Chronicles of Narnia - THE MOVIE

[Josh]

<A HREF=http://www.filmhobbit.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&postid=31133#post31133>HNN has the story</A>

But why is he starting with the second book in the series? Won't that be somewhat confusing?

Narnia is a wonderful group of books. More kid oriented than LOTR by far, but wonderful. Been a very long time since I read them though.

[Taln Hess]

Actually... they've changed the order of the books. It used to be that The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe was the first book in the series, so it is the best known.... it would make sense to start there and then move foward with sequels and backwards with prequels.

The nice thing about these books is characters seldom flow from movie to movie, so each movie can be cleanly cast for the most part without having to contract people for 5 films.

(And I can prove the order's been changed. I have an original set of the books that orders them differently then the set by girlfriend bought in the store earlier this year).

[Taln Hess]

And although I should resist... I can't...

Sixty Nine Dude! (the above post was my 69th post)

[Josh]

lol Taln.

I always have been confused about which book was first. Hm.

Any idea why they screw around with the order so much?

Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe IS the most well known, so it does make sense to start with that anyway I guess.

My main worry is that this particular tale, unlike LOTR will lack appeal to adults. It is VERY geared towards pre-teens and I'm not sure what kind of attraction this will hold for adult audiences.

Then again, I haven't read them since I was about 13, so maybe I need to read them as an adult to see, but I'd expect them to appeal mostly to the staunchest and youngest sector of the Harry Potter crowd.

[Luthien Tinuviel]

I myself am quite excited about the Chronicles of Narnia movies. I have been a fan of CON for a very long time. I am not so worried about it not having appeal for adults than I am about them screwing up the story. Though I'm also hoping that CON will not become as mainstream as Harry Potter (I loathe, despise, destest, more words that imply extreme hate Harry Potter) and to have dozens of kids dressing up as Aslan would seriously change my view of the books. That's why I became anti-Harry.

[Tick]

What about LOTR then? It doesn't get much more mainstream than that, still you seem to like it.
Honoustly, I think I liked it better before the movies, I'm not sure why, perhaps because of the reason you just gave..

[Luthien Tinuviel]

You do have a point Tick, but I can't explain why I do not feel that way about Lord of the Rings. I can say that if the Chronicles of Narnia becomes mainstream, then it will seriously undermine the spiritual value of the books. I guess the same could be said for LotR... Dang I seem to contradicting myself. I need some time to think this one out.

[Josh]

I think it has to do with Potter being more kid oriented Luth. Which is what I fear for Narnia. I don't fear popularity, I just fear kids in Harry Potter glasses. :lol

[Doom]

I've only read the Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (as far as I remember), so I'm glad they started there.

[Luthien Tinuviel]

Kids in Harry Potter glasses just piss me off, but anyway, off of that subject... I am interested to see how they portray each of the characters in the book. Not to mention the various other creatures in Narnia. I've heard that John Howe has signed on as a concept artist. That's good news!

[Josh]

My worry is that Aslan will be in CGI. Nooooooo!

Bring in Jim Henson's Creature Shop! (I wish)

[Luthien Tinuviel]

I have an ancient made-for-TV version of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in which Aslan was a puppet. I guess I'll have to watch it again b/c I haven't even looked at it in over 10 years. I hope that Aslan won't be CGI. It wouldn't seem right. Aslan always was more like a person in a lion suit than an actual lion. But then again, that's just from my perspective. The filmmakers might feel differently.

[Taln Hess]

Oooh remember the lion they used to have with Jim during his intros to The Jim Henson Hour? That would be so cool...

It'll be CGI though.... :(

As I said, my girlfriend just finished reading the series, and a lot of my friends have it in their collection, so I think it's interest remains beyond children.

[Josh]

Originally posted by Luthien Tinuviel
I have an ancient made-for-TV version of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in which Aslan was a puppet.

Is that the British miniseries? I had that on tape as a kid, watched it many times. Not bad at all.

[Josh]

Originally posted by Taln Hess
Oooh remember the lion they used to have with Jim during his intros to The Jim Henson Hour? That would be so cool...


That is EXACTLY what I was thinking of Taln!!!!

