Home Media Magazine - July 13-19, 2008 - (Page CER-9)

product profile+ More on Lewis, Narnia DVDs I The 2005 Disney film: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Disney, DVD $19.99, two-DVD collector’s edition $34.99, four-DVD extended edition $42.99 — with bookend gift set $98.98 — and Blu-ray Disc $34.99). I The 1990 BBC made-for-TV adaptations: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe; Prince Caspian & The Voyage of the Dawn Treader; and The Silver Chair (Home Vision, three-DVD set $29.99). I Chronicling Narnia (Animated, 2005, ArtsmagicDVD, $24.95). I C.S. Lewis: Beyond Narnia (2006, Good Times Video, $14.98) I Narnia & Beyond: Chronicles of C.S. Lewis (2006, Total Content, $14.98). Books I A Family Guide to Narnia: Biblical Truths in C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia (Crossway Books, 2003) by Christin Ditchfield and Wayne Martindale. I Following Prince Caspian: Further Adventures With the Lion of Narnia (Thomas Nelson, 2008) by Thomas Williams. I Roar!: A Christian Family Guide to the Chronicles of Narnia (Multnomah Books, 2005) by Heather Kopp, David Kopp, and Martin French. themes in his books- understanding what it meant for Jesus to sacrifice Himself for people’s sins. The man just never seemed to get it, to appreciate it, to feel it. “But when he saw our animated version of Lewis’ story, it clicked,” he says. The message of Jesus’ love and willing sacrifice to atone for man’s sins came alive for this skeptical man. Book and Film There are even more Christian ideas in the novels, which can afford to be longer. Prince Caspian the book has more time to devote to deeper explorations of faith and belief to which Christians can relate. Characters ask why they should believe in the absent Aslan, why Aslan doesn’t solve their problems, and why Aslan lets bad things happen in Narnia. Young Lucy sees Aslan not just in a dream — as it’s portrayed in the movie — but throughout the story, and struggles to convince her sister and brothers that Aslan is still alive and ready to help them. The books also delve into the magic of Narnia and make an important distinction between “deep magic” and “deeper magic,” says Bruce Edwards, professor at Bowling Green State University and author of a number of books on C.S. Lewis’ life and works, including the “Chronicles of Narnia” study are steeped in Christian imagery. In the first film, the Christ-like lion Aslan allows himself to be murdered to redeem his own betrayer. He is resurrected later because of that willing sacrifice. In Prince Caspian, Aslan returns to vindicate the faith of those who believed in him. Edmund — the child who betrayed Aslan — returns in Prince Caspian as one of the most faithful. These lessons of sacrifice, resurrection and atonement in Lewis’ fantasy tales can deeply affect people. Baehr talks about a letter he received after helping produce an animated version of the “Narnia” series years ago. A man wrote to tell Baehr that his wife had always nagged him about finding Jesus, about textbook Further Up and Further In. The distinction between different magics transforms the idea of magic from witchcraft, prophecy and spells to a deeper truth. “Many characters use the deep magic in the ‘Narnia’ books, like the White Witch,” says Edwards of the villainess from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The White Witch orchestrates Aslan’s willing sacrifice through deep magic. But there is a deeper magic, a magic that permeates Narnia and guides its future in a way that mirrors the Christian belief that God’s law and love go beyond any trickery perpetrated by Satan and supernatural foes. “The White Witch doesn’t understand that her killing Aslan will lead to her own downfall and the redemption of all Narnia,” Edwards says. He compares it to Satan’s orchestration of Jesus’ crucifixion without understanding that the crucifixion will lead to Satan’s future downfall. Finding the Message Lewis spoke more directly of God, Heaven and Hell in works such as Mere Christianity and The Hidden Divorce. But he loved stories for stories’ sake as well. He artfully weaves Christian ideas in his “Narnia” books without writing direct allegory, says Jim Baehr, >> CHRISTIAN ENTERTAINMENT REVIEW / JULY 2008 9

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Home Media Magazine - July 13-19, 2008 Contents News News High-Def News Electronic Delivery News TV DVD Cine Mercado Reviews Pipeline Research Top 20 DVD Sellers Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts Just Announced Christian Entertainment Review - July 2008

Home Media Magazine - July 13-19, 2008

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