Maybe Just a little Cheesy?

[Aravanna]

Going to have to agree with glumPuddle that the kiss was horribly cheesy and forced. I won’t have minded Susan having a crush on Caspian since he was older in age than he was in the book, and it fits her character (see LB). Unfortunately the kiss was forced and lacked the propriety that a English, 1940’s girl would probably have had, it was out of sync with the mood of that scene, and the dialog surrounding it was just poorly written overall.

"Awww...He's so cute." Unbearably cheesy...I couldn't stand it...bleh...

Really? It’s not the most amazing line ever, but it seems like Lucy might let slip before she knew the disposition of the mice. After all, in VotDT she wanted to hug Reep, and how on earth are you going to express a sentiment like that on screen without a similar line?

Narnia is not supposed to be cute and fluffy.

I see (and agree with) what you’re saying, but there were certainly cute characters in Narnia. Again, Lucy wanting to hug Reep.

…. Okay, I forgot the “Oh my gosh” part… thanks for pointing that out. It is too modern, but I still don’t mind the rest of the line.

This was mentioned on the old forum, but the repeated use of “shut up” annoyed me. First of all it was rather rude and out of character for otherwise polite characters (Reepicheep for example) but it was also far too modern.

Oh, and when that guy on a horse is running through the woods and there's these guys dressed all in black chasing him and then he crosses a river and the guys fall off in the current. Where have I seen that before? Hmmm.....

That doesn’t bother me at all. LotR happened to do an amazing job at most everything so of course everyone is going to copy them because there really isn’t a better way to do it… there are only a certain number of ways you can choreograph a chase scene on horseback through a magical land while crossing a river. There’s no way to get around the “copy catting” without losing effect. A few other details like Susan throwing the arrow were much more blatant.

I was SOOOOOO disappointed in the CGI!

Really? They may not be the most amazing SFX , but I thought they were pretty realistic overall, and there were no “cringe” shots like the “It’s the world” shot in LWW. I would never stoop to call them cheesy. Anyways, I think Narnia is about more than amazing eye candy on principle.

[daughter of the King]

daughter of the King wrote: Oh, and when that guy on a horse is running through the woods and there's these guys dressed all in black chasing him and then he crosses a river and the guys fall off in the current. Where have I seen that before? Hmmm.....



That doesn’t bother me at all. LotR happened to do an amazing job at most everything so of course everyone is going to copy them because there really isn’t a better way to do it… there are only a certain number of ways you can choreograph a chase scene on horseback through a magical land while crossing a river. There’s no way to get around the “copy catting” without losing effect.

The chase itself wasn't cheesy. There limited ways to film a bunch of guys chasing one guy on horseback. It was the bad guys falling off in the river that I found cheesy. Chase scenes are found in abundance, bad guys falling off in the river are not. (at least, I've only seen two movies that have that)

This was mentioned on the old forum, but the repeated use of “shut up” annoyed me. First of all it was rather rude and out of character for otherwise polite characters (Reepicheep for example) but it was also far too modern.

"Shut up" is used in the book, but not to the extreme that the film used it. Peter tells Susan to shut up when she wants him to vote which way to go. "Shut up" is used whenever the kids are being especially childish or annoyed with each other. But it is unpardonable to have Reepicheep use the phrase. The Narnians never say shut up.

[coracle]

(quoting "Lady Galadriel"Recall the kids hiding from Father Christmas in that little hole? Just like the hobbits hiding from that one Black Rider?")

Well, having them hide in a little hole is straight out of the book. Perhaps Lewis remembered the hobbits?

Check the publication dates. LWW before LOTR.

A number of grizzles on here are simply that there are a number of conventional stunts or actions that have been used and re-used in films, plays, television, etc for decades. If your experience is limited to the last ten years of fantasy movies, you may not realise that these things are not really new at all.

Complaining that the lines an actor says are too young for him, when he is playing a younger character, seems to be unrealistic. Skandar playing 13/14 was perfectly entitled to speak like a boy that age.

I am also surprised that someone who says they saw the film once only, has such good recall of the details of the SFX. Not sure on what basis that person thought 1977 Star Wars was better.

[Lady Galadriel]

Well, I didn't see Star Wars but I happen to think PC had awesome visual effects. Like what about the river god? The people who did that computer imagery said they'd been wanting to do a shot like that with water for a very long time.


Oh, by the way:

When entering the mines of Moria Boromir: "This isn't a mine, it's a tomb."
In PC, during the discussion before the night raid. Peter: "This isn't a fortress, it's a tomb."
Coincidence, you think? After all, it could be, but it seems pretty ironic to me.

And on the topic of Reepicheep: it does sound a little cheesy, perhaps; but I think what Reepicheep means by "You people have no imagination" is that he is not only a mouse. He's a warrior. When the soldiers look at him they are shocked and do not know what to say, finding themselves being confronted by...by a mouse!

[Lucy P.]

I'm pretty sure that's coincidental. In fact I think I've heard that line in other movies too.

The "people have no imagination" line was funny- the first time. Once was good enough and the repetition kinda killed it.

[Varnafinde]

(quoting "Lady Galadriel"Recall the kids hiding from Father Christmas in that little hole? Just like the hobbits hiding from that one Black Rider?")

Well, having them hide in a little hole is straight out of the book. Perhaps Lewis remembered the hobbits?

Check the publication dates. LWW before LOTR.

Oh, but Lewis knew LOTR long before its publication. Tolkien had been reading it to his friends in The Inklings while he was still working on it.

