictures and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. William Moseley, Anna Popplewell, Georgie Henley and Skandar Keynes play Peter, Susan, Lucy and Edmund, four British children evacuated during the Blitz to the countryside, who find a wardrobe that leads to the fantasy world ofNarnia. There they ally with the Lion Aslan (voiced by Liam Neeson) against the forces of Jadis, the White Witch (Tilda Swinton).
The film was released on December 9, 2005 in both Europe and North America to positive reviews and was highly successful at the box office. It won the 2005Academy Award for Best Makeup and various other awards and is the first film in the series of films based on the books. An Extended Edition was released on December 12, 2006 and was only made available on DVD until January 31, 2007 when it was discontinued. It was the best selling DVD in North America in 2006 taking in $332.7 million that year.[2]
During the Battle of Britain, in the suburb of Finchley near London, Great Britain, the Pevensie children, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, are endangered by an attack of numerous German Heinkel He 111 bombers. When running to the shelter, Edmund runs back to the house to get a photograph of his father for which Peter scolds him. The next morning, they are evacuated to the country home of Professor Digory Kirke, who is not accustomed to having children in his house as Ms. Macready, the strict housekeeper explains.[edit]Plot
While the Pevensies are getting used to the house and Playing Hide and Seek out of boredom, Lucy discovers a wardrobe and enters a wintry fantasy world calledNarnia to her surprise. Lucy shortly encounters and befriends the faun, Mr. Tumnus, who explains about the land she has just entered and invites her back to his home to which she accepts. There, he puts Lucy asleep by playing a Narnian Lullaby on his flute. However, when she wakes up, Lucy finds Tumnus grieving and explains thatJadis, the White Witch, has cursed Narnia, and it has been winter for one hundred years. If a human is ever encountered, they were to be brought to her. Tumnus takes a huge liking to Lucy and cannot bring himself to kidnap her, so he sends her home. When she returns hardly any time has passed in the normal world, and her siblings do not believe her story since that when they look in the wardrobe, it has a normal wooden back. Peter than scolds Edmund when he jokes about believing Lucy to which Edmund responds by yelling at Peter and storms out of the room, believing that Peter is trying to be a father figure. (Persumably showing us that Edmund's behavior as bad began when his father was forced to fight in the war.)
One night, Edmund follows Lucy into the wardrobe, persumably to tease her about the country he thinks she has made up. However, he enters Narnia as well, and shortly after searching for Lucy. He meets the White Witch who claims to be "The Queen of Narnia" and her dwarf Ginarrbrik. She offers him Turkish Delight as well as the prospect of becoming king and having power over his siblings if he brings them to her house. After she departs Edmund and Lucy meet again and return; Lucy tells Peter and Susan about the experience, but Edmund lies about it. The Professor talks with Peter and Susan; he does not understand why they do not believe Lucy's story and gives them three possible logical explanations of Lucy's behaviour — madness, dishonesty and sincerity — the others know she is neither mad nor dishonest, so she must be telling the truth. However, they are still not convinced
While running away from Ms. Macready after accidentally breaking a window while playing Cricket, the four siblings retreat to the wardrobe and enter Narnia and apologize to Lucy. They discover Mr. Tumnus has been taken by the Witch's secret police and meet Mr. and Mrs. Beaver who tell them about Aslan. According to the beavers Aslan is on the move to take control of Narnia from the Witch. The four must help Aslan and his supporters; it has been prophesied that if two sons of Adam and two daughters of Eve sit in the four thrones, the White Witch's reign would end.
Edmund sneaks off to visit the Witch, where Mr. Beaver explains the witch's motive and that the siblings now must resort to reaching Aslan to save him. When he arrives at her castle, she is angry that he did not deliver his siblings. The Witch sends wolves to hunt down the children and the beavers, who barely escape with the help of a fox. Edmund is chained in the Witch's dungeon where he meets Tumnus. The Witch demands that Edmund reveal where his siblings are because her police could not find them; Edmund then tells her about Aslan and the witch demands to know where Aslan is. Edmund hesitates when Tumnus claims that Edmund does not know anything and Edmund tells the Witch that he heard no further information regarding Aslan. Seeing that Tumnus is hindering the information, the Witch tells Mr. Tumnus that Edmund betrayed him, then turns Tumnus to stone.
While Peter, Lucy, Susan and the beavers travel to the Stone Table, they see what they believe to be the White Witch chasing after them, so they hide. It is reallyFather Christmas, a sign that the Witch's reign is ending. Father Christmas gives Lucy a healing cordial and a dagger to defend herself with, Susan a bow and arrows and a magical horn that will summon help when blown, and Peter a sword and shield.
Pursued by wolves led by Maugrim, the group crosses a thawing river, leaving the Witch unable to reach them. The Witch's wolves then appear who captured the fox that helped the Pevensies escape. The Witch then demands that the fox reveals the Pevensies destination. Refusing to comply, the Witch then nearly turns the fox to stone and Edmund reveals that the Pevensies are heading to the stone table and that Aslan has already plotted his army. The Witch however still turns the fox to stone and slaps Edmund in the face for hiding information from her. Arriving at Aslan's camp, the group encounters Aslan, who is revealed as a huge and noble lion. Aslan promises to help Edmund in any way he can. Later, two wolves ambush Lucy and Susan while they are frolicking by the river. When Peter intervenes Maugrim attacks him and Peter kills him with his sword. After some of Aslan's troops follow the other wolf to the witch's camp and rescue Edmund, Peter is knighted by Aslan.
