Oy, I never knew about that script idea either! Such a thing makes me almost (I said almost) make me see The Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie in a different light.

I vote OPTION TWO!!!!!

If they aren't going to make the books, the real books, the written books, the books I love, the vision and words of C.S. Lewis into films...why would I go see them? To be honest, a part of me would rather the Third Film (not mentioning the name either) to have not been made. It was, In My Humble Opinion, a disgrace to the Narnian name, and to C.S. Lewis' legacy.

For a while, I was rooting for no more films, but with the news of Magician's Nephew on the horizon I've switched. I'm all geared up for this one; but this is their last chance. If they fail on this one, I can't support them anymore. Not that that means anything to the filmmakers, but still, I've got to take a stand on this.

If it doesn't honor Lewis' words and writings, I don't want to see it. I will anyways, probably, because I, too, live in and love the Narnia Zone with much of my geeky heart. But I won't be happy about it, and I won't encourage it. Purity above popularity.

I'm probably going to regret this, but I'm curious. Liberty, does that mean you would have been happy with the hot dogs and pizza version of LWW just because it was Narnia?

I didn't mean that!
I meant that I like the way the last 3 movies have been made and I don't mind them being changed from the books. I might have misread this thread.....

I really liked LWW and PC and felt that if the series maintained or improved on that quality the series would be fine. But then they ruined the franchise's reputation with VotDT (as well as horrible marketing/release strategies with PC). VotDT was just a bad movie, and when you consider it's adaptation it becomes even worse. In addition to VotDT, they then decide to abandon all continuity and not make the Silver Chair and instead start making The Magician's Nephew. Because of that my expectations for the series are extremely low and I expect the series to die a slow, painful, and pitiful death.

That said, if the Magician's Nephew is made extremely well (and it better be made well as its my second favorite book in the series), I will be fine with the franchise continuing. But if it's quality is like VotDT's, I want the series to stop.

I didn't mean that!
I meant that I like the way the last 3 movies have been made and I don't mind them being changed from the books. I might have misread this thread.....

I think the question is, how much are you willing to have changed? You liked VDT very much, despite the large changes that were made from the book. You liked the green mist and the seven swords; you thought they were epic. But you don't think that Turkish Delight should be changed to hamburgers. Where is the line that you have drawn?

I find the difference between options 2 and 3 interesting.

If they can't be faithful to Lewis' themes, I don't want the films made at all. That being said, I would find them much easier to put up with if they were at least good films. VDT is a bad film, and a dreadful adaptation.

I didn't mean that!
I meant that I like the way the last 3 movies have been made and I don't mind them being changed from the books. I might have misread this thread.....

I think the question is, how much are you willing to have changed? You liked VDT very much, despite the large changes that were made from the book. You liked the green mist and the seven swords; you thought they were epic. But you don't think that Turkish Delight should be changed to hamburgers. Where is the line that you have drawn?

well, basically, the way they have been doing the movies is awesome. they keep to the times and plot and story, but are able to be creative with what they have! making LWW a modern-in-LA thing is too far - it's not the story anymore, it's not the setting and time the real story (the way Lewis wrote it) has.
I don't mind them rearranging the plot (as in VotDT) because it was, to me, still the story. the characters are there, the story's there, and they just take creative liberty with the way the plot goes, the visual representation of the story, ect.
that's awesome to me!

What is the point of adapting a book to a film if the film is not going to follow what is in the book? And I don't mean I think every single adaptation should be word-for-word. On the contrary, I recognize the need to translate the story from book-language to film-language. However, if the film blatantly disregards what is in the book I have to wonder why whoever adapted it bothered in the first place. This is the way I think about all adaptations by the way, not just Narnia.

You know, the more I think about this topic (not necessarily the one you started Watziznehm, but the subject matter in general) the more I have to laugh because I don't think I've seen a single person say "Boy, I really hated all three films, but I still want them to make all seven."

Nobody is going to want them to make all seven films if they believe the production is doing a terrible job. So I think what it comes down to is whether or not each individual person thinks the movies were made well or not in the first place.

The only reason some of us are in the middle of the road on the issue is because we think some of them are good and some of them are not.

