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‘ABSOLUTELY THRILLING! DISNEY’S CHRONICLES OF NARNIA:
THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDDROBE MOVIE FAITHFULLY TRANSLATES THE ENTERTAINING REDEMPTIVE STORY OF THE FAMOUS NOVEL’

That’s the view of Christian media expert, Dr. Ted Baehr

By Dan Wooding


Tuesday, November 15, 2005

HOLLYWOOD, CA (ANS) -- “The great news is that the Disney movie version of THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE is not only very entertaining, but clearly retains the deeper truth and essence of C. S. Lewis’s great novel, the first in his great seven part CHRONICLES OF NARNIA redemptive fantasy series.”

That’s the view of Dr. Ted Baehr, founder and publisher of MOVIEGUIDE® after he was among the audience at the Director’s Guild just eleven hours after the final edits.

He told ANS, “The audience I was with thrilled to the exciting motion picture, adapted beautifully from the novel that almost one hundred million people have read and loved. Neither the fans of the book, nor the fans of the story behind the story, will be disappointed.”

Dr. Baehr went on to say, “The movie works well and is a great tool for the Church to help people understand the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Very, very few people will see the slight divergences that the movie takes from the novel. Even fewer will understand that the novel itself made an excellent entertaining script for the 1979 CBS Television version that won an Emmy in 1980. And, even fewer will see the very slight and subtle shifts in the new movie.

“That said, it should be noted that a large portion of the readers have missed the book’s clear Christological allusions, although C. S. Lewis said in his March 1961 letter to Anne that THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE was his way of retelling the true story of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“The movie itself starts slightly before the book with an air raid in London that puts the four Pevensie children, Lucy, Peter, Edmund, and Susan, in jeopardy. The children are sent out of the city to stay with Prof. Kirk in the countryside for protection.”

Ted Baehr being interviewed by Dan Wooding

Dr. Baehr then explains the story:

“During a game of Hide and Seek, Lucy stumbles on an old wardrobe. The wardrobe leads her to Narnia, a world with talking animals and mythical creatures. There, she meets a faun, who thinks better of kidnapping her and puts his life in jeopardy by letting her return to the world of men.

“By the way, the issue in Narnia is this: The evil White Witch has taken control of the land, turning it into a state of forever winter but never Christmas. A prophecy says that four sons and daughters of Adam and Eve will come to Narnia and help of Aslan, the son of the Emperor Beyond the Sea, free Narnia from the White Witch. To thwart the prophecy, the White Witch has told everyone that, if they see a son or daughter of Adam and Eve, they should kidnap and bring them to her. Amusingly, the creatures of Narnia believe that the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve are a false myth.

“When Lucy returns to the world of human beings, her brothers Edmund and Peter and her sister Susan do not believe she was in Narnia. Lucy goes to Narnia through the wardrobe a second time. Edmund follows her and becomes a pawn of the White Witch by being enticed by her seductive traits. Like Satan, the White Witch offers Edmund something that he already has, the ability to rule Narnia, and traps him with a counterfeit sacrament of Turkish Delight, a jelly confection dusted with sugar. When Edmund and Lucy return, Edmund lies and tells Susan and Peter that Lucy was making everything up.

“Eventually, all four children walk through the wardrobe to Narnia. The White Witch captures Edmund. His sisters and brother must find rush to find Aslan to try to set Edmund free. Aslan has returned to Narnia to defeat the White Witch and bring Christmas and spring back to the land.

“Eventually, Aslan makes a bargain with the White Witch that he will die for Edmund’s treachery. Thus, the battle begins to deliver Narnia from the clutches of the White Witch, and the resurrection of Aslan breaks the Witch’s control over Narnia.”

Dr. Baehr went on to say, “THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE is tremendously exciting. Some of the early defects have been cured. There is a sense of Providence leading the children into Narnia. There is also a prophetic element.

“The production quality is much greater than the sum of its parts. The camerawork is great. The computer generated images are terrific and enchanting. The four children are very good, especially Lucy. Everyone involved deserves high praise.

“Though they have deleted some scenes from the book and added others, the story has retained its theological foundation. Some of this is due to the strength of the book itself. Certainly some of the theology has been toned down. There are no direct references to the Emperor Beyond the Sea, for instance. Also, the sacramental communion banquet with the coming of Father Christmas and the gifts of the Spirit has been truncated into a very brief scene with Father Christmas.

“Finally, the resurrection romp with Aslan, Lucy and Susan has also been eliminated, and the movie focuses more on the children being the solution to the evil in Narnia when in fact the victory is Aslan’s, and the children, just like we are in our world, are more than conquerors because they are heirs to the victory that Aslan wins on the stone table, and Jesus Christ won on the cross.

“Again, however, these changes are subtle, with a little more emphasis on the Creation rather than the Creator. Even so, you have to be very close to the book and very theologically astute to notice the changes.

“In fact, the movie is a very clear Christological allusion, or imagining, of the story of Jesus Christ. The minor changes do not take away from that meaning in the book, which lifts up the Son of God, Jesus Christ, as our deliverer from the eternal winter of sin and damnation. After months of anticipation, those who love NARNIA can rejoice that Disney and Walden have given them a wonderful movie that tells the story in an entertaining, exciting, thrilling, and respectful way.

“Andrew Adamson said that when he directed the movie, he started from his memory. He felt that the book was too thin, so the movie reflects his memory of the book, not the actual book. He understands the element of sacrifice and redemption, but his concern was for the empowering of the children. Clearly, his perspective helped produce the subtle shift from the great clarity of the book itself, but his love for the original source ultimately keeps the movie on target.”


Note: Ted Baehr along with his son James, have released NARNIA BECKONS: C. S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Beyond to readers of all ages. It is published by Broadman and Holman.
Dan Wooding is an award winning British journalist now living in Southern California with his wife Norma. He is the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS). Wooding is the co-host of the weekly radio show, "Window on the World" and was, for ten years a commentator, on the UPI Radio Network in Washington, DC. He also co-hosts three days a week a live phone-in show called "Pastor's Perspective" with Brian Brodersen which is carried on KWVE, Santa Ana, California, and other radio stations across the USA. Wooding is the author of some 42 books, the latest of which is his autobiography, "From Tabloid to Truth", which is published by Theatron Books. To order a copy, go to www.fromtabloidtotruth.com. danjuma1@aol.com


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