Chronicles of Narnia 3: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)

"Chicken", that's what Kenny called me when I refused to watch Chronicles of Narnia 3 with him last week...

Frankly, I treated the 3rd adaptation of C.S. Lewis' book with great circumspect, having been disappointed by CON1: Prince Caspian. I never did like a series starting off great like CON2: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, only to be sorely let down by a sequel undeserving of the epic-ness of "Narniaism".

This 3rd installment focuses of the youngest 2 of the Pevensies, Edmund 'The Just' and Lucy "The Valiant" Pevensie, both coming of age and exploring their adolescent life. The story starts with the siblings in England amidst the war, sepearated from Peter "The Magnificent" and Susan "The Gentle Pevensie, both who took flight to the United States whilst waiting for their parents' return.

I've always enjoyed the translocation scene to Narnia, the first being, well, self-explanatory ...a wardrobe cupboard, the 2nd, a train station and the latest, a painting the Dawn Treader coming to life, flooding a room where Edmund, Lucy and their obnoxious cousin, Eustace Scrubb surfaces onto the Great Eastern Sea in Narnia, surprisingly to be rescued by King Caspian (now) who commands the valiant ship...

From there, old friend united...the swashbuckling, pure-hearted mouse Reepicheep and Tavros, the light-hearted minotaur who serves as the Dawn Treader's 2nd mate...

Of course, no Narnia sequel would be complete without the wise and courageous Aslan the Lion, who reigned over Narnia for a century in winter's dead during the White Witch's dominance in CON1.. the White Witch was defeated by the Pevensie siblings after which a Golden Era was established for posterity...

The plot is simple, an evil power lurks, casting men and women into oblivion was it consumes all goodness and the 7 Lost Lords of Narnia whose swords must be united at Aslan's table to defeat the evil which looms... this is the exact formula needed for a movie of fantasy bearing good vs. evil...a "Never Ending Story" somewhat... coupled with high sea adventures, crossing swords and of course, the climatically triumph of good vs. evil, interspersed with bouts of self-doubt and temptations...

Eustace, an unbeliever of Narnian tales and an unwilling participant in this new quest, seen often times penning cynical entries of the days in Narnia was the right blokey, British comic relief...the chap literally went through a baptism of fire (being transformed into a fire-breathing dragon) after which, his bravery and courage tested. His doubting heart would soon be soften by the unlikely friendship with Reepicheep...both forging a friendship which could not be undone...

Courage, friendship and love...the indispensable values...

Suffice to say, I was glad watching this movie with lowered expectations and uplifted by the significant improvement over the last sequel which left me in disdain...

Pity Peter and Susan were not in this epic...the camaraderie of the last 2 adventures were legendary in their own respect...the battles in this one are no less watershed... I'd crave for more and wait for the 4th installment in anticipation, now that my hope has been restored... I think that C.S. Lewis' novels must not be undertaken unless you understand it takes more than good directorship to make the movie magic work....this time round, it was redemption...

I'll give The Voyage of the Dawn Treader a 6.5 out of a possible 10.