Animated Short Film Clip From the ‘Dawn Treader’ DVD

Many fans were puzzled when it was announced that the DVD/Blu-ray release of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader will include an “animated short film.” Last week, AOL Kids posted a clip. View the video here.

Animated Pauline Baynes illustrations are used as Caspian’s narration fills in the gap a bit between Prince Caspian and Dawn Treader.  Strangely, images from a few different Narnia books are shown, including The Horse and His Boy.

The DVD/Blu-ray releases on Friday, April 8.

 

53 Responses

  1. glumPuddle says:

    It appears another NWebber joke has come true… The short film is indeed based on the book CS Lewis didn't write.

  2. Not Of This World says:

    I had seen this video bit on Aslans Country. I thought that it was pretty cool.

  3. Mayor Wilkins says:

    This is pretty cool for kids who haven't yet read the books.
    Kinda leads into "Silver Chair."
    I approve, though it is a bit weird.

  4. Mayor Wilkins says:

    As I understand it, C.S. Lewis himself approved of filling in the gaps in his Narnia stories. He said so in at least one letter. This ties in with what Caspian told them in his cabin at the beginning of the movie.

  5. Malfhok says:

    From what I saw of this (and I didn't watch much 'cause I'm waiting for the DVD), it looks like mostly the narrative that Caspian gives in the book of the gap between PC and VDT. No problem with that! And the animation is charming!

  6. GlimGlum says:

    I wonder: how many other books C.S. Lewis didn't write will be made into movies? 😀

  7. wolfloversk says:

    SEE!!!! I knew it would happen again…

    It does captivate me however 🙂 One of the things I'm most looking forward to on the dvd….

  8. MinotaurforAslan says:

    Animated short film my asterisk. This is just Caspian recanting history that isn't in the book and isn't even exciting. And all the visuals are just crudely animated versions of Pauline Bayne's illustrations in the Chronicles. I saw illustrations from Prince Caspian, The Silver Chair, The Horse and His Boy, the Last Battle. This is disappointing considering that they branded it as a "new animated short film" on the DVD cover, yet it won't contain any illustrations that we haven't already seen.

  9. Lucy says:

    Well some of it is in the book; Caspian DOES mention in the book that he fought off giants.

  10. Eustace says:

    Weird video! I was thinking while watching it what is this?

  11. Huh. Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse!

  12. Sorry, I sounded like a hater there 🙂 I don't hate the movie, but I wish they would stick closer to the book! And I think they went a little far with this…adding things that C.S.Lewis didn't really write about.

  13. Twinimage says:

    O_o This is silly. No respect for the source material. People just want to tell boring, conventional stories of their own, instead of bringing the great originals to life.

  14. wolfloversk says:

    Isn't the animation part better though? I mean Lewis dissaproved of a cartoon version ofd Aslan… this is the farthest thing from cartoony.

  15. reepicheep's_fangirl says:

    Um….
    *awkward silence*
    …I liked the…um….illustrations???
    Yeah, okay, so forget about being optimistic, that was just plain weird. What WAS that?! Forgive me, but I think that was pretty much..well…lame. I really don't think they needed that…..
    Oh well, I mean, that doesn't really make me like the movie any more or less, and I'm still buying it when it comes out. 😀

  16. Griffle says:

    Got the Blu-ray today and I've had a look through the extras. Two words: Smoke & Mirrors. A big percentage of the extras consists of scenes from the film narrated by a woman over-explaining things that don't need to be explained. Even worse: the commentary is ruined by poorly executed mixing. The voices of Apted and Johnson are barely audible as the background audio is too loud, making it hard to concentrate on what they're saying. I guess there are some features worth the time, like the VFX breakdown and the BD exclusive featurettes, but much of what's on it just disappoint you. What happened to the music videos btw? They're not on there even though the BBFC had a look at them. Funny. No bloopers either, now that I come to think of it. There is a section called Live Extras, that might contain some of this but it doesn't seem to be very LIVE atm. As for this specific extra: I was hoping for actual animation rather than a bunch of animated drawings. Beautiful and highly revered drawings, but drawings none the less.

