The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is good. Really good.

At the end of the movie the entire theater erupted into applause. Did I say it was good?

The film is emotionally very moving. I haven’t had tears in my eyes from a movie since The Passion of the Christ, or from fiction since The Good Earth trilogy.

Stylistically, Narnia is a kids version of Lord of the Rings. Like Rings, Narnia was shot in New Zealand, and that vast Mythic England is on gorgeous display.

Narnia also had wonderful comic relief. The Beavers drew a reaction from everyone. As someone who hasn’t read the books, the identity of he-who-gives-the-royals-weapons was hilarious. You didn’t see that one coming!

There’s a good deal of anti-Naria hate in the media, and along with it frantic denials by Disney’s stooges that the movie has anything whatsoever to do with a certain Christian apologist. Anyone who watches the movie and can write, like National Geographic‘s Stefan Lovgren did…

However, Lewis himself said he didn’t set out to write a Christian story, but simply a great children’s tale. His creative influences, at least at the outset, were not Christian, but various mythologies from early cultures.

… is either crazy or culturally illiterate. (Or playing with language — like another writer criticized on tdaxp)

But such peevishness is besides the point. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a great movie. If Ender’s Game is this good, I will be thrilled.

See The Chronicles of Narnia now!