That Lion was always so AMAZING. It is a shame that we won't see work like that anymore with CGI hogging everything. Real shame. :(

[Luthien Tinuviel]

Nowadays nobody in the film industry wants to use puppets. It's like using cassettes when you could be using CDs. Unfortunetly they also seem to forget that just because something is CG does not make it believable nor does it make the movie any better. Case in point: Star Wars Episode II. The CGI was great! The movie still sucked. I really hope that the makers of The Chronicles of Narnia movies seriously give some thought to that before they suck all the life and believability out of the character of Aslan.

[phenotype31]

The best version of Aslan that I ever saw was in the play. I think I was around 15 when I saw it.

Anyways, I think that CGI is a double edged sword for the film industry. I can never put my finger directly on the problem conceptually, but it feels like when something major is done really well in CGI it ends up looking a little more fake.

Maybe I shouldn't have posted the above because I can't really explain how I experience it. But with cerain things (the Smith/Neo brawl in Reloaded for example) there are moments where you are more aware of how fake something looks, rather than the content of the scene.

If they're going to do a blending of puppetry/visual effects and CGI, then they need to get the right director and art department working on it. Nothing worse than watching a puppet one moment and a CGI character the next. OK, maybe there are some things that are worse.

[Luthien Tinuviel]

The thing that springs to mind is the lion in Jumanji. It was soooooooo easy to tell what was machine and what was CG. Aslan should look realistic, but still be able to connect with the viewer.

[Josh]

Originally posted by phenotype31
Anyways, I think that CGI is a double edged sword for the film industry. I can never put my finger directly on the problem conceptually, but it feels like when something major is done really well in CGI it ends up looking a little more fake.

No, I and most other people would very much agree with you. The thing is, that there is a right and a wrong way to use CGI. When you become OVERLY reliant on it, do EVERYTHING in CGI, the way Lucas did in Episode III for instance, it ends up having a plasticy, weightless, cartoony feel to it... because CGI is simply not that good.

BUT if you use it in conjunction with other types of effects, real sets, costumers, characters, it can be WONDERFUL. Peter Jackson did that for LOTR, and in most places his use of CGI is seamless. Even better example is in <I>T3</I>, where CGI is again, used sparingly to spice scenes up and enhance REAL effects. Again it is completely seamless and is totally unnoticable.

That is the way to do it.

[ReservoirSean]

It's true though, since LOTR, i've really wanted to visit New Zealand.

[Taln Hess]

I wouldn't say it was totally unnoticable in T3...

I just wonder what happened to the bar that was set by Jurassic Park? I mean jeez.. I remember seeing that movie 3 times in the theatre and still being convinced that Spielburg went out and found actual dinos to film. That was the first major use of CGI in films and somehow most films have found a way to devolve the process instead of take it to the next level.

I'm not saying puppetry is perfect. I'll be the first to say I loved yoda as a puppet, but he was way cool in AoTC.

[Josh]

Yeah well really you have a point. All the stuff in JP looks real. That was in what.. 92? Now we can't do cgi FX that look real anymore?

But that sorta proves my point. In JP they used robotic puppets, lifesize models, etc. in conjunction with CGI to make that movie happen.

[Luthien Tinuviel]

You're right about Jurassic Park Taln. I actually did think those dinos were real and it gave me nightmares for weeks. If the film makers can make CGI that realistic, why don't they?

[L8terDude]

OK... I went to www.narnia..com to find out about this new narnia stuff, but they havent updated it since 7/02.... and it said its gonna be a 'live action film'...is that like Shrek???

My question: Where can I find all sortsa info on this set of movies... if there is no website is there anyone who can post some info for me? How many movies they making, when filming starts, ideas for actors/ actresses..anything...everything... very interested. THANKS!!!

Marco

[Bordick]

Welcome L8terDude to the Film Hobbit phenomenon!

From the Associated Press:
December 19, 2003 — "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" will be shot in New Zealand starting mid-2004, according to Wellington's Dominion Post.

New Zealander Andrew Adamson, best known for the Oscar-winning animated feature "Shrek," will direct the film and Walden Media will produce it.

"We are extremely happy and excited to be starting work on the film in New Zealand," Wellington's Dominion Post Newspaper quoted Adamson as saying.

The movie is expected to be the first of five films based on Lewis' seven Chronicles of Narnia books, to which Walden holds the film rights.

The $110 million budget film will start production preparations early in 2004, although work on the Chronicles has already started at Jackson's Weta Workshop in Wellington.

