The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures | Release Date: May 16, 2008 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
62
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 34 Critic Reviews
Positive:
23
Mixed:
10
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
A glorious medieval war movie. It's about war as the ultimate pitch of conflict that tries men's souls, and women's, too. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterMichael Rechtshaffen
Several shades darker in tone than the previous edition -- which, to be fair, didn't carry the burden of expectation that a sequel must bear -- the return to Narnia still casts a transporting spell. Read full review
80
VarietyTodd McCarthy
Closer to a straight-ahead medieval battle picture than the fantastical, other-worldly journey depicted in "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," this new entry is a bit darker, more conventional and more crisply made than its 2005 predecessor. Read full review
80
Washington PostAnn Hornaday
As portrayed by William Moseley, Skandar Keynes, Georgie Henley and especially Anna Popplewell as Susan, the Pevensies still make for terrific tween protagonists, and Aslan, the majestic mythical lion voiced by Liam Neeson, is still a breathtaking manifestation of the Cat Upstairs. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
The film's pronounced split between violence and softness notwithstanding, Prince Caspian is finally a more polished effort than "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and squarely in the tradition of the kind of teenage movies the Disney organization used to make before teens discovered horror and gore. Read full review
80
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
Even with all the CGI effects, this darkly emotional movie feels like the anti-"Speed Racer." Sure, it's a big-budget spectacle. But it's also the kind of grandly old-fashioned entertainment we don't get enough of anymore. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Overall, while not as strong in terms of plotting or character development, Prince Caspian is nevertheless a better cinematic experience than its predecessor, if only because it feels more confident and polished. Read full review
75
USA TodayClaudia Puig
An exhilarating fantasy adventure marred only by its length and protracted climactic battle scenes. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
An elaborately presented feast that will taste familiar to the 'tween and teen audience for whom it is served. The four courses are love, war, faith and humor, served in no canonical order, and sometimes, simultaneously. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerAthima Chansanchai
In this sequel, magic still reigns but suspending disbelief doesn't come as easily. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
If Caspian has a fault, it's that viewers familiar with neither the books nor the first film may have trouble picking up the strands of the story in the early scenes… but in all honesty, how many Lewis neophytes will choose Caspian as their point of entry? Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy Burr
Take away the storming music and grand vistas, and it's all a standard sword-and-sorcery adventure; director Andrew Adamson is more than a journeyman but much less than the visionary Peter Jackson is. Read full review
75
New York PostKyle Smith
In their refusal to be up-to-the-moment, the Narnia movies are bound to age beautifully, perhaps much more so than the two Shrek films Adamson directed. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
Next time out, more dwarfs, more Aslan, and definitely more Reepicheep. Read full review
70
Village VoiceElla Taylor
Prince Caspian is fairly good fun, and I'm trying to decide whether it was the capable swordplay or Ben Barnes's bedroom eyes that prompted a significant shift in brand loyalty. Read full review
70
SlateDana Stevens
They may make for clunky religious parables, but the Narnia books--and so far, the movies based on them--are wonderful as stories about childhood and its loss. Read full review
70
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
Quite a bit darker than "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," both in look and in mood. It is also in some ways more satisfying. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
In total effect, Prince Caspian feels a lot more earthbound than "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe." Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
Adamson's pulled a more morally nuanced rabbit (or badger, actually) out of his directorial hat this time out, and the result is a far more engrossing film than its predecessor. Read full review
63
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Junkies for dark humor should prep for going cold turkey, despite the efforts of director Andrew Adamson to spice things up with combat and a rivalry between Caspian and Peter (good on Moseley for showing some backbone) that Lewis never imagined. Read full review
63
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
Is it a bad thing that Disney has commercialized, denatured and inflated the story to make it indistinguishable from any handsome sword-and-sorcery epic? Perhaps not, for it IS handsome on its grand scale. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
The movie is more somber and less wondrous in tone than the first film, especially since the lion Aslan (voiced by Liam Neeson), who would have been instrumental in leading the Narnians to victory, has disappeared. Read full review
63
PremiereRyan Stewart
There's a persistent surface level, one-off quality to the whole business that repels emotional involvement at every juncture and seems stylistically in keeping with Disney's reluctance to greenlight each new Narnia film until the last one has proven itself at the box-office. Read full review
60
SalonStephanie Zacharek
Prince Caspian is elaborate filmmaking, all right. It's the magic of the human touch that's missing. Read full review
60
EmpireHelen O'Hara
Significantly better than the first film or, say, the first two Harry Potters, but we still can’t love it as much as we do the books. That said, if they keep improving at this pace, Dawn Treader should be a fantastic experience. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
Roughly the same as the first in terms of quality and style. It delivers without much visual dynamism, and with a determined emphasis on combat. In the 1951 novel the climactic battle between the good Narnians and the bad Telmarines lasted a few pages. The film version of the same battle feels like "The Longest Day." Read full review
50
NewsweekJennie Yabroff
The more obvious special effects are downright hokey, such as a weird swirling water creature who looks like something out of a toilet cleaner commercial. As the outcome of all the sword-flinging and catapult-launching is never in question, it's hard to stay engaged with the movie once the fighting begins. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
Ultimately, it's an absence of personality that does the film in. The creatures remain beautifully designed and Narnia still looks like a colorful, inviting place, but it feels as lifeless as the fantastical anyworlds found on glittery unicorn posters. Read full review
50
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
I wish I could be more enthusiastic about Prince Caspian, an honorable and attractive adventure for children and families. But scenic beauty and spirited action can't conceal its dramatic defects. Read full review
50
Film ThreatPete Vonder Haar
I can't condemn it outright, but damned if I can remember anything (aside from Izzard's performance) that would make me recommend it. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
The wee mousie is fun, all right, yet like the occasionally ragged editing, the fun just gets haphazardly wedged in. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderAndrea Gronvall
This fusty sequel lacks the narrative complexity of "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and squanders both its first-rate computer graphics and its sturdy international cast. Read full review
40
New York Magazine (Vulture)David Edelstein
Such a clunkerama that it made me rethink all the nice things I wrote about its predecessor, "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe." Could the same people have made both films? Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
Exactly one minute longer than its predecessor, but it's a dragged-out exercise, with no epic scale and no spirit worth talking about. Read full review
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