My favorite part of VDT were the wave at the end, it fit my expectations perfectly and I still love that scene to death. Also, you can't help but love the credits, I literately sat in the theaters while everyone was leaving just to watch them. I was in awe. They alone were worth the price of the ticket.

Agreed on both accounts, Joe! I completely forgot about the wave-farewell-scene at the end. That was so beautifully done and I tear up almost every time. It managed to almost live up to the emotion I feel when I read the book. It was so well done, and I almost feel glad that VDT was made, just for that scene alone. It was worth it to see the beautiful goodbye.

Also, I agree that the credits were well-drawn and it was such a neat idea to include Pauline Baynes' original drawings. That was really excellent as well.

See, this thread is even making me remember how much I loved the film when I first saw it. I'd forgotten, and it brings back those old emotions that I felt in the theater. Because of this, my like of the film may have increased just a teensy bit more than it was before.

Wow tuff subject!

1. Ok I liked the start of the movie, right up until they landed on The Lone Islands. Those first few minutes felt like it was The story of the Dawn Treader.

2. I agree, I love Will Poulter as Eustace!
I think Eustace was the only thing I think they really got right in the spirit of the book.

3. And I agree, The cinematography and the scenes were breathtaking

4. I Loved the design of Dawn Treader herself.

5. I was happy with how Dragon Eustace looked.

6. And I Loved how they mentioned Jill's name at the end!

7. The Credits! It was nice to see the wonderful book illustrations on the big screen!

Thats really all I can think of! But at least it is something.

Ooh, lovely idea for a thread, Mountie dear.

I really liked the scenery and the way they made Eustace the Dragon and the Dawn Treader itself look, as well as the Dufflepuds and the water-like mermaids. I think my favorite parts were, like Joe, the wave that the end and the credits. I too sat in the theaters as everyone else left just to watch them.

Such a refreshingly happy topic!

Well.
The Dawn Treader herself and the lovely delicate look that runs through all her lines captured my love early on. Seeing her crest the waves during the storm was one of the highlights of the movie, for me. Still gives me a quivery feeling to think about.

The coloring of the whole movie is very tropical, magical and bright, which was nice.

I loved the snow from the Magician's Book. I know some people think it's cheesy, but I don't care!

The sea of lilies was captured so well - so much light! I only wish the movie had spent a lot more time there! The Silver Sea and the Magician's Upstairs were THE two settings I was looking forward to seeing brought to life. Of the two, the Silver Sea was translated best - the beauty takes my breath away.

Eustace of course was splendidly obnoxious, and I did like the portrayal of Reepicheep better this time around. The PC Reepicheep annoys me so much - and not in a good way like Eustace!

Nice. We need some happiness.

1. The Painting
This scene was done really well--the struggle, both physical and mental, between the characters, the way it was shot was brilliant, and it perfectly matched the way I'd envisioned it.

2. Eustace
Specifically, Will Poulter as Eustace. He did a really great job, and came as close to perfectly portraying him as is possible.

3. The Credits
Eep. Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous. A lot of people started leaving when the credits started to roll, and privately wondered if they were insane. Points to whoever thought of doing that.

4. The Design of the Dawn Treader
I don't think I can begin to properly verbalize how much I loved the way the ship looked. I did a miniature paper model, and then decided to make a larger one out of card-stock. It's on one of my mousepads, I have a poster of it, and I made a watercolour painting of it. It's easily my favourite part of the movie.

5. The Farewell Scene
Again, props to whoever thought of them going through the wave, and the water level dropping like that. Very clever visual.

6. Freebies
As it happens, I got both my lion posters and the DVD free, through various contests. This was a major plus in my book.

7. The Game
I really loved the treasure hunting game on Narnia.com. I kept playing long after it 'officially' ended, and met a lot of really good friends in the process.

I'm going to ditto everyone else on the design of the Dawn Treader being positively beautiful, especially Adeona when she says:

"The Dawn Treader herself and the lovely delicate look that runs through all her lines captured my love early on. Seeing her crest the waves during the storm was one of the highlights of the movie, for me. Still gives me a quivery feeling to think about."

Also, I completely agree with you, Adeona, about the coloring. That's another thing that goes hand-in-hand with my love for the cinematography & scenery. The coloring is so bright and beautiful.

Eustace the Dragon was also a highlight, now that I think about it, and although the undragoning scene could've been much better, I rather like the shiny claw-marks on the beach.

The clothing was another thing I loved. I really liked Caspian's flowy purple shirt (and his hair!!). In general, I liked the way Caspian looked a lot better than he did in PC. Speaking of hairstyles, I loved Lucy's ponytail as well. I also really appreciated how they put Lucy in pants, which goes with the book since she wore Caspian's clothes while they were on board the Dawn Treader.

Oh! Forgot to mention the sea of lilies. I feel kind of homesick for that place and I wish I could be there. The lilies on the water were so well-done visually and they really evoked a beautiful feeling of longing. The contrast of the white lilies on the blue water was so pretty and I just love the feel of the whole thing.

The whole movie makes me homesick for Narnia, though, and it does feel like Narnia despite the awful aspects of it. As long as it feels like Narnia, I can usually appreciate the good parts of a Narnia film, and I'm discovering with this thread that VDT is no exception.