  17. Griffle says:

    Forgot to mention that the Extras menu consists of sub menus hiding under the islands and the Dawn Treader, making it hard to get an overview of what's on there. Just watched the movie btw. I think I've actually changed my mind regarding it. I hated it when I saw it in the theatres meaning that I didn't see it more than once, but I loved it now. I still cringe whenever there's talk about the swords and the green mist, but they really did make a good seeing those plot lines through to the end. I can live with it, and it looks absolutely stunning on Blu-ray. The VFX work in this film SHOULD have been nominated for an Academy Award. Love Reepicheep, Love Dragon Eustace, Love the Green Mist (the effect, except for in the sacrifice scene). I realize that the BBFC only reviews films and extras for the British market btw. How silly of me. Maybe the music videos are on the UK BD?

  18. adamie says:

    lol!

    It seems they realized people found the end credits to be the best scene!

    I find it hard to see such iconic Narnia images packed with such a poor adaptation.

  19. I really don't mind this, I think it's pretty cool. They're sticking right to the story line, even though CS Lewis didn't write a book on this.

  20. Shastafan says:

    I have nothing wrong with animating the drawings from the book (the credits for VDT were great), but I do agree that it's not really needed at all to try to fill in the gap between PC and VDT. I'm glad the giants were mentioned, but I don't like that they used the drawings from other books to explain something that Lewis didn't write (sound familiar?). Oh, well, I like the animation (and am relieved it's not something newly made), but I am not too pleased that they tried to make up something for that.

  21. glumPuddle says:

    "…I loved it now. I still cringe whenever there’s talk about the swords and the green mist."

    I cannot make this compute. Isn't that basically saying "except for the backbone of the entire plot, I love the film"?

    A few questions on the mist: What does it do and why? Why does it want to tempt people? Why didn't it just swallow the Dawn Treader, just as it swallowed the boats at the Lone Islands? Why would six of the lords set out to destroy the mist but leave one sword behind with Bern? What was the point of them going at all if they were missing a sword? And once those Lords reached Coriakin, why didn't he tell them they were missing a sword? Instead, he sent them on.

    Coriakin says he made the Dufflepuds invisible in order to hide them from the mist. So why doesn't he just teach the crew the spell of invisibility? That would make them immune to…whatever it is the mist does (the slaves at the end appear completely unharmed). Whenever they are tempted, or when they sail into the mist, they could just say the spell, and then undo it afterward.

    At the end, all the sword are united…but the mist is not destroyed. Instead, Rhindon starts glowing blue for some reason. No idea what Rhindon has to do with anything.

    Does anything in this movie make any sense?

  22. narnian resident says:

    at first i didnt believe it when it said Caspian was narrating. he sounds so different! but i really liked it. very cute and informative. and for the heads up, that all did happen before VDT. little hints are given throughout the story and from C.S. Lewis sholars

  23. Griffle says:

    Well, let me put it like this: I would have preferred them doing it by the book so to speak and I, like you, hated the movie for the same reasons. All I'm saying is that they did pretty well with what they went for. I like the scene in which Eustace puts the last sword on the table and the cross cutting of that sequence for instance. As for your questions: I'm sure I could come up with all kinds of clever answers to them but I find it all to be just as stupid as you do. VDT isn't a masterpiece of a film, but it's a great looking ride of an adventure.

  24. Griffle says:

    …if you try not to think too much about what's going on. 😉

  25. jag says:

    I have the 2 Disc explorer dvd pack… got it two days ago, and it contains:

    *Never seen before secret scenes!

