Ok, so I watched this trailer a couple of times yesterday and got all excited (and that was the most excited I may have ever been for this movie, too!)

Then I read some of the early posts and got kind of depressed again...
Still annoyed by all the wierdness, WW, Lord Swords (Bookwyrm, you made me laugh!)

Anyway, here are some comments, and I'll try to figure out how exactly I feel about it as I go.

I loved the glimpse of mountains behind the wave--even if they weren't tall enough for Aslan's Country as described in the book.

I do like the DragonEustace and Aslan scene. Guess I'm not critical enough of special effects to notice if it was bad or not. I like that Eustace is at the very least helpless and in need, and there's hope for some kind of "can't do it himself" moment.

I think I was so busy watching the footage that I just pretty much ignored the narrator.

Lucy's comment about Aslan's country: I can see what bothers people about this, but I hope it's close enough to what is said in the book that it could still have the same meaning. "Do you really believe there's such a place? I mean, one that we could actually sail to?"--or something like that. We don't see her saying it, so it could be from any part of the movie in a completely different context.

In the shot right after Reep's belief line, why do Edmund and Lucy have wet hair?

Reep jumping into the water: If this is Eustace's return after being undragoned, Reep has lots of reasons to be joyful as he jumps to greet Eustace. They may have wondered if Eustace was badly wounded, and seeing him well and human would give anyone cause for great joy. I also love the look on Eustace's face. You can tell that he's the new Eustace just by his expression.

Edmund-Susan-Peter scene: This one was a complete surprise at first until I realized that it must be from whatever it is that Aslan shows Lucy after the spell. Still haven't figured out if it's the world without Lucy or Lucy being Susan, though...

Well, after all that, I'm still not sure what I think. I guess that means my opinions haven't changed all that much. I think that I'm generally more encouraged, but mostly I just want to see the movie and figure it all out in context.

There's not supposed to be sky in Aslan's Country! Other than that and Caspian+Reepicheep being there, the scene looks good. Coriakin IS throwing lint, an earlier report said that Eustace was being annoying (again ) and Coriakin threw some stuff at him after chanting something. Lucy asks what it was and he responds "Lint, but don't tell him that." I think they are showing too much of dragon Eustace, we want it to be a surprise for people who haven't read the book. When we see so many shots of him and never see anyone trying to fight him, people are going to realize ahead of time that, unlike most dragons (sorry Toothless ), this one isn't bad. ENEMIES WILL UNITE!?!? How much lower can Fox stoop? (Don't answer that) Tirian's seen the movie and said he liked it, so I'm still hopeful.

hogglestock wrote:

In the shot right after Reep's belief line, why do Edmund and Lucy have wet hair?

My guess was that this scene is right aftet they fight the sea serpent, and was just placed after that line for the trailer. Trailers do that a lot, they cut from scene to scene that have nothing to do with each other, cut and paste dialogue together, etc.

If Eustace earns his undragoning. Epic fail.

No, he didn't 'earn his undragonning' as far as I can see. Tomorrow is Remembrance Day, 11th November. At 11.00 AM there is a minute's silence for the fallen in WW1 which ended at 11.00 am, 11/11/1918. Maybe in America as well, I do not know.

Probably somewhere or other Rudyard Kipling's recessional will be playing. If it does, see if the second verse gets played. It goes something like this:

The tumult and the shouting dies
The captains and the kings depart
Still stands thine ancient sacrifice
A humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of hosts be with us yet
Lest we forget, lest we forget.

If anyone in VODT has a demonstrable "humble and contrite heart" it would surely be dragon Eustace.

No, he didn't 'earn his undragonning' as far as I can see. Tomorrow is Remembrance Day, 11th November. At 11.00 AM there is a minute's silence for the fallen in WW1 which ended at 11.00 am, 11/11/1918. Maybe in America as well, I do not know.

