I’m sorry to have to state this, but…I was pretty disappointed with The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Michele and I went to see it Friday night after a nice supper at The Claddagh, a fantastic Irish pub nearby. The main complaint I have about it is that its special effects were, in many instances, quite poorly done and a bit too obviously fake. Even Aslan looked rather fake. Contrast it with The Lord of the Rings trilogy of movies by Peter Jackson, and the difference is stark. Those movies also relied heavily upon computer animation. However, the CGI in LTR was so well done that in most cases it was difficult to see and certainly, even if you could tell it was fake, it didn’t stand out or detract your attention from the flow of the movie. Sadly, this can’t be said for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. There were several departures from the book but most of them didn’t bother me at all. In fact, I thought the opening scene featuring the Pevensey family scrambling for cover during a bombing raid over London, which wasn’t in the book at all, was an excellent addition. In some ways, the first part up to the children’s departure for the country was the best and most affecting of the whole movie. Of the actors, the actor who played Lucy was by far the best. The other children were unconvincing in their roles, I thought. Either that or a bit too “of type” — e.g. Peter playing the heroic warrior. I guess the best way to sum up my feelings about the movie is by using one word: unconvincing.