Good concept, poorly executed.

An Exercise In Nonsense

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Walden Media has done it again with a third wonderful Narnian fantasy adventure. The plot, the action, the effects, the acting and the humour all soar high! Despite being quite different from the book, it is quite good in its own right. Will Poulter does a fantastic job as the comically annoying Eustace Scrubb, who provides heaps of comedy (Poulter is the best actor in the film). The ending is also pretty good emotionally. It also has both the best effects and highest level of effects in the series. All in all, a good movie and a welcome ending to the trilogy.

Altho, no matter how bad a Narnia sequel can come out, I will always like it just because it is Narnia. Anyway, I am not saying this sequel is bad. Actually, it is pretty good. The visuals in all 3 movies were astonishing and breathtaking. The positive in this part was the fact that there were less characters, so the director was more focused on them and we could feel that. But the bad thing is that for me, things maybe went a bit out of the box, if you get me.

1. My first feature film in 3D. Honestly don't know what the fuss is about. The 10% of the time that the 3D-ness was actually used, it was pretty cool but most of the time, it's just an excuse to charge more for the ticket. I mean the adverts that came before used more of the whole 3D effect.2. Lucy's obsession with wanting to look like Susan was a bit weird. Lucy actually ~becoming~ Susan was even weirder. Still, it meant that we had Anna Popplewell on screen. (Has anyone read the book more recently than me and can tell me how close the film followed the book and what was changed? Was this entire storyline completely invented?) 3. The picture Lucy had of Susan and Peter in the photo frame in her room was one of my favourite behind-the-scenes photos 4. Cousin Eustace was really annoying for the first half of the film but then *spoiler* happened and he was less annoying.5. Caspian/Edmund vying for power .... total throw back to Caspian/Peter having the same fight. Edmund has a serious inferiority complex. He was much less annoying in this film though.6. Tilda Swinton always freaks me out.7. Reepicheep and Aslan ..... SO FREAKING CUTE. Yes, I know that they are animated characters but I want to hug them.8. Most importantly, WHAT THE FLIPPING HELL HAPPENED TO CASPIAN'S DODGY European ACCENT?!?!?!?!? He's back to being British all of a sudden! Did they watch Prince Caspian through and realise how awful it was that they just decided to scrap it?! HAVE THEY HEARD OF CONTINUITY???!?!?!?!?! Is there an interview out there where this question is brought up? Please say there is! (ETA: Found it ....... they just realised that CS Lewis was a quintessentially English writer which is why the Telmarines became British instead of some flavour of Spanish all of a sudden?!?!?!).Anyone else feel like this film was Pirates Of The Caribbean meets The Hobbit meets Harry Potter (especially that scene in the Magician's House) with a tiny bit of Narnia thrown in for good measure? Lol. It was good, though. The CG work was amazing.

Nearly 40 minutes shorter than the previous two films, but feeling much longer, 'Dawn Treader' lacks anything resembling a story, compelling drama or interesting and relatable characters. There's no villain, save for "the villain within", but that aspect is handled so poorly that it often feels like watching someone play a video game using an invincibility cheat code. Speaking of video games, the special f/x look cheap and obvious, and the once lush production values also take a nosedive. The action is also dull and poorly shot/staged, with director Michael Apted (taking over for Andrew Adamson as the franchise moved from Disney to 20th Century Fox) clearly seeming out of his element and over his head.On the positive side, I guess, is that a very young Will Poulter makes for an extremely annoying Eustace, which I guess is the whole point. His character journey is handled quite poorly, especially compared to Edmund's in the first film, but it's the only one we get, so... And though your mileage may vary depending on your beliefs, 'Dawn Treader' doesn't skirt the allegorical aspects nearly as much as certainly 'Prince Caspian' did. Particularly at the end.There's really very little, if anything, to recommend here. It's dull and poorly made, connecting up with the previous two films like a Lincoln Log to a Lego.