The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader/Fantastic Mr. Fox 2009

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
Rediscover Narnia with a brand new adventure. While back home in England, Edmund (Skandar Keynes), Lucy (Georgie Henley), and their cousin Eustace (Will Poulter) are pulled into a magical painting, transporting them back to Narnia for their next great quest. Reunited with King Caspian (Ben Barnes) aboard the mighty, royal ship, the Dawn Treader, Lucy, Edmund, and Eustace set sail toward the islands of the East, battling slave traders, violent storms, sea serpents, and other new dangers at every turn. Despite these perilous obstacles, they stay the course in hopes of vanquishing the evil mist before Narnia is lost forever.
Fantastic Mr. Fox
George Clooney and Meryl Streep lend their voices to this hilarious and heartwarming animated adventure from visionary director Wes Anderson. Mr. and Mrs. Fox (Clooney and Streep) live a happy home life with their eccentric son Ash (Jason Schwartzman) and visiting nephew Kristopherson. That is until Mr. Fox slips into his sneaky, old ways and plots the greatest chicken heist the animal world has ever seen. Based on the beloved, best-selling book by Roald Dahl (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Fantastic Mr. Fox is family fun at its finest.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The third film based on C.S. Lewis’s fantasy books, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader opens three years after the Pevensie children return from battling to restore peace to Narnia in The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and Lucy (Georgie Henley) are still staying with Eustace (Will Poulter), while Peter and Susan have gotten older and moved on to school and America, respectively. Still as surly and unbelieving as ever, Eustace continues to mock his cousins for their Narnian fantasies. But when water begins spilling into their room from a painting hanging on the wall, all three young people are swept onto the decks of the sailing ship known as the Dawn Treader, which is afloat in the waters of Narnia. This time, there are no wars to be fought in Narnia. But it soon becomes evident that the trio is destined to help King Caspian (Ben Barnes) solve the mystery of the disappearance of the seven lords of Telmar, and prevent the ongoing sacrifices of large groups of Narnian people to the evil green mist. So begins a quest through uncharted waters that will require each of the children to resist temptations like beauty and power, and to conquer the darkness within themselves in order to defeat the threat to Narnia’s people. The battle promises to yield unexpected heroes, and through their journey, Edmund, Lucy, Eustace, and even King Caspian and Reepicheep (voiced by Simon Pegg) each grow and mature. Eventually, Aslan (voiced by Liam Neeson) will ask each adventurer to make an important choice that will forever influence his or her future. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader features plenty of high adventure, sword-fighting action, and personal peril, and while it fails to fully capitalise on the characters’ motivations or to earn viewers’ full emotional investment, it is still a solid addition to the Narnia film series. (Ages 7 and older) –Tami Horiuchi
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The visually ravishing animated movie Fantastic Mr. Fox follows a fox, voiced by George Clooney and dressed in a natty brown corduroy suit, as he cheerfully and recklessly takes his thieving ways a little too far and brings down the wrath of some sour-faced poultry farmers on his family and friends. Based on a book by children’s author Roald Dahl (who wrote Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and James and the Giant Peach), the movie is the work of Wes Anderson (writer-director of Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums), who expanded and elaborated on the original story; the combination is inspired. Anderson’s sensibility–his fondness for meticulous compositions, coordinated colours, and narrative filigree–can sometimes seem finicky and stiff in live-action movies, but it’s exquisitely suited to the painstaking art of stop-motion animation. Every corner of the screen crackles with visual invention and whimsical humour. The top-notch vocal cast (which also features Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Michael Gambon, Owen Wilson, and others) create vivid personalities that perfectly mesh with the movie’s lush colours and luscious textures. Fantastic Mr. Fox is an off-beat gem, a giddy mix of adult emotional issues, wild animal behaviour, and childlike delight.–Bret Fetzer,