glumPuddle, has it been confirmed that Fox had a bigger role artistically than Disney? If so, I would agree about ditching Fox, but I don't remember hearing that.

I 100% agree with ditching Apted. If they do The Silver Chair might actually be good, but if they don't it's pretty much hopeless. Man, if they did keep him, what a dreary two-year wait it would be...

glumPuddle, I don't think that it would be a good idea to ditch Fox. The problem is, to stop Fox ditching SC.

Further to your thought that trust is an important theme of SC, I think it isn't just trust by itself; it is knowing just whom it is safe to trust.

Actually I agree with you skilletdude. There is the green powder The Lady of the Green Kirtle puts on the fire, which is in not only the book but also in the BBC version.

The mandolin was in both as well. Sinister mandolin music has been also used in other similar movies to the Narnia stories, such as Return to Oz.

Whatever was wrong with Rilian also implies psychological problems such as forgetfulness. I keep thinking of a very un-PG clue to Rilian's problems. It is called drug abuse, in particular, absinthe, an overly potent alcoholic drink, containing wormwood, commonly called 'green fairy', which was a real problem in the pre-WW2 days, before that particular drug was banned, and before the Vietnam war, when worse ones came along to confuse the ethics and to befuddle the mind.

I'm concerned about two things right now
1) The Green Mist rearing its ugly head again in some form. It seems inevitable.
2) Jill being friends with Eustace? (implied at the end of VDT). Here's why this could be a big problem:

"The Silver Chair," at its center, is about Jill having to learn trust.

I have to agree that the Green Mist might be an inevitable part of SC, but maybe not as inappropriate or anywhere near as extensive as you might fear. Otherwise, your analysis of Jill's situation is brilliant and explains much. And yes she does have to learn trust.

I have no problems with the name drop at the end. Even if you do see the name drop as problematic, I don't see it as automatically a big problem. We know from the beginning of SC the book that Jill and Eustace are already acquainted. It does infer that Jill Pole and Eustace are at least acquainted. It does not imply they are friends.

There are umpteen reasons Eustace's mother might be announcing to Eustace that Jill Pole had come to visit him, without their being anything more than being acquainted. As a teenager, I used to go to the same school as neighbourhood boys, and if it wasn't for homework requirements or collecting for some cause or other, I wouldn't have met them much at all outside of class, unless I was absolutely obliged to, let alone be 'friends' with them. Neighbours gossip you know, and family members sometimes tend to be too 'nosy'. In fact Jill's visit could very well be an act of bravery, knowing the sort of person Eustace was at the beginning of VDT.

I like what you say that Jill does not seem to be able to get much support from her own parents, let alone teachers and fellow pupils, especially. In the old days before most people on this board were born, the dictum about bullying was the old mantra, 'sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me'. As C.S. Lewis well knew. Jill's parents in wartime could also be part of the problem as war destroys people psychologically as well as physically. Or, as you say, they could be part of the same set as Eustace's parents.

In the book, Jill's journey towards learning trust begins when she realizes that Eustace has changed. There is something different about him. He wasn't trustworthy at all this term...but now he's different. I think if Jill and Eustace are already friends, this won't come through.

I might not feel hopeless about SC if they ditched Apted and Fox. But as it stands now... I don't want to see an SC movie.

I don't see why they would be friends, teenagers or not. And you are right that a deep friendship between them would be a bad start to SC. But Jill, let alone others - won't notice any difference in Eustace if Jill hadn't been acquainted with Eustace beforehand, when he was toadying up to bullies. And there is one bit that puzzles me about SC the book. It is this:

When Eustace finds Jill 'blubbing' behind the gym, he and she are obviously on talking terms. How does that come about if they weren't at least acquainted? How does Eustace get to have a whole conversation with Jill when he had been previously so horrible to everyone, probably including her? Eustace's own cousins made no bones that he wasn't welcome - why wouldn't Jill do the same to him? I know I would avoid such a horrible boy. Even as an old woman I still dislike listening to overbearing, bossy men yelling at me. Lucy's dictum about 'boys being bullying, swaggering idiots', has some truth in it you know.

Its not uncommon to see someone from the low social scale to relate to someone form a higher social scale. Of course, trust is not the base of the friendship and the reason they are forced to be together is for different reasons, such as school work, or other casual reason. Jill was acquainted to Eustace before the events of SC, so having her visit him is really not any problem at all. Have you ever seen certain friendships were one of them doesn't trust the other, and is even bullied by that person, but continues to be there friend for some contrived reason? Well, I've seen it before. Jill and Eustace could have had some sort of relationship along those lines. The fact that Jill has a relationship with Eustace, does not mean they trust one another.

So I don't have any problem at all with Jill to be visiting Eustace.The relevant point to maintain in SC the movie is that Jill has to learn to trust Eustace and Eustace has to prove her that he is know a reliable person.

Its not uncommon to see someone from the low social scale to relate to someone form a higher social scale. Of course, trust is not the base of the friendship and the reason they are forced to be together is for different reasons, such as school work, or other casual reason. Jill was acquainted to Eustace before the events of SC, so having her visit him is really not any problem at all.

