The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (film)

 What did you think of the movie?? It was great!! Cannot wait to see it again! It was good. It was okay. Could have been better It was bad.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a 2010 epic fantasy film based on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the third published novel in 'The Chronicles of Narnia' series. This movie marks the first Narnia film not to be distributed by Disney (both The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian were under the Disney banner). Instead, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was distributed by 20th Century Fox. On March 23, 2010, Fox announced that the film will be released in Digital 3D in select theaters.

The film was released in theaters in the United States and United Kingdom on December 10, 2010.

Plot
One year has passed since the Pevensies' last adventure in Narnia. The two youngest Pevensie children, Lucy and Edmund, are staying with their odious cousin Eustace Scrubb during the final days of the second World War while their older brother Peter and their older sister Susan are travelling through America with their parents. Edmund and Lucy feel they are being left out; Edmund attempts to join the army, but is unsuccessful and Lucy is upset by the feeling that she does not match up to her sister in looks. But one day, they observe a painting in Lucy's room of a grand ship on the sea that looks very Narnian, only to be interrupted by Eustace who mocks them. Suddenly, the painting comes to life and the water spills out into the room, transporting the three children into an ocean in Narnia. They rise to the surface to find themselves in the way of the ship from the painting, but are rescued by the crew and are taken aboard.

Among the ship's crew are King Caspian X and Reepicheep and the ship is the Dawn Treader, the first ship Narnia has seen in centuries. Also among the crew are Lord Drinian, the ship's captain and a small number of Narnians, including the Minotaurs, Tavros and Jemain. Caspian explains that three years have passed in Narnia and he is on a voyage to find the seven lost lords of Telmar, good men and friends of his late father, Caspian IX, whom his evil uncle Miraz banished when he usurped the throne many years earlier. Lucy and Edmund are delighted to be back in Narnia, but Eustace is less enthusiastic as he doesn't believe he is in Narnia and is at odds with Reepicheep. Lucy even asks if Caspian has found a wife in the three years they have been gone; he smiles bashfully and admits he has not, unaware that later events on the voyage will change that fact. Lucy also asks what is beyond the Lone Islands; in a later conversation with Reepicheep when she hears him sing a song a dryad sang to him when he was a mousling, he says that he believes Aslan's Country lies beyond the Seas of the Utter East - a place he hopes to sail to on the voyage.

Finally, they arrive at the Lone Islands and first make land in Narrowhaven; the Lone Islands are normally Narnian territory, but they discover that Narrowhaven has become a haven for slave trade by Calormen. Caspian, Lucy, Edmund and Eustace are captured by the slave traders as merchandise. While imprisoned, Caspian and Edmund meet one of the lost lords, Lord Bern, who sees the resemblance between Caspian and Caspian IX and is overwhelmed when Caspian reveals that Caspian IX was his father. Edmund then witnesses a group of slaves being sailed out to sea and disappearing when a mysterious green mist appears. Bern reveals those not sold are sacrificed to this mist that he and the other lords were investigating. The crew of the Dawn Treader arrives and rescues the four captive crew members, killing the slave trade leader and their men. Caspian reclaims Narrowhaven and names Bern its duke, who gives him one of the seven swords the lords possess that were given to them by his father. One of the citizens, Rhince, whose wife Helene was one of those sacrificed to the mist, begs Caspian to let him join them so he may find her and Caspian agrees. But later, it is discovered that Rhince's young daughter, Gael has stowed away on board the ship, but is accepted by Drinian and welcomed by Lucy.

