The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe

[poliphilo]

The first movie in the Narnia cycle is a whole lot better than the second.

But there are still problems

1. The Bad guy is so much cooler than the Good guy. Tilda Swinton v a pompous CGI lion: no contest.

2. Child actors. The little girl playing Lucy is a delight. The others not so much.

3. Violence for its own sake. I'll bet Lewis dismisses the climactic battle in a page. Here it goes on and on and on. 

Back to Aslan. If fictional characters who embody virtue are almost always boring- and they are- then our conception of virtue must be wrong.  

Comments

[steepholm.livejournal.com]

The battle in LWW was definitely filmed with an eye to the defence of Minas Tirith (I suspect they even reused some of the same props) - was there perhaps an orc or two in the Queen's army?

Of course, in the book Aslan isn't CGI, and doesn't have Tilda Swinton to deal with.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

They certainly looked like orcs.

I vaguely remember the BBC dramatisation in which Aslan was played by a hearthrug. Is there any way of serving up a virtuous talking lion that doesn't suck?

[steepholm.livejournal.com]

I suspect that's what books are for!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

You know what- you could be right!

[haikujaguar.livejournal.com]

Aslan is boring? I found him very compelling, both as a child (lion! I get to play with a lion!) and an adult. :)

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I'll confess I haven't read the books.

Onscreen he's just this know-it-all character with a booming voice whom everybody seems to love and worship for no reason I can see.

Also you can tell he's computer generated and so not really there.

[steepholm.livejournal.com]

I'd be very interested to know what you think of the book, if you do get around to it. You could probably do it at a sitting: it's not long.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I may look out a copy next time we're at the library...

[ibid.livejournal.com]

The first 2 books which were written (that is Lion, witch and wardrobe and Prince Caspian) are quite plodding with rather dull plots. They really Dawntreader is my favourite, silver chair I don't like but it has some interesting elements and I think Magician's nephew is the best.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

That's interesting.

The first two I sort of know from the movie versions.

I have only vague notions about the rest of the series.

[haikujaguar.livejournal.com]

I think the fact that movie-Aslan is boring tells you far more about Hollywood's conception of virtue than it does about society's or (certainly!) C.S. Lewis's. The book Aslan was magnetic, playful, generous, majestic and I wanted to meet him and ride on his back and bask in his utter goodness.

I think I saw the first movie. I think? That I can't remember should tell you all that needs to be said about it, for me. -_-

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty much convinced by this stage that I need to read the books....

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

If you do, please read them in the original publication order, and not the order you find them in the bookstore today. Thus:

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Prince Caspian
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Silver Chair
The Horse and His Boy
The Magician's Nephew
The Last Battle

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

That makes sense.

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

Me, too. The first time we see him in the movie, I felt this wonderful shiver, and nearly cried.

[ooxc.livejournal.com]

I was delighted by the Westminster Theatre production in the 1980s , although it didn't sound promising. The wardrobe became a puppet theatre and an actor played CSL. I wasn't the only person who thought that it was an amazingly close representation of him

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

That sounds interesting.

What did you think of Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of CSL in Shadowlands?

[ooxc.livejournal.com]

The whole thing appalled me - I had to turn it off

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I did wonder.

I gather that Hopkins' portrayal of CSL was nothing like the real man.

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

If fictional characters who embody virtue are almost always boring- and they are- then our conception of virtue must be wrong.

I should suggest that our notions of virtue are just fine; what is wrong is the idea that Aslan -- or rather the gaseous invertebrate he represents -- embodies meaningful virtue.

I accept what you are saying, but I think we are not so much wrong as we are dishonest in what we label "virtuous". Virtue must include some idea of courage and strength. Aslan has all the courage of a school boy playing at tin soldiers. He is an embodiment of virtue by convention, not conviction.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Not just courage and strength- also humility and humour.

Aslan comes across as smug and self-satisfied. No truly virtuous person would be able to stomach all the knee-bending and sucking up that goes on around him.

[haikujaguar.livejournal.com]

I don't know that I agree with that. There is graciousness in accepting the praise, admiration and fealty of others with respect and love for them. Not all people are suited to such relationships, but where they exist there's a way to do them well and a way to do them badly. I'd like to think an incarnation of the godhead would be generous with those who felt compelled to honor him/her that way.

In the book, Aslan was playful, and not at all mindful of himself. There was no "him" to be self-satisfied with. He just Was. :)

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I am reminded of something William Blake said ( I quote from memory)

"Of course Jesus was the Son of God. And so am I and so are you".

I believe we are all incarnations of the godhead...

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

"Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?"

Two-thousand years on and they still don't get it.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

The secrets of the universe are hidden in plain view.

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

Indeed.