The four English children from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe return to Narnia for another adventure.

So yes, they are making at least the first three of the Narnia books, since Voyage of the Dawn Treader is supposed to be out in 2010...but Caspian, although it was the second of the books*, was always my least favorite. The four kids come back to Narnia, and basically spend all their time squabbling, there's a battle and it's over. Seriously, that's about it. There are some enjoyable characters, like the Bulgy Bears and the Badger and the prince's tutor, but mostly they all just squabble.

I figured that some serious rewrites would have to happen for this to be a good movie, and I was not wrong. And you know what? it's a much better story, and nothing that was good in the original book is lost.

Now, Caspian is older in the movie than he was in the book, and is (I'm told) a total honey among the teenage/early 20s set. He was very cute. The special effects were, of course, stunning. I do love that the Talking Animals are not Disneyfied, but are just large animals that can talk and have their own personalities, just as it should be. Reepicheep, the valiant Mouse, voiced by Eddie Izzard, is PERFECT. I'm so glad he'll be back in Dawn Treader, which was my favorite of the books.

This was good! And it seems that both people who have read the original, and those who have not, like it, which is not as easy a feat as you might think. Well worth seeing and enjoying.

*When I read them as a kid, they were numbered in the order they were published in:

1. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe
2. Prince Caspian
3. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
4. The Silver Chair
5. The Horse and His Boy
6. The Magicians Nephew
7. The Last Battle

But now they are numbered as follows:

1. The Magicians Nephew
2. The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
3. The Horse and His Boy
4. Prince Caspian
5. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
6. The Silver Chair
7. The Last Battle

And if you're interested in the discussion, here's Wikipedia's article on the series, which includes both sides of the issue. I'm for reading them in the original order, myself, but I'm a creature of habit.