I just posted in the thread about the score, and this thread seemed the proper place to continue the thought.
I think this movie needs to have a very different feel than modern fantasy/action/adventure movies. It should have a romantic, fairy tale feel. It should focus on each piece of the story: an aged and grieving king, an insecure young girl, a boy who is losing is confidence about his experience, the golden fall, the grim winter, the darkness and seeming impossibility, and then the triumph.
I'm not sure if I can put the idea into words. There is heart-rending sorrow and fear, but beneath it all is a beauty and a peace that cannot be defeated.

I tend to write character-driven stories myself, and I think I've always been subconsciously drawn to character-driven stories. When a story sacrifices its characters left and right, it doesn't really matter to me how compelling or grandiose the plot is, I usually lose interest. I tend to latch onto characters and want to experience their growth.

You said it very well, Anfinwen. The Silver Chair has such rich atmosphere and emotion, I always find it so hard to believe that it's a mere 300 or so pages.

Their heart was made of a girl and a fawn, a prince and a dwarf, a boy and a mouse, a marshwiggle and a school girl, a Lion and his children.

Got chills at that one! It's so very true. I love a story where you can almost lose sight of the ultimate goal for the moment and get lost in the characters. After all, that's what real life is like. You have goals and dreams, but the here and now is what holds the bulk of your attention.

I think it just depends on the material. But usually the goal is to always have some sort of balance. Like the recent big screen, Indie-film, "Maggie" was almost completely a character-piece movie with very little time for anything else. Frankly, I thought it was a somewhat well-crafted, big-time snoozer with not much point. But I'm a smuck who likes scifi and action films, so what do I know.

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