We missed Prince Caspian at the theaters this year and waited until it arrived under the tree this Christmas (thanks Grandma & Grandpa!) before seeing it. We had attempted to see it in the theater a few times but didn't make it. When World Magazine reported some of the departures from the book, we gave up our theater attempts and decided to wait for the DVD.
We broke it out of the cellophane today and as an action-filled, fantasy movie, it scores well. As an interpretation of C.S. Lewis' book Prince Caspian, it misses the mark. By a wide distance.
Let's not get caught up in what needed to be done to adapt the story to the screen. Leave out the red dwarf versus black dwarf conflict. Leave out Caspian's nurse, the confusion about Cair Paravel being on an island rather than a peninsula, the Beruna bridge being stone, Bacchus and Silenus and all the other minor details involved in taking a detailed story onto the screen.
What I'd like to take aim at are the major items.
Peter's character
Why does Peter get involved in the scuffle at the train platform? That's our first clue that the Peter in the film isn't the Peter of the books. He has forgotten that to be a knight of the Order of Aslan is to forgive the slight; there is no dignity or valor in scuffling with a school-boy on a train platform. From there, his character never really recovers.
While it is true that early in the book Peter is quarrelsome and leads them astray, he acts as though being High King is a responsibility and not a privilege. It isn't until they all see Aslan and Peter receives his breath that he fully becomes High King again. Until then, he's been struggling just to move forward.
High King, but not the King. It is shortly thereafter that he responds to Caspian's "Your majesties are welcome" with "Your majesty is welcome" and "I haven't come to take your place, you know, but to put you into it." It is important to note that attitude from the book because Peter never shows it in the film and the film is sorely lacking because of it. I believe it muddles the whole plot because it is missing.
Peter's job in the book is to right wrongs. He provides continuity from Old Narnia and acts as an agent of Aslan to bring Prince Caspian to the throne. As soon as he arrives on the scene he supports Caspian's position, strengthens his fortifications and stalls for time, time for Aslan to move.
Susan
Susan never falls for Caspian and never leads Narnians into battle. She, like Lucy, attends to Aslan and is safely out of harm's way when sharp objects start flying. No doubt the film Susan appeals more to today's "modern" teenager. And perhaps it doesn't matter since by the end of the Chronicles, Susan doesn't remain a friend of Narnia.
Aslan's primacy
The film Aslan is just another character rather than being the character. Perhaps that's how Hollywood wants it. He seems an uninvolved lion, disinterested in his creation, his country and his creatures. Hollywood would probably prefer he didn't exist, even the book's "not a tame lion".
Overall
Overall, the movie makes a good movie. Unfortunately, it fails as an interpretation of the book. Disney announced this past week that they are pulling out of the next/third movie (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader), largely because they didn't make enough money on Prince Caspian. One wonders how many more millions could have been made if their movie had not strayed from the book. Imagine what they could have done had someone at Disney just read the book.
