Posted by: @courtenay

whoever directed this play seemed to have the idea that Narnia was supposed to be this bright, wacky, gaudy, rainbow-coloured, almost-'60s-psychedelic-looking place — at least once the White Witch's eternal winter started to break — and it was just totally overdone and felt nothing like the book at all. The most absurd part of it was that when the four children were crowned Kings and Queens of Narnia near the end, their crowns looked like giant flowerpots on their heads!! No, seriously

Well, I wouldn't say I'd like that but I would kind of like to see it. 😉 

Posted by: @glenwit

if Netflix was to have Father Christmas makes a surprise appearance during the battle and join in, I wouldn't even be mad - that would add some intentional comic relief to the battle, which would be markedly un-dark-and edgy

I'm not sure why that'd be a comedic moment. I mean it'd be ridiculous for the traditional version of Father Christmas to partake in the battle, but the book stresses that the one in Narnia doesn't entirely look like the one in pictures. I can kind of see them doing that, less to add comedy and more to make it so there isn't a character who appears for one scene and then plays no part in the rest of the story, though I'd argue that that's the point of Father Christmas. He only shows up once a year. 😉 

Posted by: @glenwit

If we were to try another angle...say they play up the horrors of living under the Witch and her secret police a little more. 

Posted by: @courtenay

Playing up the elements of tension and creepiness that are already in the plot is a good idea, provided they don't overdo it to the point of making the story unrecognizable!

Yes! I agree. A good movie will keep the audience's attention and the best place to do it would be by adding more scenes with the White Witch, because she is well... A villain! 

If they were to make a Darker and Edgier Narnia, I am pretty sure they would make the White Witch look scary instead of tempting and enticing. Instead of convincing Edmund to come onto the sleigh with her, she would scare him. They might further develop the "He's not a tame lion" side of Aslan and add more scenes of him acting like a wilder lion. 

I'm way late for this discussion. Then of course, I've been out for nearly a month.

Would I want a darker and edgier LWW? Goodness, no! There are some dark elements in the book, but not make it any darker than it already is. 

Some of the dark moments that Walden did actually worked. For instance, the scene with Edmund in the dungeon was actually a good visual way of showing that he came to realize he made a wrong choice. It started out when he was sitting on the White Witch's throne, showing that this was what he wanted, to be king. Then, of course, it doesn't turn out so well for him. Edmund sitting on the White Witch's throne and later, when he's in the dungeon was connecting his choices and the consequences. In the book, there's a whole chapter about Edmund walking to the White Witch's castle, that while he knows this is wrong, he tries to talk himself into it. Then of course, you can't really do a person thinking out loud on screen. Oh, don't get me wrong, I think what CS Lewis wrote in the book was great. But how can you accomplish something like that in a visual way? 

I am for adding tension, but it doesn't have to be action or chase scene. I think there's plenty of opportunity for tension, like between Peter and Edmund, after where Edmund says, "Oh, we've been playing. We were pretending that we were in Lucy's story." And even when they're all in Narnia, "Hey, should we head more to the left, if we're going to aim for the lamppost!" "So you were here!"

Posted by: @jasmine_tarkheena

Edmund sitting on the White Witch's throne and later, when he's in the dungeon was connecting his choices and the consequences. In the book, there's a whole chapter about Edmund walking to the White Witch's castle, that while he knows this is wrong, he tries to talk himself into it. Then of course, you can't really do a person thinking out loud on screen. Oh, don't get me wrong, I think what CS Lewis wrote in the book was great. But how can you accomplish something like that in a visual way? 

Well, the BBC version tried doing that by having Edmund literally step out of himself and argue with himself... seriously, in those scenes where Edmund is on his own and walking to the Witch's house, a second Edmund comes out of him — shown as slightly transparent, probably to imply it's his conscience or his better side — and voices all his doubts and fears and deep-down knowledge that he's doing the wrong thing, and the original Edmund talks back and silences this inner questioner each time. It's pretty hokey and cheesy (like almost everything else in the BBC adaptations), but I guess it was the best way they could think of to show Edmund's interior monologue that the narrative of a book can give easily, but a film can't. I don't think I would recommend that any future version does it that way again, though...  

Anyway, welcome back, @jasmine_tarkheena!  

I actually recall the BBC where they had "the two Edmunds", and I could see what they were trying to do there as well.

Maybe having Edmund with two different voices going on inside of his head would be idea. Maybe he could look conflicted as well, because he knows this is wrong.

Another idea would be is to have Edmund switch back and forth in different camera shots. It would be kind of like the musical number "The Confrontation" from Jekyll and Hyde, where the main character switches back and forth as Dr. Henry Jekyll and Mr. Edward Hyde. It's actually a real challenge to switch back and forth as two different characters. So maybe Edmund could switch back and forth between camera shots.

I would like a new adaption of LWW to be different than BBC and Walden... not as cheesy and not as epic.

As far as "darker and edgier" goes, well, you never know what filmmakers are capable of. I am for balance; add tension that could work well for a new medium but not make it too dark!

Thank you, @courtenay! I sure miss being part of the discussions! But rest was what I needed!