The Justice of Aslan

[Valiant]

Aslan isn't a character who is just kind and friendly. He can also be very stern. Of course, this is for the benifit of the characters, as love sometimes has to be hard.
Do you think this is true? As well, do you think this is hard for the film makers to portray?

In LWW (book) Lucy wants to stay with Edmund after he is healed, but Aslan scolds her asking, "must more people die for Edmund?" In the movie version, this is pretty much avoided as Lucy never refuses to help the Narnians in order to stay with Edmund.
In VDT, Aslan must rebuke Caspian for attempting to abandon his ship and crew in order to go to Aslan's Country. It seems this is taken out of the movie.

I don't think the film makers like showing the hard side of Aslan. This hasn't been a big element in the movies so far, but for the latter books, it does become more central. My main worry is the scene in Horse and His Boy where Aravis is scratched by Aslan. So how much of this do you think will be shown in the film (if HHB ever gets made)?

How do you think this will be handled in future movies and how important do you think it is that they don't reduce the ferocity Aslan can exibit? How important do you think it is to the book?

[Katana]

First Reply ^^
Im not quite sure as to how that movie will play out, the film-makers could surprise us or they could juts take that part out (gasps) or they could manipulate it to make it seem different.
Alsan occaisionally enforces the principles of tough love and I think thats a good thing, after all: He's not a tame Lion

[Cineadh]

I think there's something to be said of the filmmakers, especially if they are aiming to pander to the widest audience possible. A good lion saying or doing 'hurtful' things? What would that say to a secular audience, especially schoolkids, where things such as corporal punishment and placing last (because everyone wins!) are nigh unheard of anymore?

They know their audience, or think they do, so perhaps they aren't willing to be that daring to show that there's such a thing as 'tough love.'

[TheGeneral]

My main worry is the scene in Horse and His Boy where Aravis is scratched by Aslan. So how much of this do you think will be shown in the film (if HHB ever gets made)?

I also have thought about that quite a bit. If I had to guess, I'd say they will change that part of the movie... at least at this point I can't imagine filmmakers including a scene where Aslan scratches a child with his claws.

I actually feel pulled on this. Part of me would want them to make it like the book, but then another part of me wonders... even when I read that part it gives me the shivers a bit

[Ithilwen]

In LWW (book) Lucy wants to stay with Edmund after he is healed, but Aslan scolds her asking, "must more people die for Edmund?" In the movie version, this is pretty much avoided as Lucy never refuses to help the Narnians in order to stay with Edmund.

Wait... wasn't that line in the movie as well? I remember hearing it sometime... Or am I just remembering wrong?


~Riella

[DiGoRyKiRkE]

Wait... wasn't that line in the movie as well?

It was in the BBC version, but wasn't in Disney/Walden adaptation. The Disney/Walden adaptation merely had Lucy recognising what she needed to do, at which point she proceeded to do it.

[wolfloversk]

My main worry is the scene in Horse and His Boy where Aravis is scratched by Aslan. So how much of this do you think will be shown in the film (if HHB ever gets made)?

I'm guessing that scene will either be heavily modified or taken out entirely- not because they don't want to show Aslan's stern side- but to avoid a PG-13 rating. If Aslan putting his claws in the dragon's skin is instant PG-13 material, then him scratching a human would be even more so...

I hope they stick something like that in their though, I liked the part about him saying, I tell noone any story but their own (paraphrased)

[Lucy of Narnia]

Hmm...it did give me the shivers too! I don't know what they'll do...drop it entirely or have Aslan maybe make her horse rear??

[aragorn2]

Valiant wrote:
My main worry is the scene in Horse and His Boy where Aravis is scratched by Aslan. So how much of this do you think will be shown in the film (if HHB ever gets made)?

They could do this after all he bites the WW right in the face. And they don't have to show it, they could just show him swing his paw and then we would hear her scream, that would be enough to drive the point home.
One difficulty about this is Aslan doesn't look anything like a real lion and unless they changed him everyone would know who it is.

[Adeona]

Weell, he was supposed to look somewhat more like a real lion for VDT - not that it was that noticeable!

"On the last show we had been asked to go for a golden fantasy lion but this time we went with more of a real lion," recalled Fawkner. "So we changed his colour palette to be a more realistic lion colour. And we introduced a darker mane."

Aslan punishing Aravis is a lot different then Aslan killing the WW, though. For one thing, we don't actually see the death. And the WW is an evil enemy and an adult. Aravis is the heroine of HHB and just a kid.

How do you think this will be handled in future movies and how important do you think it is that they don't reduce the ferocity Aslan can exibit? How important do you think it is to the book?

I really don't think they'll be upping the "Wildness" of Aslan that much. I certainly don't see them keeping the HHB scene anywhere near original intensity. Maybe it'll turn out as aragorn2 suggests, maybe even more mild.
Aslan's ferocity is a very important part of his nature/character. It's part of his Narnian divinity. If you keep him gentle and lovey-dovey with the main characters he's like a big strong teddy bear!
In the context of the storyline of HHB, I don't think the scene is all that important. (Though it does add a lot of drama and a sort of action climax to the mysterious lion storyline.) But in the context of the theology of the series, I think it really needs to be kept.

Valiant, I'm sorry about starting a topic about this in the General Movie Discussion forum - I didn't know you already had this one going! You did a much better job starting the discussion, too.

[DiGoRyKiRkE]

In the context of the storyline of HHB, I don't think the scene is all that important. (Though it does add a lot of drama and a sort of action climax to the mysterious lion storyline.) But in the context of the theology of the series, I think it really needs to be kept.

Adeona, the problem with that line of thinking is that the theology of the story and the context of the story are so intertwined throughout the whole series, that if you unwravel one bit, and toss away another bit, you're left with something unrecognizable.

It's rather like a tapestry. The vertical strands being the theological strands, and the horizontal strands being the contextual strands. You can't remove them without destroying the picture.

[Valiant]

Adeona, no worries . I'm glad I'm not the only one who has considered/been worried about this.