Who will be the director for The Silver Chair?

[SilverSea]

I'm not sure if a thread like this has already been made; feel free to close it if there is.

Now that a tentative screenwriter has been confirmed, who do you want to or think will) direct SC?

Personally I want Neil Burger to direct the film. He has been known to make low-budget action-adventure films look visually stunning while still maintaining the integrity of the story and trailers. Just watch the trailers for his films Limitless (which had a $27 million budget) or the upcoming film adaptation of Divergent ($80 million). Since SC probably won't be as special effects heavy as the previous films, I think he'd be a great choice!

Who are your choices?

[twinimage]

One who will respect the book/story, even if they haven't read it before. I'm not saying they need to be a die hard Narnia fan... Take Andrew Adamson for example; he read LWW as a kid. His vision of that movie was his childhood memories of LWW. He took PC seriously, though I doubt he read it before he was to direct the film. The VDT director didn't seem to take VDT seriously at all. They will also need to know how to work well with a small budget, most likely.
For some reason, Spike Jonze stands out in my mind. He did "Where the Wild Things Are". I think of him because of the good combination of practical and special effects to bring the creatures to life. Though part of me feels he may not be the best suited for the Narnia brand.
Another good director is Guillermo Del Toro. He's definitely done Sci-fi/fantasy before. Maybe his style could give the darker parts of the story that "edge" it needs. Though he seems to lean more towards big budget films. Plus I think he's VERY busy with many film projects.

[Aslan Fan]

I hope they don't have Guillermo Del Toro do the Silver Chair. I just haven't been impressed with the acting and such in 90% of the movies I've seen of his. I may be wrong and would be happy to be wrong but that's what I'm afraid of.
Neil Burger kind of sounds like he could be a good choice. But I haven't really seen any movies of his . . . yet.
To me, Rupert Sanders has been the first person to portray a fantasy film with adept skill in a long time(see Snow White and the Huntsmen). So, he may be the best choice I can think of.
Of course, this is my opinion but I think Rupert Sanders would be the best choice. Maybe there is a better director out there . . . but Rupert comes to mind.

[Reepicheep775]

Guillermo Del Toro is a name that is often thrown out whenever a movie gets greenlit, but I would rule him out for SC as he turned down the chance to direct LWW. Apparently he didn't like the idea of Aslan being brought back to life.

Source: http://www.narniaweb.com/2006/12/guille ... %E2%80%99/

I like the idea of Spike Jonze though, because I really enjoyed Where The Wild Things Are.

[Impending Doom]

I wouldn't mind Andrew Adamson returning. He clearly loves and respects the stories and he already given us two solid movies. So for those reasons alone I would want him back. But some fresh blood may be what Narnia needs.

How about Alfonso Cuaron? He directed Harry Potter 3, Gravity, and Children Of Men. I think he could be a good fit for SC.

[thephfactor1]

Interesting ideas, everybody. I do think they should consider going in a slightly different direction in terms of directors for this one. I think a del Toro or Jonze directed Silver Chair could really bring out the potential of the book. I've only seen del Toro's big-budget Pacific Rim, but that one was still a hugely entertaining movie. I know he worked wonders on a smaller scale with Hellboy so we know he can work well with adapted material. However as someone said I am pretty sure he is massively busy, isn't he working on a Justice League movie? I have seen none of Jonze's movies but know a little about him by reputation. I think it would be great if they picked a director known less for commercial hits and more for artistic substance, like Alfonso Cuaron for Harry Potter POA. I would be really excited to see an Ang Lee (who screenwriter Magee helped to a billion Acadamy nods) or Cuaron directed Silver Chair, but they probably wouldn't be interested in getting back into franchise work again at this stage in their respective careers, after the massive successes of Brokeback Mountain, Children of Men, Life of Pi, and Gravity.

Maybe Cuaron's son, Jonas Cuaron, or somebody equally young, ambitious, and talented, like Duncan Jones, could be lured into taking the job by the promise of exposure, millions in studio money, and a meaty challenge in the form of a classic work of fantasy. Either way, I'm excited. The lineup so far is pretty star-studded.

[twinimage]

I think it will partially depend on the vision the studio will have for the film. Once they have an idea for the tone of the film and what they're expecting it to turn out like, they may look for directors that have done similar films with a similar tone and feel.

[Son of Tash]

out of nowhere Peter Jackson

[Thunder-Fist]

Andrew Adamson directed two Narnia films, maybe Michael Apted should do two as well . Ah, I'd love to see the fan reaction to that press release. Alright, enough joking about. My first thought was Alfonso Cuaron as others have already said, he makes films with artistic merit as well as essentially rebooted the tone and feel of the Harry Potter movies. However, my number one requirement in a director would be that he respect the books. View them as classic literature (which they are), not simply children's books. If someone respects the books and is inspired visually by them, then that is more important then a body of work. And of course, as fans we can't know that about a director unless we interviewed him ourselves. What I hope for is a filmmaker like Cuaron who respects the books and has a strong creative vision for the style.

out of nowhere Peter Jackson

Ha ha, nice. There was once a time when many Narnia fans would have passed out at that news. Now I think that news (even if it was a remote possibility) would be met with much more wariness.