The clothing was another thing I loved. I really liked Caspian's flowy purple shirt (and his hair!!). In general, I liked the way Caspian looked a lot better than he did in PC.

Oh, I forgot about that--yes, the purple shirt was a great improvement over the one he wore to his coronation. The set and costume designers did a great job in all three of the films.

Thanks for the reminders that the VDT movie did have its merits.

- The ship itself was nicely done, with the sail and the detail in the woodwork.

- Will Poulter was spot-on as Eustace.

- The sea of lilies (though I would have liked to have seen more of this)

- The wide-open cinematography (ship on the open ocean) - more of this too, please!

- The painting, and the entry into Narnia.

- The waves at the end, with Aslan's Country in the distance.

- Pauline Baynes' illustrations in the end credits.

-The very beginning and the end. Somehow, the world of England looked and felt more 1940s than what was present in Prince Caspian. The water effects for the 'Painting' sequence also look superb, along with the visual effects used for the water used at the end of the film as well (for the end of the world anyway). I absolutely love the coloration and lighting used in this scene (sometimes, at other points in the film, the color seems to overly saturated, but here it is perfect). All the cast members seem to have their better acting moments at the end of the world. Especially Georgie and Skandar. Throughout the film, I get the impression that Skandar wasn't having as much fun as he must have on the previous films where Georgie seems to have somehow lost the genuine magic from the first two films, but at the end of the film, with everyone's tearful farewells, it's real... and you know it's real (no acting, they just are). This is where they shine.

-The built relationship between Eustace and Reepicheep. I really like the scene where Reepicheep joins Eustace after he has turned into a dragon- how he sits by his side and tells him stories of his adventures (much like the book which is a plus).

-The Magician's Book. Okay, foregt about the stupid, seeping appearance of the green mist and you have a wonderful scene. I really like the transition (on the visual effects side) of Lucy's reflection in the book page morphing into Susan's. It makes you appreciate the masters behind the casting when you see how much Georgie and Anna really could be sisters based on their looks.

-Overall costume design. As I mentioned earlier, the England outfits have the 1940s feel. The early ship costumes for Caspian, Edmund, and Lucy are great... and how the stuck with the point that Lucy has to wear mens clothing (though it isn't specifically pointed out to us, which is a plus by the way). I really like the conceptual idea that Eustace stays in his England clothes for most of the film. Even though the Dawn Treader crew would probably supply him with an outfit, Eustace seems to refuse the attire- thus refusing Narnia- by staying in his boring and uniform England clothes.

-Well, this isn't exactly something from the film, but the fact that they set up the Dawn Treader set where us ordinary folk could watch as filming took place (I don't know how convienent it was for the cast and crew on a daily basis, but I like the idea).

Thanks for this thread, Mountie. It's so simple to be cynical and look at the negatives and completely forget the postives, which were there.
I remember that I did not dislike it that much at my first viewing. I am working on being less cynical about disliking it. This thread is helping.
I still feel the same way about the green smoke and other things, but it is great to see what I did like about the film.

The positives:

- The painting was done excellently. The whole transition from Lucy's bedroom to the Narnian seas was spot-on.

- The sea of lillies. This was exactly as I pictured. The coloring was beautiful. The sun overhead was full, but everything was so delicate and sparkling. I really loved how the rowboat they were in was designed, too.

- I did like the snow in the magician's house. I feel the same way about it as I do of the Great River Scene in LWW.

- Will Poulter was brilliant as Eustace. I don't even think that "brilliant" goes enough. He did such an excellent job bringing life to this character, both independently and from the book.

- Unfortunately, I have not seen the credits. I remember thinking the first couple shots were really lovely (I love that kind of feel to credits.).... maybe I should rent it, watch it again to see how I feel about VDT better, and to see the credits.

- Like Lion's Emblem said above, the relationship between Eustace and Reepicheep was very really portrayed and meaningful. At the first viewing, I did tear up during their farewell.

- Shots of the sea were very well-done. The sea of lillies...that cinematography was gorgeous.

- The decor if the interior of the ship was believable, and parts of it were lovely.

- The ending, when they return to Lucy's bedroom, was beautiful. I'd go through the whole movie to see those few seconds. The coloring is gorgeous, the acting very good, the CGI hard to find fault with; everything about it is warm, nostalgic, and distinctly Narnian, yet also bittersweet. One of the scenes gotten right.

I liked very much the ship itself. I followed all the spoilers with sequences from the filming, and I've watched scenes and stills showing details of decorations - so much work has been done for background furniture and others props that will be seen only for a few seconds.

But actors say that it is easier to act when the props and the set help to give you the feeling of realism - so there's more to it than just to look nice. They did a good job with it.

Hmm... I definitely liked Will Poulter's acting. And the end credits were sweet, with Pauline Baynes' lovely illustrations.

I liked some of the set design. I still like the fact that it was "snowing indoors" in the magician's room.

~Riella

Oh yes, I forgot about the sets, those were awesome, the ship was beautiful and I love the Magicians Island. Also, the dufflepuds. You can't possibly hate those guys. I nearly squealed when they first came onto the screen in the theaters. Well, kinda. Because they were invisible at first.