[Lady Courage]

I am also surprised that someone who says they saw the film once only, has such good recall of the details of the SFX. Not sure on what basis that person thought 1977 Star Wars was better.

lol! I remember clearly because that was one of the things that my entire family was talking about, and that stood out so vividly on the first watching. At first glance, Aslan looked like he was added on, when after hundreds of watching LWW, he still looks real. The minotaurs looked like stiff stuffed animals, and though they still kinda looked like that in LWW, it was better.
And maybe it's simply that we have less real life comparison in Star Wars, but then again, I only said SOME of the effects were better. A good many of them were not, but some were.

[Josh]

I don't think the kiss itself was cheesy. The fact that there was almost no lead up to it made it cheesy. And the Call started with the lines "It started out with a feeling.." was cheesy cause it made it seem like it was about Susan and Caspian. And whoever would have thought they would include pop songs in Narnia?

Edmund's worst line was "I'm older and I don't even want to understand". I mean, he looks like he's 16. Thats the kind of thing 9 year olds say.

Lucy had a lot of cheesy lines. Including
"Oh my Gosh he's so cute!"
"Or hooves"
"Do you see him now?"
And I hate how she tries to act overthetop cute and cheerful all of the time. I understand thats like Lucy's character, but sometimes it was innapropriate. Right after dozens of soldiers die in the Night Raid, she's smiling and all cute and happy once Trumpkin says "Well what are you all staring at. The Soldiers will be here soon enough"(or something like that). Trumpkin was just trying to get less attention and slightly lighten a dark situation. Not get Lucy all happy and giggly. Lucy also acts too cute when the centaur kid has his sword too low, when she meets Reepicheep, when she and Aslan greet the army after the second battle, and so on.

Reepicheep and Trumpkins attempts at comic relief were a hit and miss thing. Half the time it was funny and appropriate, half the time it was cheesy and out of place.

The lack of blood(especially on the swords) could also be considered a bit cheesy too.

[Lucy P.]

Glad to see you back. Josh!

And I agree with you about Reep and Trumpkin. Sometimes I laughed but often I flinched. I am looking forward to seeing Reep again with new scriptwriters.

[The Servant]

They definitely added in nowadays elements, such as nowadays reactions (such as the classical girly, snotty, make-fun-of, illogical, "I-am-so-obviously-smarter-than-you-because-I-just-am" replies, and such); nowadays talking (as is the topic here, for the most part); nowadays wording (which really annoys me, because Lewis wrote them a different way); worldly romance (Which would mean Prince Caspian saying "I wish we had more time together." and Susan saying "It would never have worked. After all, I am thirteen-hundred years older than you." You wouldn't do that back then. I don't really think people would talk like that)
Actually, that thing I just stated would be a good thing to submit for a cheesy-thing. Has anyone considered the line "I am 1300 years older than you," line? It seemed pretty cheesy to me

[Lucy P.]

Well, actually these lines:

Peter: "Girls can never carry a map in their heads,"
Lucy: "That's because we have something inside them,"

was straight from the book and I really don't mind a little classic gender difference humor.

Also, you could almost say "I wish we had more time together" to a best friend, it's not like that has to with, uh, lust. It wasn't the greatest line but it wasn't cheesy either.

"I am 1300 years older than you," was actually kind of funny but out of place for 1940's children. So I agree with you there.

[tenthofthatname]

I want to say, regarding the Edmund/Gandalf comparison... Marty McFly did it best and he did it before they did.

There were a lot of dialogue anachronisms in the film but that's to be expected. Narnia is not a period piece. If it were, the WWII element would darken the entire story in spades. Who honestly wants to see the Telmarines eradicating an entire people compared to current events in the world of the Pevensies' England? That said, I think they went overboard with the "cute" dialogue. "You might need to call me again?" is an anachronistic pun in manner and technological consistency. I don't think girls and boys telephoned each other all that frequently in the 40s.

I thought the forced romance was cheesy, and all lines derivative of it equally cheesy. However at the very end I more or less interpret the scene as a farewell between friends. The ending emphasized the relationships between Caspian and Peter and Caspian and Susan. Caspian embraces Susan with Rhindon firmly in hand, it felt to me like a poignant goodbye for the three, a friendship that ended all too soon. It may not have been in the PC book but I think it certainly set a precedent for how Caspian reacts in the VDT book.

Nevertheless, all lines re: the kiss were a little cheesy. Not out of character per se, but ill-timed for having just been told Peter and Susan won't come back. Peter's reaction was best; just a bittersweet sort of smile.

[The Servant]

Lucy P. Yes, you're right about that one (your first paragraph), but they still annoy me because they are just trying to get the last word in. Frankly, I like more intelligent arguments said in that humor, as opposed to the thoughtless babble between boy and girl.

[Bookwyrm]

The 1300 years line would have been unbearably cheesy anyway, but it's an obvious Pirates reference from a somewhat similar scene in the first PotC movie.

I guess I missed the complaint about the CoN CGI not looking as good as the Original Trilogy FX. I'm wondering if that poster has seen the original Original Trilogy or if they've only seen the many, many tweaks Lucas has made since then. The latest DVD release included a ton of new CGI.

[Benjamin]

I agree that the 1300 line was cheesy and the wish we had more time together and ok fine just the whole romance!

[Josh]

I don't even think it should be called a romance. Susan seemed midly attracted to him, and Caspian had a slight crush. However it wasnt like they were going out or were even friends.

When they were told to leave it was a sad moment cause she probably wished she had gotten to know him. She obviously wasnt planning on kissing him, but she was probably thinking in her mind "this is it, I'm leaving, should I kiss him-would that be innaprropriate? Maybe I should do it.." and she quickly kissed him without much thought and he returned the favor by hugging her.

She probably didnt think much of it a few weeks later.