[Narnian_Archer]

Son of Tash

out of nowhere Peter Jackson

Ha! Well, if he would take it as seriously as he took the original LOR franchise, then it could work! But I wasn't too satisfied with his work on The Hobbit (there were some good things there, but too much just went waaaaaay off and away from the book), so I don't know if he would approach SC with the care it needs. And it needs a lot of care!
I guess it's really hard to say in a situation like this, because even very talented directors sometimes mess up movies. Michael Apted was great at Amazing Grace, but something just went so totally off track with VDT. So you never really know, and it's always a bit of a gamble. A love for the books is very important in this case, and I hope they choose someone who is familiar with the books and has a care for them, like Andrew Adamson.

[FriendofNarnia2]

So my friend in RL who also is a member here (Ransom) suggested Kenneth Branagh as a great director choice for pretty much any of the remaining Narnia films (I think he would do particularly well with The Magician's Nephew and The Horse And His Boy). He is the director behind Cinderella and Thor, and based on this interview it seems he would "get" Narnia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NUtyYsrvao

I like what he says about trying to make a simple story that is at the same time rich and more powerful than it might first appear.

Also, here's what he has to say about the power of Fairy Tales when discussing his film, Cinderella.

"I acknowledge that, as snarky as I can be with the best of them, I am not in that post-modernist permanently ironic groove as it were when it comes to my filmmaking. … We are affectionate for [fairy tales] because they appear not to be dressed up too much in morality. They are, but they have the virtue of appearing very simple — and some people might feel even simplistic — but they always catch us by surprise with their emotional power.

… I think we love the escapism of something like Cinderella and I think we do with Thor. And as long as we can believe that there is a connection between us and a bunch of guys riding on horses across a rainbow bridge in space and somehow connected to the Norse myths, we get the adventure, we get the escape, we get the immersion in another world that’s different from ours so we’re really happy to go to a big darkened room to see that. And with Cinderella, I felt that that invitation to be immersed in a vibrant, glamorous, highly colored world was really important as a sensory experience. A feast for the senses, but at the middle of it, people we can sort of see in the mirror.

We set the film in a classical framework and looks like you might expect a fairytale to look — very lavish and opulent — and have things that you’d expect Cinderella to have like mice that turn into horses and a pumpkin-turned-carriage, and a ball.

… Yet, it also has a girl not passively awaiting the arrival of a man who is simply choosing to be a victim of fate; but someone who deals with her challenges, and the cruelty and the ignorance that she’s subject to by being aware of other people. That in a way is a way to deal with your own problems — to think of someone else. She does that with humor, and she does so with passion.

… It doesn’t make her weak and it doesn’t make her passive, nor does it make her pious and self-righteous. She stumbles and she falls, like we all do, but ultimately her self-belief and her belief in the power of love is really her all-powerful way of living."

And here's the best part. He isn't completely new to Narnia. He was Uncle Andrew in the Audio Drama version.

[Elfiea]

FriendofNarnia2, I never would have thought of Kenneth Branagh, but now that you mention him, he has the potential to make a great film out of our beloved books. He did a great job with both of the films you mention. Personally, I hope he signs on!

[Impending Doom]

That interview really impressed me. I feel like his style would compliment the flavour of Narnia really well. Plus he's a solid, proven filmmaker that makes quality films. Now how do we suggest this to the producers...

[Liberty Hoffman]

A month ago, I would have said that I would love to see Andrew Adamson direct SC, but then I made the horrible mistake of watching his film "Mr. Pip" and I have regretted seeing it every day since. I still cannot believe that the same guy who directed Narnia directed that terrible film!
I would honestly love to see Michael Apted return for SC he did such a good job on VotDT

[coracle]

Mr Pip was a dark story abou an unlikely hero in an evil part of Pacific history. I read the book so I knew I couldn't bear to see the film.
Several of these directors are big name and big cost. Narnia filming doesn't aspire to them now. On the other hand, it would be fun to see what AA or PJ would do with it.

[aragorn2]

I'd be very interested in seeing Wes Ball direct a Narnia film.
He made a striking debut with The Maze Runner this year and I was very impressed with his tense, visually striking and at times terrifying direction with a very modest budget. And most importantly he seems to understand and respect the source material without being afraid to change the story when necessary without ever compromising the book. And he was also able to coax some really great performances out of his young cast.

Kenneth Branagh is another choice I think I might like. I really enjoyed both Thor and Cinderella. Neil Burger is also someone I wouldn't mind seeing in the chair.