The Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian Review

It has become something of a rule that the second chapter in any fantasy/adventure series has to be darker, more intense and generally up the action ante. "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" demonstrated this superbly with a genuinely menacing take on Tolkien's work. And director Andrew Adamson, returning to the hot seat after his first jaunt through the Wardrobe, admirably attempts the same here with C.S. Lewis' tale of betrayal, honour and a touch of growing pains besides.

And for the most part Adamson succeeds. "Prince Caspian" is certainly a more brooding beast than its predecessor. This is mostly thanks to a flesh-and-blood foe this time around in the form of the Telmarines headed up by the tyrannical Lord Miraz. These human nemeses have brought the Narnian race to the brink of extinction. For you see a lot has changed since the Pevensie children last stepped foot in Narnia (about 1300 years worth of change to be precise). The Kings and Queens of Narnia; Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy are called back to their magical kingdom courtesy of the titular prince - it would seem that Caspian's treacherous Uncle Miraz has sired a baby boy and is looking to push the young prince out of the family picture in order to create his own royal dynasty.

It's the actual return of the Pevensie children that really demonstrates "Prince Caspian's" strengths. The CGI wizardry on show, as The Strand tube station circa 1941 is transformed into a Narnian coast line, is truly outstanding. "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" perhaps overly relied on its CGI flourishes to mask a mediocre telling of the story. Thankfully "Prince Caspian" has a little bit more meat on the bone even if you have to bite into some rotting flesh to get at it! It's fair to say that the midpoint set piece, a castle siege, raises a few eyebrows with a Narnian massacre that may be a touch too strong for the younger members of the audience. A slightly harsher criticism would be the odd fetishism of violence that courses through the film. There's something undeniably disturbing about seeing the young cast, and the cute Narnian characters, kill with impunity. But the fantasy action, despite who's swinging the sword, is quite risible - especially the aforementioned storming of the Telmarine Castle, which seems to play with the possibilities on offer from the fantastical creatures. It's just a shame then that things are allowed to peter (no pun intended) out towards the end - the final battle feels a little neglected and inconsequential as a result.

The quartet of young leads are as wooden as ever and this time they're joined by Ben Barnes as the prince. The Brit newcomer effecting one of the worst accents heard in a long, long, long time. There's a romantic subplot between his Caspian and Anna Popplewell's Susan but this is drowned out somewhat by all the carnage. Peter Dinklage takes what little acting awards are on offer here with his disaffected Trumpkin The Red Dwarf. His, at least, is one of the well rounded Narnian characters - the others just appear to pop up for visual accoutrement.

"Wardrobe's" Ice Queen Tilda Swinton swings by for a cameo and steals "Prince Caspian's" most effecting moment. This scene serves as a hint at the type of film this sequel could have been. It's darker yes but lacking in the sense of magic the original possessed - a happy marriage of the two would have resulted in a braver film all round.