That's true, Fantasia Kitty, a lot of this is a matter of opinion about how good or how not so good the movies are. But, I really think that I truly labeled my topic wrong. Of course people want the movies to be made well -- according to their opinion of what good is. I'm dealing with the question of what people believe good to be. Some people don't care if the movies' stories are just a representation of Narnian characters and Narnian lands, but not the same story as the book. For them, all they want is to be drawn into Narnia and spend some time with the characters of Narnia. But, there are some of us (probably the minority), including myself, who aren't content to see just Narnia and Narnian characters, but must also must have the powerful Narnian messages as well. That is where this thread is trying to draw a line!

I'd love it if the movies would get a bit more true to the book. But so far i really like what they've done with the first 3 movies. I'm just glad we had a third one. As long as Narnia looks real (anything is better than those BBC versions, they're just way too dated) and good and most of the messages are kept in, i'm fine with continuing the series.
I won't like it if they keep slicing the budget down. I think 140-150 million is perfect for the Narnia movies. We don't want a budget 100 million $ budget like Percy Jackson or Eragon. These books deserve better.
And if Douglas Gresham, who grew up with this books and is the stepson of C.S. Lewis is happy with these movies, who am i to say they're dreadful adaptations.
There are 2 books i definitely want them to make, Magician's Nephew and Silver Chair. If they decide after that to pull the plug out of the franchise, than so be it. But i want at least 5 Narnia movies, one more than the BBC series. I have no idea how they are ever going to do The Last Battle, Horse and His Boy would be great but i wouldn't mind if it stayed unadapted.
As for the next one, Magician's Nephew i think they need someone who read the books when he was young, and is heavily involved with the script (as Adamson was).

I voted that I cared most about them all getting made - that is the most important thing. And I'm not worried - all of them have been magnificent almost been my expectations, so I'm simply excited about what's to come!!

@Watz... I think to truly get to the heart of your question though, we need to define what people consider a "close adaptation," "to the creed of Lewis," "good movie" or "good effects/acting" afterall people have different definitions of those too. I know it's not the same as your question but I think they go hand in hand

For me I guess I still need a mixture of both... I would not want to see either "a wonderful adaptation, but horrible film" or "a horrible adaptation, but wonderful film." To me they are equally important. Now to take this a step further this is what I would say...

An ideal film (both in terms of Narnia and in general) would capture the heart of the book, even if some changes are made. It would draw the audience in and get them to connect with the characters and the story line. It needs to flow well, the audience needs to forget they are watching a movie. In terms of adaptation, changes should only be made if they will benefit the film AND those changes should be clearly thought out to make sure the same themes still apply in that segment. Scriptwriters/ directors need to take this all into perspective.

A few things in various adaptations that make me cringe and why (I'm hoping this will help explain my point)

Walden VDT- The fight at the Lone Islands-> Not so much because it was a change from the book, but because it went against the themes that Lewis implied both in the book and in this part specifically. In the book this was about how non-violent alternatives should be used in a situation, but in the movie they used violence in that same sequence... To me this is worse than any other change ever made, including Suspian, including the Green Mist, including even the leaked script idea of having tLotGK in VDT

BBC VDT- Entrance into Narnia-> It was cheesy, wayyy to cheesy. I can at least give them the excuse of budget, but still... It was like the book yes, but it pushed you away from the story, and to me it did not feel like Narnia. Some things work better in books than on film, and the VDT entrance into Narnia scene is one of them. Now when watching the Walden Version, yes changes were made, but they didn't severely damage the heart of the story or the themes. That was one change that I think was made for the better.

Walden PC- Peter vs Caspian-> Why because it contradicted Peter's character in the books. I get what Adamson was trying to do, but I think he should have done it differently. Perhaps by making it more obvious that Peter was sad that the old times were gone. Or having him dream about them... Increase the sense of nostalgia without creating conflicts between characters.

BBC LWW- The White Witch's Stags-> This for me is one of the reasons why I barely even watch this one... it just draws me away too much. I don't even understand it... Why couldn't they have used real reindeer or if nothing else, at least put two sticks on the horses' heads so they'd have the right number of antlers, and maybe trim their manes...

So hopefully those things give you an idea of what I mean...