Probably somewhere or other Rudyard Kipling's recessional will be playing. If it does, see if the second verse gets played. It goes something like this:

The tumult and the shouting dies
The captains and the kings depart
Still stands thine ancient sacrifice
A humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of hosts be with us yet
Lest we forget, lest we forget.

If anyone in VODT has a demonstrable "humble and contrite heart" it would surely be dragon Eustace.

That's a beautiful verse.

Yeah, Eustace should not earn his sacrifice, but should receive it. In the book, Eustace gets the change to learn being humble by becoming a dragon, after which Aslan transforms him into a boy again, so he can be humble in that form too. So, basically, if he fully learns this while at dark Island in the film, this may be a good idea. He is undragoned after the fight, but that does not necessarily means him receiving it because of the fight.

It all depends of the nuances they make in these scenes.

Even if they don't intend for it to look like he earned his undragoning, it could appear that way to movie audiences. I hope they make it clear he did not earn anything.

I though "enemies will unite" might mean the Dark Island using the White Witch and other nightmares as weapons. Its not really enemies uniting, as the WW is dead (or she should be!) So the narrator is twisting words...at least I hope he is.

I hope so too, Valiant. Surely Gresham's one day talk with them about the nature of grace helped them to understand it's importance. Surely?

The tumult and the shouting dies
The captains and the kings depart
Still stands thine ancient sacrifice
A humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of hosts be with us yet
Lest we forget, lest we forget.

If anyone in VotDT has a demonstrable "humble and contrite heart" it would surely be dragon Eustace.

This implies you must have a humble and contrite heart before you are undragoned. I don't know about that. I think that Eustace does have a humble and contrite heart, but only after he is undragoned before he is simply lost and doesn't know what will become of him.

In the book it is very clear that Eustace is feeling lost and alone only to look up and find Aslan coming towards him. It is tricky, but that is what it must be. To have Eustace do something heroic before he is undragoned is very suspect to me that they have got this right at all.

Also the audience may think nothing of Eustace earning his undragoning, but it is of course not the story and this is one of the most important scenes in the book. This is salvation. Lost and alone and wondering what will become of him, Eustace looks up to see Aslan coming toward him. Aslan makes the first move.

It is grace because it is given for nothing, not because one asks or because one feels contrite or humble, it is just given freely.

Wandering off topic a wee bit from Official Trailer 4.

How this comes across in the film is a make-or-break for me. Read Dawn Treader Plot Details and Mr Flaherty's reported comments about Eustace and undragoning. It does point away from concerns. Folks would have been upset at the preview had Eustace earned his return - very safe to say considering the audience in attendance.

*redirects to subject of topic, "Official Trailer 4"*

Anyway, I've watched the trailer a few times now. Mostly impressed with it. This is our first glimpse of far shots. I was worried the effects would suffer because of the cut in budget, but it looks like technology has caught up or the shorter running time has helped. The texture on Aslan is a beautiful rendering. His movements look closer to photo real to me. I hope the final product lives up to what is shown CG wise. Reep's fur is more touchable, if that makes sense. I find the animals blend better with the background. The story changes are what worries me the most. But since they're always tampering with the plot, I guess at least you can be prepared.

ooh, the shot of Dragon Eustace and Aslan gives me chills
that scene is going to be amazing!

wow, this trailer is addicting!

^This whole movie is addicting!

I just love the shot of the wave! amazing! it looks just how I pictured it! that, and the sea of lillies! yay!

I really love this trailer. As I was watching it I just felt like I wanted to go and watch the film now!!!!!!! I never got that feeling in the same *spontaneous* way with the other trailers. My only worry is that Liliandil/Caspian/Edmund scene is still there only this time it looked even worse. Aside from that I thought the whole thing looked awesome. Added to the fact that Tirian seemed to think Narniawebbers would like it I just think this will be a really wonderful film *I'm hoping so anyway*

Just curious. Is 'addicting' American slang? Because in Australia, we would say something is 'addictive'. To my Aussie ears and eyes, 'addicting' looks like a made-up word.