>My husband and our two sons took Friday off and we saw The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe with our son’s family. We all enjoyed it very much. It is quite accurate to the book with most additional dialogue and action complementing the narrative.

My negative first impressions are that it lacked the book’s emphasis on sovereignty and righteousness, focusing instead on family. The children are encouraged to stick together because they’re family, not to do the right thing because it is the right thing. Portraying disobedience as Edmund’s primary failing inaccurately limits the extent of his sin, and then allowing him to triumph in his disobedience during the battle sequence could send a confusing message to young viewers. The music was disappointing on first viewing, but improved dramatically the second time I saw the movie.

On the positive side, the story is quite faithful to the original. The creatures are believable, particularly Aslan with his strong voice that can be either gentle or terrifying. The actors playing the children’s roles did a fine job, and I was pleased at how well the actors playing the adult kings and queens matched the children in physical appearance and personality. The transitions from the wardrobe into Narnia and back are well done. The lack of facial expression and makeup in the portrayal of the White Witch effectively indicates her lack of humanity and coldness.

Our four-month-old grandson, Logan, was wearing a bear snowsuit (a gift Bethany bought at Cabela’s for Baby Gabe four years ago). While Dave was bundling Logan into it, he kept spinning him around on a flat wooden surface and was rewarded with Logan’s face-splitting smiles.