Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

The second movie entry for the Narnia saga, "Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian", is a darker story with a lot more violence. So much so that, while okay for teens and older, may not be the best choice for the younger crowd. Plus, the primary story revolves around the politics of royal lineage, something that will be over the heads of many.

The four Pevensie children have been back in London for a full year now, but continue to long for their days in Narnia. Peter (William Moseley) seems to be struggling the most, clearly recalling having been an adult but now finding conflict dealing with being a teen. His siblings, Lucy, Edmund, and Susan (Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, Anna Popplewell), share in this identity conflict. Say no more, and within a matter of minutes into the movie, the kids are back in Narnia. But it's a different world now, with little joy, no dancing trees, with the Narnians reduced to living underground.

At the same time, we meet the Telmarines, who are basically humans taking over the Narnian world. To them, Narnias are only myth and legend. We also meet Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), the rightful heir to the throne who has had to flee the castle in order to avoid being killed by an ambitious Telmarine lord looking to be king. Even after Caspian meets the Pevensies things still are unsettled. Peter wants to prove himself once again as a leader, just as Caspian wants to rule his own world. It also doesn't help matters that Peter is very protective of his sister Susan when Caspian starts in with longing glances. Regardless, war ensues between the two sides, but things do not go well for the good guys. Lucy continues to believe that Aslan (remember the lion?) will come to save them all, yet the faith of the others continues to diminish.

All in all, "Caspian" is a solid entry into Narnia movie lore. The kids have all become solid actors, especially the boys who are thrown into violent sword fights. Barnes is only lackluster as Caspian, and really gives you no reason to root for him. In the end, you continue to care more for the Pevensie children than anyone else.

Do you need to have seen the first movie before seeing this? Yes, definitely. They do a nice job of updating us on what has happened in Narnia since the kids left, but you need to know the rest of the story. The violence is intense and occurs more than not. In the end, not only did I leave feeling less inspired for the future of the Pevensies, but I'm also not certain I would want to go back to Narnia a third time. As Aslan tells Lucy, "Things never happen the same way twice." I give it a B-.

"The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian" is rated PG with a running time of 144 minutes.