Writer: Anne Jamaludin

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Watch this if you liked: “Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, The Wardrobe”, “Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian”, “Eragon”

"The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader" continues with the third instalment C.S Lewis's literary adventure and this time, following the sequence in "Prince Caspian", Lucy and Edmund Pevensie find themselves 'called upon' from Narnia. The two younger Pevensie siblings are summoned through a magical painting with an excessive baggage in the form of an annoying, grumpy cousin named Eustace Scrubb dragged unwillingly. They are then rescued on-board the majestic 'Dawn Treader', led by none other than their old friend, the King of Narnia; Caspian. Together, they embark on a quest towards Lone Islands and beyond to search for the seven magical swords of the seven lords who were banished by King Miraz from the previous movie. However, there are hardly any antagonists in the movie as opposed to before, where only obstacles lie in wait for the voyagers.

The adventures might seem like a typical plot that can be found in any fantasy movie however, the magic of Narnia world itself will make up for half of it. Even without the regular appearances of Peter and Susan, Lucy and Edmund showed how they have grown even wiser and stronger in this movie, helping them to encompass the shadows of their older siblings. Surprisingly, rambunctious cousin Eustace whose characteristics will make the audience feel irritated somewhat managed to take the viewers on a nice rollercoaster ride of emotions, suiting well with the chronicles' comfortable tinge of drama. As compared to the previous Narnia movies, the quality of critical plots here seemed to have lacked the adrenaline rush - what a letdown.

Audience can expect to see the return of Aslan, the magical lion and Reepicheep, the sword-wielding mouse with better fur coats and the fighting actions from the pint-sized warrior managed to steal the thunder from his human friends. Graphics is pretty decent and well worked in 3D though the reviewer believes this third instalment was not as engaging as its previous films, even though the special effects of some mythical creatures is praiseworthy.

The young casts in the ensemble (with the exception of Ben Barnes) may not be well-known, but nevertheless their performance would assure that it would not be the last of them in Hollywood.

Harry Gregson-Williams and David Arnold did a remarkable job with the music scores, befitting the fantasy universe. Country singer Carrie Underwood provided vocals for the theme song, "There's A Place For Us" that will accompany the audience during the end credits, giving a soothing feel to everyone who yearns and hope to come back to the Narnia world if the continuation exists.

The chronicles may not be as insanely huge like other mega literatures such as J.K Rowling's "Harry Potter" or J.R.R Tolkien's "Lord Of The Rings" and nowhere near their level of epic-ness, but Narnia still offers a magical escapade for the adventurer in every individual.

Cinema Online, 02 December 2010