After Edmund and his siblings reunite, The White Witch journeys to Aslan's camp and asserts her claim to the traitor Edmund, but Aslan secretly offers to sacrifice himself instead. That night, as Lucy and Susan covertly watch, Aslan is killed by the White Witch at the Stone Table with a crowd of creatures watching. In the morning he is resurrected because "there is a magic deeper still the Witch does not know". Aslan takes Susan and Lucy to the Witch's castle, where he frees the prisoners that the White Witch turned to stone, forming reinforcements for Aslan's army.
Edmund persuades Peter to lead Aslan's Army to fight the White Witch's forces. Though Aslan's army begins to have a winning streak, The White Witch's huge army is much larger than Aslan's (aka Peter's), which Peter's army soon begins losing. To stop the Witch from attacking and killing Peter, Edmund attacks the White Witch and destroys her wand, but is fatally wounded by the Witch in return. Peter, angered at what the Witch did, fights her. As the Witch fights Peter, Aslan arrives with reinforcements and kills her. After Edmund is revived by Lucy's cordial, the Pevensies become Kings and Queens, staying in Narnia until they are adults.
Fifteen years later, whilst chasing a white stag through the forest, they come to the same forest clearing where the lampost is. Lucy begins to remember, and with Edmund, Susan and Peter following, fights through the trees, where tumble through the coats and out of the wardrobe and return to England, becoming children again. The Professor enters the room and asks what they were doing. Peter replies, "You wouldn't believe us if we told you, sir." The Professor tosses him the ball that broke the window and replies, "Try me." Lucy later attempts to return to Narnia via the wardrobe, but the Professor tells her he has been trying for years, and they will probably return to Narnia when they least expect to return.
[edit]Cast
Further information: List of Chronicles of Narnia cast members
- William Moseley as Peter Pevensie, the eldest of the four Pevensie children.
- Anna Popplewell as Susan Pevensie, the second eldest child of the four Pevensie children.
- Skandar Keynes as Edmund Pevensie, the third of the four Pevensie children.
- Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie, the youngest of the four Pevensie children.
- Tilda Swinton as Jadis, the White Witch, the main antagonist of the film who holds Narnia under an eternal winter without Christmas or Spring or Summer.
- Liam Neeson as the voice of Aslan, the great lion who was responsible for creating Narnia.
- James McAvoy as Mr. Tumnus, a faun who at first works for the White Witch, but befriends Lucy Pevensie and joins Aslan's forces.
- Ray Winstone voices Mr. Beaver, a beaver who helps lead the children to Aslan.
- Dawn French voices Mrs. Beaver, a beaver who helps lead the children to Aslan.
- Kiran Shah as Ginarrbrik, the White Witch's servant dwarf.
- Jim Broadbent as Professor Digory Kirke, an old professor. He lets the children stay at his country estate during the war.
- Elizabeth Hawthorne as Mrs. Macready, Kirke's strict housekeeper.
- James Cosmo as Father Christmas. He gives Peter, Susan, and Lucy their Christmas gifts.
- Michael Madsen as the voice of Maugrim, a wolf who is captain of the White Witch's secret police.
- Patrick Kake as Oreius, a centaur who is second-in-command of Aslan's army.
- Shane Rangi as General Otmin, a minotaur who is second-in-command of the White Witch's army.
- Morris Cupton as Train Guard, the guard of the train Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy ride.
- Judy McIntosh as Helen Pevensie, the mother of the four Pevensie children.
- Rupert Everett as the voice of a fox who helps the children along their way to Aslan.
- Cameron Rhodes as the voice of a Gryphon who helps Peter in the war.
- Noah Huntley as the adult Peter Pevensie, who has grown up as a king in Narnia.
- Sophie Winkleman as the adult Susan Pevensie, who has grown up as a queen in Narnia.
- Mark Wells as the adult Edmund Pevensie, who has grown up as a king in Narnia.
- Rachael Henley as the adult Lucy Pevensie, who has grown up as a queen in Narnia.
- Producer Philip Steuer voices Phillip, Edmund's talking horse.
The radio-announcer that Peter listens to on the rainy day near the beginning of the film is played by Douglas Gresham, co-producer of the movie and C. S. Lewis's stepson.[3] Keynes' voice broke during filming, so some of his voice track had to be re-looped by his sister Soumaya.[3] Mr. Pevensie is only glimpsed in a photo which Edmund tries to retrieve during the bombing, which is of Sim-Evan Jones' father.[4]
With the exception of Tilda Swinton, who was the first choice to play Jadis, the White Witch,[5] casting was a long process. Beginning in 2002,[6] Adamson went through 2500 audition tapes, met 1800 children and workshopped 400 before coming down to the final four actors for the Pevensies. Moseley and Popplewell came from the very start of casting, whilst Henley and Keynes were cast relatively late.[7] Moseley was cast because casting director Pippa Hall remembered she cast him as an extra in a 1998 dramatization of Cider with Rosie. He quit school to learn all his lines and beat 3000 boys to the role of Peter.[8]
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