Narnia doubts potential continuation

Writer: Anne Jamaludin

Lucy, Caspian and Edmund upon meeting with Lilliandil, their half star guide in "Voyage Of The Dawn Treader"

9 Dec – "The Chronicles Of Narnia: Voyage Of The Dawn Treader" director, Michael Apted expressed his doubts about the continuation of the Narnia franchise after the third movie because the original books by author C.S Lewis go "haywire" after The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader.

Apted, who took over the director's seat from Andrew Adamson shared his concern in an interview with Reuters, "I would be surprised if they did all seven books. I suppose the fourth one might work better now after the changes we made in the third but after that it goes haywire. With a franchise, the continuity of characters is actually quite crucial and I don't know how they are going to get beyond book four. I think it is a problem."

"They (the C.S Lewis estate) were a bit put out by it at first. We gave them the original script to look at which was the pure adaptation of the book, and I think that they could see there was just an inner inertness to the story," added Apted in regards to changing huge swathes of the latest story plot to make-up for the lack of movie narrative inside the pages.

Nevertheless the British director said he would be prepared to direct a fourth film were it to be made and if he was asked to continue with the next Narnia project.

The first movie "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" was a hit with global ticket sales of USD745 million while sequel "Prince Caspian" did not bode as well despite earning USD420 million in ticket sales, causing Walt Disney to withdraw from the whole franchise before Fox saddled up for the project.

It seems to be a make-or-break situation for the Twentieth Century Fox and Walden Media production, unless the wind shifts to a smoother sailing for its opening this week.

Will this be the last journey into Narnia at the movies?

The gripping, effects-laden 3D film witnesses the younger Pevensie siblings embarking on another Narnia adventure onboard the Dawn Treader ship, helmed by their old friend, Prince Caspian. Together they must travel to the Lone Islands and beyond to search for the seven swords that will unlock true magical powers in order to prevent Narnia from an unfathomable fate.

Cinema Online's "The Chronicles Of Narnia: Voyage Of The Dawn Treader" contest winners recently attend the premiere screening at Cathay Cineplex at e@Curve, Damansara.

After the movie, we asked some of the viewers what they thought of the movie and how many stars would they rate it out of five.

Daniel Ngan: "Best of the Narnia trilogy in my opinion and it's more realistic compared to its predecessors. 4 stars."

Imran: "It was really good though less action compared to its first two movies. 3 stars."

Claude Hor: "One of the best Narnia movies with a moving storyline, good casting and swashbuckling actions. 4 stars."

"The Chronicles Of Narnia: Voyage Of The Dawn Treader" is now showing in cinemas!