Nothing in the books suggests that Eustace is of a higher social scale than Jill, or vice versa. If you're talking about their family's socioeconomic status, I should point out that we know nothing whatsoever about Jill's family. If you are talking about their status in the student body social strata, in the book both Jill and Eustace are part of the bullied class. Eustace bought his safety for a while by sucking up to the bullies and "dancing attendance." The second he stops doing the bullies' every bidding, they start subjecting him to "torture" as he calls it. If you are suggesting that they should concoct a social inequality between them for the sake of the movie, I don't see how that would make things any more interesting.

Could you give us an example of a reason why you would visit someone you don't particularly like, just because you're aquainted? I certainly never do. And it can't be school work, because VDT takes place during the summer holidays. To my way of thinking, the only explanation that would provide a good setup for SC, is that the Poles and the Scrubbs are friends, and that whenever the families' visited each other, Eustace and Jill were thrown together and expected to amuse each other. Consequently they came to think of each other as annoying cousins. Eventually, shortly after VDT, Jill was considered old enough to stay home and amuse herself, so her only memory of Eustace was as that odious boy that her parents used to make her spend time with; she never really got to know the new Eustace.

Putting in my two cents...I don't think I could buy the scenario where their families are friends at all at the beginning of the movie. My preference is that Pole and Scrubb are only acquainted from being part of the bullied crowd as you mention. The less they know about each other at the beginning, the better the story will be IMHO. As a side thought I would guess if WP does end up playing Scrubb again as a dressed-down 15 year old , they're going to have to seriously gloss over that he just recently improved his character over the summer holidays.

Could you give us an example of a reason why you would visit someone you don't particularly like, just because you're aquainted? I certainly never do. And it can't be school work, because VDT takes place during the summer holidays. To my way of thinking, the only explanation that would provide a good setup for SC, is that the Poles and the Scrubbs are friends, and that whenever the families' visited each other, Eustace and Jill were thrown together and expected to amuse each other. Consequently they came to think of each other as annoying cousins. Eventually, shortly after VDT, Jill was considered old enough to stay home and amuse herself, so her only memory of Eustace was as that odious boy that her parents used to make her spend time with; she never really got to know the new Eustace.

1. Why not homework during the holidays? I always had holiday homework once I was past junior primary school, in post war days, why wouldn't Experiment house set it as well? Even more so in the sort of intellectual clique that Eustace's parents move in at such an elevated place as Cambridge UK. This is especially the case if middle class parents want their children's academic progress to justify money spent on private schools.

In that case it is teachers' orders. Do you really think holidays are there to give kids a break? Forget it! The reason for long summer holidays are there to enable farmers' children to help with the harvest, or in Australia's case, because it is too hot if we are serious about child welfare. Even then school children only get a month summer holidays from Boxing Day, and these holidays officially end after tomorrow.

2. I agree with you, Anhun, that Jill's parents could have been friends with Eustace's parents. In that case it would be parental orders that she visit Eustace, and even socialise with him, for whatever reason. It was also customary in those days, before child-minding was introduced, for children to be shoved off with each other whilst grown-ups talked. Children were meant to be seen and not heard, you know.

3. I agree we know nothing about Jill's background or her parents. There was a war going on, in which people collected for various causes. That might occasion an independent visit, though I agree it isn't really the occasion for a social visit. And in that case it is her society's orders, or the orders of her social conscience.

4. There is another possibility, thanks to the London Blitz, and the bombing out of cities like Coventry, in particular. England isn't all that big a place. Proportionately you could fit the whole of the British Isles between Brisbane and Melbourne, at most. And even then I'd be generous. Jill, as a classmate of Eustace just might have arrived as a billet, having been bombed out. In that case it was governmental orders. We already saw this sort of thing in LWW.

Why am I emphasizing orders? Because in Wartime one obeys orders the best one can. It depends on who issues the orders, and what their morals are, whether these orders should be trusted and obeyed. But believe me, even on the 'good' side, in wartime, orders are there to be obeyed. And never mind one's personal inclinations. Before Martin Luther King Jnr and the great social revolutions of the late 1960's and 1970's, personal inclination was among the last factors to be considered in day-to-day life. Unfortunately so, as some of the social inequalities in operation even in Western countries at that time were a form of bullying.

Besides, Lucy and Edmund had already realised in VDT that they had to stay at Eustace's place, like it or not. I do think that VDT the movie set up for SC quite well.

I really wish the Narnia production would reconsider filming in digital again, if they make the next movies. One of my favorite movies (my very favorite, in fact) is Lawrence of Arabia. The cinematography in that movie is stunning in every way. Now, I know it's asking a bit much for The Silver Chair to have as great cinematography as Lawrence of Arabia. However, a comparable movie from FOX is Star Wars: A New Hope, which is evidence that cinematography is a good chunk of what makes a fantasy film good. Lucas didn't work with a lot of CGI in 1977 for the first Star Wars film: consequently, everything looks real and has a presence. My complaint with CGI-laden films is that you lose that presence. Also, the actors can't interact as well with things that aren't there. This is why the BBC Aslan is more convincing even though he is so obviously a puppet.

