When the film world was abuzz in pre-production rumors and marketing plans, I feared the utter destruction of one of the most beloved stories I ever read as a child and as an adult. . .one which I intend on reading to/with my own children. . .and one that's hard to translate to a visual medium, considering the lack of detail and dialogue in old Clive Staples' prose.
Yes my little chickadess, I am speaking of
The Lion the Witch and the WardrobeUntil my brother Joe assured me that though Disney was the distribution company, it had been written, produced and otherwise underwritten by an independent company, I feared for the worst. Aslan wouldn't talk; the Beavers would be eliminated; there would be no Father Christmas. . .or the story would be so distorted and manhandled that I would be tearfully searching for the PBS/WonderWorks mini-series version for the next ten or fifteen years.
I received the DVD for Christmas.
Tilda Swinton, who portrays the White Witch with a stature, iciness and terrifying presence, sealed the deal for me.
While not an exact translation from the (very short) novel, the film version did not disappoint me, as the animated version from the 1960's had and the mini-series had the potential to do.
The casting and effects were perfect. And, much like the crew responsible for the recent translation to film of JRR Tolkien's
Lord of the Rings, their love for the story was evident in every aspect of the film.
I hope that they're able to do the same for any future films, and am especially eager to see if they might proceed with their translation of the next two novels in the series -
Prince Caspian and
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader - which are two of my favorites, probably because these were the last two that my dad read to me (I read the others on my own.)
Agree or disagree, but let me tell you that we have NOT heard the last from Tilda Swinton.