The second island they visit is Magician's Island and Lucy is abducted by invisible Dufflepuds, who force her to enter their oppressor's manor to recite a spell of visibility. She enters the manor and finds the Book of Incantations, from which she rips out a page containing a beauty incantation spell that will make her like her sister before reciting the visibility spell, making both the Dufflepuds and the magician, Coriakin visible again. Lucy and the others learn that Coriakin actually cast the invisibility spell to protect the Dufflepuds from the evil green mist that comes from Dark Island. To defeat the evil of Dark Island, the crew must locate the other Swords of the Seven Lords and lay them at Aslan's Table on Ramandu's Island, but he also warns them that they are all about to tested by temptation. In order to reach Ramandu's Island, they must follow the Blue Star. During a storm at sea after leaving Magician's Island, Lucy nearly becomes the first victim to the mist's temptation because of her lack of self-value; she casts the beauty incantation spell and transforms into Susan. She then finds herself at a party with Peter and Edmund, who recognise her as Susan and do not know of Lucy or Narnia. Realising that she no longer exists as Lucy, she awakens from the vision of the party as her normal self. Aslan appears to her in a mirror and explains that she wished herself away and much more with it because she doubts herself and explains to her that her brothers and sister would not know of Narnia if it was not of her, as she was the one who discovered it. After Lucy throws the page containing the beauty incantation into the fire, the mist moves to torture Caspian and Edmund with their own personal demons; Caspian has nightmares of his father and the mist appears to Edmund as Jadis, the White Witch.

The crew then make a stop at a volcanic island, where Caspian, Edmund and Lucy find a pool of water that turns anything it touches to gold, along with Lord Restimar, who fell into the pool and was turned to gold himself. After successfully claiming his sword, Edmund is tempted by the pool's powers and challenges Caspian over who is more worthy of being king. They fight, but Lucy stops them and warns them that they are being tempted, just like Coriakin warned them. Elsewhere, Eustace has left the group to avoid participating in the work and finds treasure that arouses his greed, filling his pockets with gold and jewels and puts on a large golden bracelet from a skeleton. When Caspian, Edmund and Lucy return to the boats, Lucy realises that Eustace is missing so Caspian and Edmund go to look for him. They come across the treasure themselves and find Eustace's clothes burnt, but no sign of Eustace. Caspian then spots the skeleton and identifies it as Lord Octesian, while Edmund finds his sword. Suddenly, a dragon attacks the Dawn Treader and abducts Edmund, flying him over the island and showing him giant words it made with fire that say "I AM EUSTACE". They all realise that Eustace must've been tempted by the treasure and transformed into a dragon as a result. The Pevensies, Caspian, Reepicheep, Rhince and Gael stay ashore that night, keeping Eustace company. Reepicheep comforts Eustace, stating that maybe being turned into a dragon is a sign that he has a great destiny ahead of him; Eustace then helps the crew get to their destination the next day when Gael spots the Blue Star in the sky.

The crew finally arrives at Ramandu's Island and discovers Aslan's Table served with food and three lost lords under a spell. Caspian warns the crew that the food is responsible and when Edmund spots the Stone Knife, they lay the swords on the table, realising that one is still missing. Suddenly, the Blue Star descends from the sky and turns into a beautiful young woman; she is Lilliandil, the daughter of Ramandu. She warmly welcomes them and invites them to eat, stating that the food is safe and for them. Caspian, completely awestruck by Lilliandil, states that she is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen and immediately falls in love with her. Edmund shows a liking to her also, but Lilliandil only seems attracted to Caspian. She then explains that the three lords are under a sleeping spell because they were threatening violence upon each other by the time they reached the island; violence is forbidden at Aslan's Table and they will only awake when the seventh sword is put with the others. She guides them to the location of the final sword; Dark Island itself and warns them that they will need great courage. Before Lilliandil returns to the sky, Caspian tells her that he wishes to see her again and she reciprocates his wish with a smile.

Upon arriving at Dark Island, the crew discovers the seventh lord, Lord Rhoop and bring him abroad. Rhoop warns them not to think of their fears, but Edmund fails and his fear manifests as a sea serpent that attacks the ship. Mad with fear, Rhoop throws his sword at Eustace, stabbing him and Eustace flies away, landing on a sandy island nearby. There, he is approached by Aslan, who turns him back into a boy and sends him back to Ramandu's Island to place Rhoop's sword with the others. The mist tries to distract Edmund by appearing as Jadis again, but Eustace suceeds in getting the seven swords together and Edmund manages to overcome his own demons as he slays the sea serpent. The spell is lifted, the three lords awake from their sleep, the sacrificed people, including Gael's mother, reappear and Eustace rejoins the crew.