That's about the best I can give you, other than that there's practically nothing out there as of now. Check HNN (http://www.filmhobbit.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=14) for any further updates that come in.


Originally posted by L8terDude
it said its gonna be a 'live action film'...is that like Shrek???

Live action means with real people, like your average film. Shrek is Computer Generated Animation....Ironically the two have the same director.

[L8terDude]

Thanks so much bordick for that information!! I am excited to see this unfold. wonder why narnia.com never gets updated!

[Bordick]

might not be as clued in as us here at FH :D

[Doom]

Yes, live action is EXACTLY like Shrek

[Bordick]

be nice Doom :lol

I refer you back to the NARNIA (http://www.filmhobbit.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6743) thread.

[Josh]

Yes, be nice. :lol

Shrek would be what they call an "animated film". It does look pretty real, but in fact it is not.

Live action would be like anything else. Like Lord of the Rings.

[Josh]

Yes, we rock and stuff.

[Bordick]

.......and stuff :D

[Sparrow]

Im so excited about this movie. I first learned of narnia when I was in elementry school and my mom read the books to me. Many years later (up to date) I bought the set for myself. I love the stories and I cant wait to see what they do to them. Im hoping they include more of the stories than they did with LOTR..many good parts of the book LOTR were missing in the movie. Hopefully since TCON has shorter books they'll be able to include more in the movies. I dont know if anyone has answered this yet...but the reason the book orders have changed so much is because the original order was the way the editor (or publisher) set it up. Later on they changed it to the way C.S. Lewis intended the order of the books to be. I have several copies of the books from the 1970-2000 and I think they clarify that subject up in the more recent books. Anyway like Ive said before I cant wait till the movie comes out!
-Sparrow

[crappertay]

Welcome to the board Sparrow. Rather indifferent to Narnia myself, but if they do as good a job as was done with LOTR I'll check it out. Proper good fantasy died after Legend.

[Sparrow]

Thanks, I found this place on a search and thought it was worth checking out. If TCON movies are anything like LOTR Ill be a happy girl....Im just wondering what books they are going to do? They said only 5 out of the 7 are being done...maybe they will come out with the other 2 if the first 5 do well? LOL
-Sparrow

[Into]

Originally posted by Bordick
Welcome L8terDude to the Film Hobbit phenomenon!



POINT OF ORDER:

Cinema Blend Phenomenon:p:moon




As for the Narnia news:

Andrew Adamson... has Shrek and Shrek 2 under his belt direction wise..well, co-direction I guess. Plus, a few other credits as visual effects supervisor.... so, I take it that The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe will not be filmed in CGI, so let's hope this guy can handle live action as well as he can CGI.

I have never read the Narnia books, so it'll be kind of like LOTR for me, except with a more child oritiented story, and a director that I'm not exactly a fan of.

[Arctic]

Originally posted by Sparrow
Im just wondering what books they are going to do? They said only 5 out of the 7 are being done...maybe they will come out with the other 2 if the first 5 do well?

hi and welcome sparrow!

Walden Media, the production company behind the Narnia films, has optioned the entire seven-part series for film development. not that that requires them to develop the films, but it makes it seem possible.

[Bordick]

Originally posted by Intolerance
POINT OF ORDER:

Cinema Blend Phenomenon:p:moon

POINT OF ORDER:

On December 23rd....when I posted that...this place was still called Film Hobbit...the CB changeover happened about a week later...wise ass!

[Josh]

How many of the movies they make probably depends on how well they do at the box office, since they're filming them one at a time. If the first one does well, they'll make a second and if the second does well they'll make a third... and so on.

Welcome Sparrow!

[Into]

Originally posted by Bordick
POINT OF ORDER:

On December 23rd....when I posted that...this place was still called Film Hobbit...the CB changeover happened about a week later...wise ass!

Uh huh, excuses, excuses. You just don't like the P.O.O. done to you.:p

[blueteeth]

Wow, there has been so much time since the last post so I thought I would start the conversation up even though we have another year to wait, here is some new stuff about the film:

http://www.joblo.com/index.php?id=5941

http://www.darkhorizons.com/news04/041130a.php

http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=18848

http://www.thehollywoodnews.com/news/news644.php

[garfield hates mondays]

:)