    *3 musiv videos

    *Commentary by Michael apdted and Mark Johnson

    *Interactive map to the islands and dawn treader
    with a heap of sub-features in each island and the DT

    *Seven Swords match up game

    *Discussions with Liam Nieson about playing Aslan

    *Georgie Henley and Will Poulter interviews

    *"a featurette with director Michael Apted"

    *"Fox movie channel presents: Making a Scene"

    I would have loves some bloopers or more 'real' stuff wrather than tons of island walkthroughs with silly voice overs and information that is not only pointless and sometimes made up, but poorly presented… so im dissapointed that this was the biggest 'extra feature' on the disc, but the rest of the features are really quite good!

    And the movie??? i swear it gets better every time i watch it 🙂

  26. Caspian says:

    Hehe. Oh well. At least this isn't as bad as Disney making a "tour of Narnia" and then using a picture of the Tisroc while the narrator talked about the "Emperor Over the Sea".

    I could almost imagine that Ben was blond. Hehe. 🙂

  27. WilliamMoseleyandSkandarcrush! says:

    I thought it was a random too. But yes!! I'm still buying the movie

  28. nic says:

    The second disc is fun, i like it. Much like the film itself, it's has an enjoyable stylistic variation value from the first two sets/as all three films have got from each other too. It possibly might be the second best disc out of the three sets too – as alot of it is giving more of a back-drop to the film/plot & general Narnian experience.

    And best cover out of three despite plainest dvd packaging – no, not the easter gift box version. Another great Narnia double dvd set i'd say.

  29. nic says:

    sorry, meant possibly best second disc out of three sets, wasn't too clear.

  30. glumPuddle says:

    That's the thing. I've read the book a dozen times and it holds up. I find more depth every time I read it. And it was adapted into a movie where I have to work hard to shut my brain off or the whole story falls apart.

    I laughed out loud when Eustace started sword fighting the smoke.

  31. Mayor Wilkins says:

    What does it do and why?

    The Green Mist is Satan. It wants to turn people away from God (or Aslan in this case as he is the Narnian embodiment of Christ). Because it is Satan, its motives are basically the same as those of Satan. It is pure evil. It feeds on fear and chaos.

    Why does it want to tempt people?

    Temptation is one of Satan's most effective weapons.

    Why didn’t it just swallow the Dawn Treader, just as it swallowed the boats at the Lone Islands?

    Too easy. Satan is sadistic and likes to play. He would much rather tempt them along the way. Also, all the way are Islands such as Goldwater, which present far greater and more attractive temptations than those available on Dark Island.

    Why would six of the lords set out to destroy the mist but leave one sword behind with Bern?

    Perhaps Bern was already captured and they had no choice but to go on without him. Also, Ramandu's daughter claimed the men were half mad when they reached the table. Obviously they were not at all as strong as the Dawn Treader's crew. Maybe they went on and on out of madness and couldn't stand the temptations.

  32. Mayor Wilkins says:

    By the way, The Green Mist is awesome. 😉
    This is how my own little imagination sees the mist.
    (Reposted from a previous thread 😉 )

    The Green Mist is probably The Devil, or at least, a visual symbol of his presence.
    Just a theory. Douglas Gresham said that the mist was a visual symbol of the nature of Narnia reacting to the evil. Evil is so foreign to Narnia that the world makes it visible so you can see that the evil is there. Well, the Devil would probably be so foreign to Narnia that he causes his presence there to ooze out a green mist. So that Narnians can see they are in danger of being tempted.

    Consider the following:

    * The Green Mist knew both Lucy and Edmund’s fears/temptations/inner-most desires almost as well as Aslan (even on earth).

    * The Green Mist is raw evil. It isn’t even a living thing, it’s pure darkness. There’s only one being in scripture that could possibly match such a thing. Further, The Green Mist could not understand good emotion, nor could it grasp when the heroes didn’t give in. This is evident when the White Witch said "Just give in" with some irritation. It could not understand why the temptations didn’t work.

    * Think of color psychology. In the Middle Ages, green was considered the color of calamity and evil, and was associated with the Devil himself.