The Silver Chair, I don't think, requires nearly as much CGI as the three previous stories. So my hope, if the film is made, is that there will be a fresh start: not only for the script, but for the production values.

Filmmakers have obviously graduated from CGI. The apex was Jackson's The Lord of the Rings. Nowadays CGI is all about getting things quickly pasted together and slapping a fancy title on it.

The Silver Chair, I don't think, requires nearly as much CGI as the three previous stories. So my hope, if the film is made, is that there will be a fresh start: not only for the script, but for the production values.

Yes! I would love a more natural-looking SC, one where they don't augment every little scene with CGI. Now, we know some things will have to be CGI, but there are plenty of situations where that's just not necessary.

Putting in my two cents...I don't think I could buy the scenario where their families are friends at all at the beginning of the movie. My preference is that Pole and Scrubb are only acquainted from being part of the bullied crowd as you mention. The less they know about each other at the beginning, the better the story will be IMHO. As a side thought I would guess if WP does end up playing Scrubb again as a dressed-down 15 year old , they're going to have to seriously gloss over that he just recently improved his character over the summer holidays.

I'm thinking if they replace Will Poulter with a 12 or 13-year-old actor, they can say that Jill was over to borrow a book for school (werewolf thinks that they may have had summer homework back then, so I suppose that's plausible) and that, in all other respects the nature of their acquaintance is exactly as it was in the book. They go to the same school, but they don't really mingle, and she thinks of him as this cowardly jerk who sucks up to the bullies.

But, you're right that they couldn't do that if they had Will P. There would have to be some reason why she thinks of him as a jerk, even though the change happened years before.
That's why I suggested the "friend of the family" idea. Basically, they used to be thrown together when he was a younger, but her parents stopped forcing her to come along shortly after VDT. Since then, they've barely spent any time together, and she never got to know the new Eustace.

Clive, CGI wasn't around back in the early days of Star Wars. Also, I hardly think the BBC Aslan was more convincing than the current version. I thought the puppet Aslan was awful, even as a child. The BBC series isn't terrible (The Silver Chair is actually quite good) but Aslan was definitely one of the weaker parts of that adaptation.

Clive, CGI wasn't around back in the early days of Star Wars. Also, I hardly think the BBC Aslan was more convincing than the current version. I thought the puppet Aslan was awful, even as a child. The BBC series isn't terrible (The Silver Chair is actually quite good) but Aslan was definitely one of the weaker parts of that adaptation.

And better for it! Despite what some folks say, the models and sets of Star Wars are convincing in a way that neither Ray Harryhausen films or modern splashy CGI flicks are.

Do notice that I said BBC Aslan was "obviously a puppet." I wasn't praising the puppet, but the presence he had. He was "there." It's hard for me to accept CGI characters as being "there." The Walden Reepicheep is an exception.

Similarly, the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park are "there" in the most crucial shots, thanks to Stan Winston's amazing animatronics. If there was one thing I'd do different for Aslan in the next movie (especially considering he doesn't have much action) is build a really good animatronic Aslan instead of having him be CGI.

Sorry, yes, you're correct. I don't hate CGI, it's just another medium. The problem is they try to do too much with it, often at the expense of story, characters and realism. Jurassic Park holds up really well because it was a hybrid of animatronics and CGI. I prefer that approach to just CGI. Any special/visual effects should serve the story and characters, not overpower them. I wish movie people would realise this and do something about it.

......
But, you're right that they couldn't do that if they had Will P. There would have to be some reason why she thinks of him as a jerk, even though the change happened years before.

Was just throwing that out there because of your arguments about book Eustace's age.... I honestly would be depressed if they replaced Will.

Seriously, I think that whoever will be writing the script/making Silver Chair should conveniently and purposefully develop amnesia and gloss over the fact that Eustace looked different last term. A pair of rose-coloured glasses would help here. But can they really speed things up and not sacrifice quality of the whole project because they're trying to beat someone's growing up? It will be interesting to see how this all plays out....or not....

That glossing-over I wouldn't mind so much. Probably, the thing that worries me the most is that they'll do the same thing with Eustace that they did with Edmund. Ever since Skandar had his growth spurt, he's actually looked older than his real age. Now, they aged up the character, but not enough. They still gave Edmund behaviors, interactions, and dialogue that look weird on a boy Skandar's age. We could ignore it up to a point in PC and VDT because Edmund took something of a back seat to other characters like Peter, Caspian, Lucy and Eustace. But if they do this with Eustace and Jill, the two central characters in SC, it'll ruin the movie.

I have seen boys older than Skandar (and William) engage in behavior more immature than what Edmund is shown doing in the movies.

Not everyone matures at the same rate in every aspect.

So to me, it is tolerable.