Soon afterwards, Caspian, Reepicheep, Lucy, Edmund and Eustace head to the world's end, sailing in a small boat through a sea of lillies until they reach a shore with a massive wave. Aslan appears and tells them that His Country lies beyond the wave, but they will never return if they choose to go on. Caspian is offered the chance to go on when asking if his father is in Aslan's Country, but chooses not to go out of realising that he already has what he needs in Narnia and that his father would not want him to give up what he died for. However, Reepicheep comes forward and gains Aslan's blessing to see His Country; he bids farewell to his friends, including Eustace who is devastated at his departure, and paddles in a coracle up the wave and onto Aslan's Country, never again to be seen in Narnia. Aslan then opens a portal in the wave to send the children home, telling them that Edmund and Lucy will not return to Narnia, like Peter and Susan, but encourage them to know him by another name in their own world. However, Eustace, now a much kinder person from his time in Narnia as a dragon, could return someday. Edmund and Lucy bid a final farewell to Aslan and Caspian, before entering the portal along with Eustace.

The three return to Eustace's bedroom, where the water returns to the painting and Eustace's mother calls out to him that Jill Pole has come for a visit. They sadly watch as the Dawn Treader sails away in the painting and disappears behind the waves.

Main Protagonists

 * Ben Barnes - Caspian X
 * Georgie Henley - Lucy Pevensie
 * Skandar Keynes - Edmund Pevensie
 * Will Poulter - Eustace Scrubb
 * Liam Neeson - Aslan, (voice)

Dawn Treader crew

 * Simon Pegg - Reepicheep (voice)
 * Gary Sweet - Lord Drinian
 * Shane Rangi - Tavros the Minotaur
 * Tamati - Jemain the Minotaur
 * Ryan Ettridge - Caprius the Satyr
 * Steven Rooke - Nausus the Faun
 * Morgan Evens - "Randy" the faun
 * Chris Cruickshanks - "Cruickshanks" the Dwarf
 * Mirko Grillini - The Belligerent Telmarine

Narnians

 * Laura Brent - Ramandu's Daughter, Liliandil
 * Terry Norris - Lord Bern
 * Bruce Spence - Lord Rhoop
 * Tony Nixon - Rynelf
 * Arthur Angel - Rhince
 * Arabella Morton - Gael
 * Nathaniel Parker - Caspian IX
 * Roy Billings - Chief Dufflepud
 * David Vallon - Governor Gumpas
 * Colin Moody - Pug
 * Catarina Hebbard - Gael's Aunt
 * Ozzie Devrich - Slaver
 * Greg Poppleton - Dufflepud 1
 * Neil Young - Dufflepud 2
 * Mary Bradney-George - Dufflepud 5
 * Scott "Ryctor" Brewer - Dufflepud 7

Cameos

 * Anna Popplewell - Susan Pevensie
 * William Moseley - Peter Pevensie
 * Tilda Swinton - spirit of The White Witch which will be a test for Edmund to overcome