    * Taking souls. A lot of people here say that The Green Mist taking the slaves from the Lone Island makes no sense. In my view, they are right. But only because it makes no LOGICAL sense. The assumption is that there was a concrete reason to take these lost souls away. You would be wrong. There is no concrete reason that would make sense to humanity.

    The Green Mist was taking the souls from the Lone Island slave traders and terrorizing the Lone Islands because it could. Simply because it was evil. There’s no other reason. I know that might sound odd, but pure evil needs no logical reason to commit evil acts. Purely evil things likely do evil for evil’s sake. To me, that kind of evil you can’t understand is very frightening. The Devil is sometimes depicted as a collector of innocent souls. Souls are collected mostly for the sake of collecting.

    * As the White Witch is Satan’s "Lawful prey," he uses her image to personify Edmund’s temptation. This is in keeping with what Douglas Gresham told us about the witch’s character. The Devil isn’t stupid. He’s not gonna tempt you with ugly things. The Devil dresses up his temptations in beauty. So Jadis is a visual symbol of Satan’s favorite temptations. This would explain why he used her image. To put it in simple, fun language, Satan "Owns the rights" to the soul of The White Witch. He can use her whenever he wants. This is probably why he used her shape the most often.

    * Free will. We are given the free will to chose between good and evil. Never once was The Green Mist able to force any of the characters into evil. It had to tempt them. Satan’s ability to do evil on earth and in Narnia seems to be dependent on the free choice of the world’s creatures.

    * "That old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world."
    Interesting that a sea serpent attacked the ship. And what was the serpent made up of? When Lucy shot her arrow into it, you could see Green Mist coming off of it. When Caspian chopped off part of its jaws, the piece evaporated into Green Mist. The serpent was the physical form of the mist. The serpent has long been considered one of the most common shapes of the devil. What color was the serpent? Green.

    * Aslan’s power smote the serpent down.— I think that’s enough said. The devil remains no match for God.

    So basically, in my own view, The Green Mist is a visual indicator of Satan’s presence in Narnia. He is not shown, but he uses representatives. We see his temptations personified as The White Witch (likely one of his most favorite evildoers in Narnia) and we see the raw, ugly terror of his wrath personified in The Sea Serpent. However, the serpent is bested through the faith and honor of the crew. And ultimately it is cast down by Aslan’s good magic and the holiness of his table.

    However…. I believe that the evil is not done. It will do its work through another witch. And I don’t have to tell you who that is. But to me, The Green Mist is perhaps the most terrifying and most powerful of all the films villains thus far.

  33. High Queene Shelly Belly says:

    Mayor, i wouldn't say the smoke IS satan, I'd say it's a visual depiction of the "spell" of satan.

  34. High Queene Shelly Belly says:

    maybe they were just kindly trying yto provide more material for us? they probably heard everyone liked the end credits and triedto give it to us with no scrolling over it. why are people getting bent out of shape over a nice gesture? geesh…..

  35. High Queene Shelly Belly says:

    who did you get it through?

  36. High Queene Shelly Belly says:

    I was devastated after i saw it the first time, the second time i enjoyed it. I think you do get used to what is there and just start to enjoy the good points. Maybe there are not bloopers and live stuff cause it's way more expensive than to do a little side project like the animation. with live stuff you have to pay a huge crew for more time, and we know now they were only allow a couple of takes for each scene. ( and with the dicey acting in some parts, it really showed.)

  37. Mayor Wilkins says:

    Well…yes, it's more of a weapon of Satan, I guess.
    We never actually see him, as I said (thank goodness–too scary). But if you asked me who the real villain of the movie was, I'd say, without hesitation, that it was Satan.

  38. reepicheep's_fangirl says:

    Hooray for us movie buyers! ALMOST ONE MORE WEEK!!!:D *squealing* I guess my name isn't fangirl for nothing 😉

  39. Peter's BFF says:

    Hold up right there sir! Are you a purist or what?

