Film File - The Chronicles Of Narnia: Voyage Of The Dawn Treader

As a well-timed seasonal distraction for the young and not so young, this latest instalment of the 'Narnia Chronicles' arrives in just the right space for pre-Christmas cinema-goers to enjoy while someone else worries about the shopping, presents and the turkey. The new film is based on the third of CS Lewis's seven-book series published between 1950 and 1956 and long regarded as one of literature's most enduring and imaginative works, selling over 100 million copies in over 50 different languages. The first film based on the original Narnia book, 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe', became one of 2005's biggest box office earners, followed in 2008 by 'The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian', another big hit at the box office. Published in 1952, the story's events take place three years after the preceding novel, 'Prince Caspian'. This time around, the two elder Pevensie siblings are out of the picture, with the two youngest, Lucy and Edmund (Georgie Henley and Skandar Keynes), visiting a relative at his home near Cambridge in wartime England of 1943. The pair's greatest challenge there is dealing with their annoying cousin, Eustace Clarence Scrubb (Will Poulter) - until, that is, the three young people come across a painting of The Dawn Treader, a majestic sailing vessel whose prow depicts a dragon's head, the stern its tail, and wings adorn the starboard and port sides. The canvas suddenly comes to life, flooding the room and submerging the teens before transporting them to Narnia's Eastern Sea, where they are rescued by King Caspian (Ben Barnes) and his crew aboard The Dawn Treader, the very same single-masted ship depicted in the artwork. Edmund and Lucy are thrilled to be back in the land they once ruled as a High King and Queen - though the perpetually whining Eustace, a newcomer to this world, is much less enthusiastic. The trio soon learn the reason for Caspian's voyage east: he is fulfilling an oath to find the seven lost Lords of Telmar, the best friends of his murdered father. Their journey takes them to five islands, each of which brings the ship's crew peril and adventure, and each with its own hidden secret. Caspian and his men discover the existence of an evil green mist that has powers to kidnap not just people's bodies, but their minds as well. An old magician, Coriakin (Billie Brown), explains that to break this deadly spell, they must find the seven lords and retrieve each of the swords gifted to them by Aslan (Liam Neeson) to protect Narnia. Once collected and laid upon Aslan's banquet table, the swords will empower them to defeat the mist and the Witch. Without this union of the seven swords, they and Narnia will be destroyed. The voyagers' task is daunting, as they must brave violent seas and a monstrous sea serpent on a life-changing journey to the far edges of the world. In the same way that the previous two films worked as metaphors for the loss of childhood, this latest is no less emotional. While the elder siblings, Peter and Susan, had their moment of gallantry and heroism in 'Prince Caspian', 'The Voyage of the Dawn Treader' works similarly as Lucy and Edmund's final adventure. Full of action and derring-do, just like the others, there's plentiful episodes of magic moments, sword fights, awesome beasties and well-delivered special effects. However, given that the core theme of the story is about defeating the darkness that rests within all of us, the film does occasionally suffer for want of a decent villain like Tilda Swinton's White Witch or Sergio Castellitto's evil Uncle Miraz. Director Michael Apted has taken over the helm from New Zealander Andrew Adamson and produces a rattling good yarn where the deeper emotional aspects concerning the passage from childhood to maturity are never allowed to interfere too much with the forward momentum. The latest film is on a par with 'Prince Caspian', but still a way behind the buzz created by the original 2005 adaptation.