Differences from Book

 * ﻿In the film, Edmund attempts to enlist in the army, only to be thwarted by Lucy, the same way she embarassed Susan in the previous film.
 * Eustace tries to make up a limerick, not a couplet.
 * At the Lone Islands, Caspian instructed his men to keep silent about their identities, and only revealed who he is to Lord Bern after he bought his freedom, being reminded of Caspian's father. In the movie, Caspian shouts "I am your king!" the second they are ambushed by Slave Traders, and meets Lord Bern in the cell where the Slave Traders throw him and Edmund.
 * In the book, Caspian learns from Lord Bern that the Slave Traders have been allowed to operate without interference from the Governor, Gumpas, who sees the practice as unavoidable and necessary for the economy. In the film, Caspian learns with Bern that the Slave Traders have been making sacrifices to a green mist.
 * The Dark Island takes the form of a green mist, becoming a sort of sentient threat seeking to "corrupt all goodness" and "steal the light" from the world, rather than the embodiment of Fear in Narnia.
 * In the film, Caspian seeks to collect the swords of the Seven Telmarine Lords to be laid at Aslan's Table. It is never explained why Aslan entrusted the protection of Narnia to seven Telmarines.
 * The stowaway Gael was not in the book.
 * In the film, Coriakin turned the Duffers invisible to protect them from the Green Mist, and they seek Lucy's help because they can't read. In the book, the Duffers turned themselves invisible, and they sought Lucy's help because only a girl can reverse the spell, and they are too afraid to send their own daughters.
 * The geography has been drastically changed for the film resulting in some of the islands being visited in a different order than they were in the book. In the book, Dark Island came before Ramandu's Island; Dragon Island and Deathwater Island were two separate islands; neither was volcanic and both were visited before Coriakin's island.
 * Eustace remains a Dragon much longer in the film than he does in the book. In the book, Eustace is unable to follow the Dawn Treader at sea and Aslan appears to change him back to human while the Dawn Treader is still at Dragon Island. In the film, Eustace is able to pull the ship when there is no wind and Aslan does not appear to change him back to human until near the end of the film while Edmund, Lucy, Caspian, and the Dawn Treader's crew are engaged in battle against the sea serpent.
 * In the film, Lucy tears a page out of the Book of Incantations and envisions herself as Susan.
 * Rather than a spell to eavesdrop on her friends, she says a spell to make it snow indoors.
 * In the film, Ramandu's daughter is a star, not half-star. Her father never shows up in the film.
 * Ramandu's daughter says that the three Lords were put into a sleep because "violence is not permitted at Aslan's Table".
 * In the film, Aslan never shows up until the World's End, and never in the form of a lamb.
 * In the book, Caspian was forbidden by Aslan to sail to the World's End.

Production
Michael Apted was announced as director on April 17, 2007; Andrew Adamson, director of the series' first two films, and Mark Johnson are slated as co-producers. Apted grew up reading the Narnia novels. Bob Beltz of Walden Media said the production company deliberately set up a fast-paced, staggered shooting schedule for the Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and The Silver Chair films "in a way that it won't have to be two and a half years between them. We'll be able to bring them out sequentially a year apart". Michael Apted described taking over direction of the series as easy, "What’s fascinating about this particular franchise is how different all the stories are... there’s no element of Narnia in it at all. This is a journey that Caspian the Tenth is making into the islands, outside to the east of Narnia. So it’s interesting, it’s a whole different tone to the other things".

Production designer Roger Ford was replaced by Jan Roelfs. The owners of an AUD 2.1 million 40 metre by 30 metre by 5 metre water tank at Warner Roadshow Studios in Queensland are negotiating with the production company, in the hope that The Voyage of the Dawn Treader will be filmed there. Filming began in May 2009.

Due to Prince Caspian grossing less than expected, Disney wanted a $100 million budget. However, Walden Media wanted a $140 million budget. On December 24, 2008, Disney chose not to go through with the much anticipated movie. On January 28, 2009, Fox 2000 decided to pick up the franchise, joining Walden Media for the production.

Marketing
In late November 2009, three stills from the film were released on the social networking site, Facebook. In February 2010, Narnia.com, the official domain, returned after a nine-month period of being down, bringing with it exclusive reports from the set. The first official teaser poster was released in May 2010. The first official public trailer for the film was released online on June 17, 2010, before being attached to Toy Story 3 on June 18, 2010. A second trailer was released to the Internet August 05, 2010, after being attached on the Dairy of a Wimpy Kid DVD.