  40. Peter's BFF says:

    So I was listening to it and I'm thinking, "Gosh that sounds like Ben's voice." Then the voice introduces himself as King Caspian. I guess I went through a blond moment.

    I liked it. And I still plan to get the DVD even if I doe between now and the release date. Everyone seems so "Oh I don't care" and "It realy doesn't matter to me". Well that doesn't sound very Narnia-patriotic of you guys. I'm not disappointed in the film, just in everyone else. I'll not be poisoned by everyone's bitterness towards it. 🙁

  41. High Queene Shelly Belly says:

    Griffle, how did you get it already??

    Im thinknig of preordering from barnes and noble, does anyone know if they drop the price if it goes on sale after you preorder?

  42. High Queene Shelly Belly says:

    That was just WONDERFUL. I'm so glad they made that, very inventive. I feel sorry for the people who made this, if they happened to read all the whining and complaining and uncalled for negativity on this board. they must feel pretty hurt after a lovely project like that was so hated on unnessarily.

  43. Eavis says:

    Yeah, seriously. 🙂 I liked the voice as well, though I don't think it was actually Ben Barnes. And of course, the illustrations were amazing as always and the animators did a great job.

  44. Not Of This World says:

    Let's call it the "Green Demon Cloud" 🙂

  45. Aslan's Girl says:

    Well, I adored the illustrations… 🙂 I was very puzzled at the rest, though. Especially if they're not doing SC next, I think this is just going to confuse people!! I think when I get the movie on DVD, I'm just going to watch the last scene over and over and over again!! It was the most Narnian scene I've ever seen in my life and (like gymfan said on a podcast) I've never felt more like I was in Narnia… where am I going with this? I don't know… I must say I am SO grateful that steps are being made towards another movie!
    Further up and further in!
    Aslan's Girl <3

  46. Ricasso says:

    I thought the video was nicely done, with clever use of illustrations from the various books (even though some were used out of their original context in order to tell the story.) I also thought Ben did an excellent job on the voiceover. Not bad at all!

  47. Moonwood says:

    I agree…

  48. Moonwood says:

    I also loved it, and can't wait for the dvd too. and from what I have read so far ( right after the movie came out ), most people on this site loved it too.
    Unfortunately, the complainers are louder. this is not surprising, as most to it for attention…
    There was very little negativity on this site until they announced that they were going to do MN instead of SC.
    Weirdly, after months of worrying if there wold even BE another Narnia movie, This group of nay-sayers started to moan and cry and stomp their feet, somehow thinking, in their young age, that it would make a difference.
    It was a pity it eclipsed the wonderful news that the franchise in continuing.
    Fortunately, people like you, or I or the many others on this site who are still thrilled that there will be another movie, we will keep having reason to celebrate for months to come, and into the release of the movie in a couple of years–while the wet-blankets will look sillier and sillier as they see others embracing they new movie, and eventually give up and go home when they see it finally being made.

  49. lucy says:

    Um so the animated thing is going to be like animated or like the pictures in the book series?

  50. lucy says:

    If anyone is interested her is a narnia lampost papercraft from the lion,the witch,and the wardrobe,I all ready made it it looks good here is the site:http://paperkraft.blogspot.com/2008/12/narnia-papercraft-street-lamp.html

  51. lucy says:

    Ok now I see, it just didn't work for a minute to go to the site but now I saw it!
    I wonder if they are going to make it into a movie?
    Does anyone else wish it would be into a movie?
    (By the way sorry I keep misspelling because I hardly look up at the computer to check,but I'm just typing away so please no one get mad.)

  52. Mayor, either "the mist" is tempting me to believe you, or you actually made more sense to the mist for me. There are still a lot of other improvements needed in this film, but this is better.

  53. Aliea says:

    Oh, It's written by Lewis. It's almost word-for-word with a sequence from VoDT (Caspain telling Ed and Lu what happened on the voyage before they got there