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'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' has grandeur, imagination

Thanks to Peter Jackson and his "The Lord of the Rings" epics, special effects technology has finally caught up with the creative imagination of writers like J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis.

It also doesn't hurt that Hollywood studios will eagerly try to imitate any big success. That's why Disney is boldly sticking its big toe into Jackson's pool and releasing "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe."

Buena Vista Pictures 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' B The verdict: Like "Lord of the Rings" and "Harry Potter," it's magical, weighty and worthy. Director: Andrew Adamson Cast: Tilda Swinton, James McAvoy, James Cosmo, Jim Broadbent, Elizabeth Hawthornetie Holmes, Cillian Murphy Run time: 132 minutes Release date: Dec. 9, 2005 Rating: PG for battle sequences and frightening moments. See showtimes On the web Official movie site View the trailer    Trailers require Quicktime Rate 'The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe'   Go see it   Make it a matinee   Wait to rent   Don't bother Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

Based on Lewis' first book in a series of fantasy epics (Disney may well make film versions of all seven installments), "Narnia" involves four precocious, World War II-era kids who discover a remarkable world beyond the fur coats crowding the interior of an English professor's tucked-away wardrobe. It's a film full of magic and half-man/half-beast fauns and centaurs, of unicorns and flying creatures, charging rhinos and snarling wolves. There's a formidable talking lion, two Cockney-accented beavers and just about everything imaginable except a partridge in a pear tree.

"Narnia" is certainly no "Rings," but it'll do. The film works on just about every level. "Narnia" has grandeur, imagination, mostly believable special effects, a war-of-the-world battle, heart and teary-eyed heartbreak.

Rated PG, it still has scary moments (including a disturbing sacrifice sequence), a fierce but bloodless battle and dark secrets. Thankfully, it also has plenty of what frivolous family films like "Chicken Little" lack — well-presented themes involving trust, betrayal, loss and duty.

Besides, there's not much cooler at the movies this month than scene-stealer Tilda Swinton as the film's icy White Witch, riding into battle on a chariot pulled by two powerful polar bears. In this film, Swinton's so on fire she sways with the cocksure bent of an old-school, boil-the-bunny Glenn Close.

The film opens in London with the Pevensie children — Lucy, Edmund, Peter and Susan Ñ and their mother fleeing Nazi bombs. The kids, along with many other children, are eventually sent by train to various safe houses away from the Blitz. It is at a professor's large country manse where the littlest child, Lucy, finds an arm-oire during a game of hide and seek. She enters the wardrobe, pushes her way past hanging furs and mysteriously enters the snowy, fantastical world of Narnia.

It's a place where animals talk, where magic is possible and where — unless the children fulfill an ages-old prophesy — an evil witch will complete plans to take over the world.

Christian symbolism abounds in Lewis' written "Narnia" — the lion Aslan (voiced by Liam Neeson) is a Christ figure — but good sense, more than a particular faith advocacy, is the prevailing theme in the film.

Director Andrew Adamson ("Shrek") shows a distinct gift for subtlety, turning Lucy's initial encounter in Narnia with the friendly faun Mr. Tumnus (James McAvoy) into a dark, dangerous moment.

"Narnia" isn't an easy movie. It takes to heart Lewis' theme of trust versus betrayal (Will young Edmund turn on his siblings for another bite of the White Witch's delicious Turkish Delight pastry? But of course). And of redemption.

Its physical battle is exciting, its morale compass pointed toward the heart. Like the first "Rings" and "Harry Potter," "Narnia" primes moviegoers to wonder what the next chapter will bring.