The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe: Critic Reviews

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, by summoning C.S. Lewis' spirit, creates a different kind of spectacle -- a starry-eyed crusade.

This honorable adaptation of C. S. Lewis's novel has much of the power and charm of the source.

It's briskly directed for much of the way, though with no great individuality, by Andrew Adamson, a film-maker previously noted for his work in animation.

The Chronicles of Narnia is a faithful rendering of a magical tale that should hold adults' attention and delight young moviegoers.

Well told, handsome, stirring and loads of fun.

The filmmakers make many compromises in the name of epic scope and box office appeal, but they can't bend this story out of shape, and they have Tilda Swinton on hand to spank anyone who tries.

It may be as close to adult-friendly kid fare as Hollywood will ever get -- although that has more to do with narrative than family values. (Having read both Tolkien and Lewis aloud at bedtime, I can attest to the latter's superiority as a storyteller.)

A generation-spanning journey that feels both comfortingly familiar and excitingly original.

It's a sturdy adaptation, and if The Chronicles of Narnia: the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe doesn't capture the magic of C.S. Lewis' books, it comes a fair sight close to catching it.

It has visual splendor, unsullied earnestness and a strong sense of holiday showmanship.

To its credit and power, the film allows them a reach that exceeds any one religion's grasp.

Even the climactic fight between Peter's army of truth and the Witch's bevy of demons has an air of heraldic artifice, as if we were witnessing not a brawl to the death, red in tooth and claw, but an enamelled clash of ideas.

The effects in this movie are so skillful that the animals look about as real as any of the other characters.

It tells Lewis' story, which has its share of sticky and ponderous aspects, in a predictable, visually cautious way. You keep waiting to be transported, yet in cinematic terms, the transportation never arrives.

Long may it roar.

That's not to say this Wardrobe isn't worth climbing into. Only that along with the dollops of delight, a bit of disappointment awaits on the other side.

Andrew Adamson, the director of the Shrek movies, clearly feels great affection for the book and has taken pride in living up to the source.

It would be easy to brush off The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe as Lord of the Rings-light. Very light. But the film really isn't even that good.

The Chronicles of Narnia is not a bad fantasy film. It's just not a great one.

[Features] strong casting of mostly unfamiliar faces, a convincing family feeling among the four kids, solid storytelling and fluid interplay between the humans and four-legged creatures.

Overlong, poorly paced and woodenly acted.

The hard-core may experience the thrill of recognition. But the rest of us can be forgiven a perfectly appropriate giggling fit.

For sheer entertainment value, and the painless imparting of values about family, loyalty and bravery, this lion in winter roars loudly.

What constant magic it works.