The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

Now this was an amazing change of pace. After the unexpected disappointment of the first film, this one felt like it actually took the franchise to a much more interesting place.

When our four protagonists, siblings Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy, return to the world of Narnia, they find it changed, as around 1300 years have passed in that world. Since then, a race of men known as the Telmarines have taken over the kingdom and have driven the magical beings into hiding. But one of them, a young man named Caspian, played by Ben Barnes, is prophesied to bring unity back to the land. Unfortunately, his treacherous uncle Miraz has plans to kill him and become king of the land in his place.

I have to say that the fact that there were more personal stakes beyond good guys vs. bad guys really made me happy because that means Caspian gets more character development, having to grow into the king he is meant to be. It's not much, but it's more than the Pevensie kids who are still kind of boring. Obviously, Ben Barnes really steals the show and every scene involving him is just fantastic. Another actor who did well was Peter Dinklage playing as the heroic dwarf Trumpkin, and he really feels like more of a fully realized character as well.

Even the villains are more interesting, with the scenes involving the Telmarines and Miraz taking over the kingdom and the subsequent battles between them and the Narnians are just fantastic. My personal favorite battle is the duel between Peter and Miraz, though, just due to the amazing fight choreography.

Overall, this was the film I wanted to see. It gave the Narnia world a much needed darker overhaul, it gave us more interesting characters and it gave us a much more engaging story as well. I'd say this does work best as a sequel to the previous film because then you can appreciate what they really did with this one, and what they got right, so although the first film is nothing special, watching it before this one makes this one stand out that much more.

Next time, we journey back to Hogwarts for Harry's sixth year of school, as well as learning the origins of the recently returned dark lord Voldemort. This is the buildup to the final chapter. Get ready for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

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