Imagenes issue 282
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Tranlation by Cindy

Imagenes: Issue 282

Article: First Page

The second installment in the series The Chronicles of Narnia, although it is the fourth in the chronological order of the books by C.S. Lewis, Prince Caspian follows the path of other similar series in that its second part goes deeper into territories that are more sinister and adult within its limitations and aspirations. The efficient Andrew Adamson returns as director and to the original cast is added Ben Barnes who portrays the title role of the film. There’s also some battles that will surely make moviegoers’ jaws drop. But…

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The new hero of the kingdom

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The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe pleasantly surprised me. The truth is that I wasn’t expecting much from a director whose previous work was Shrek. Oh how things turn out, Andrew Adamson gave us on a silver platter one of the best adventure films for the whole family in the last decade (yes, I know a lot of you plan on thrashing me the next time you see me walking down the street because a while ago I made a certain comment on these very pages where I dared to write that the adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ novels are better than The Lord of the Rings: now I should clarify that it is not better than The Fellowship of the Ring…although it is 100 thousand times better than The Two Towers and The Return of the King. Remember: it is merely about a personal opinion. I didn’t know that using Peter Jackson’s name in vain was going lead to a sentence far worse than the caricatures of Mahoma). What I was saying: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe had spectacular scenes, extraordinary battles and pleasant mythological creatures. But its secret rested on the emotion that was drenched within the dialogues and in the elegance and classicism of the scene. That is why; even more after seeing the promotional trailer for Prince Caspian, my expectations before watching the film were of the highest caliber. I will not say that after seeing it I felt disappointed (there are sequences that are simply extraordinary; and even the action that we’ve seen over and over in recent productions of similar characteristics was so original as it was surprising). But, where are the emotions? The soul? Two questions that can be not only asked for Prince Caspian, but as well as to a certain fourth installment of a sixty-year old archeologist…

1300 Years Later…
We are in the kingdom of Narnia; 1300 years after the Pevensie siblings confronted the fearsome White Witch (Tilda Swinton). There, prince Caspian (Ben Barnes) who is part of the Telmarines is awakened by his professor, Doctor Cornelius (Vincent Grass), who warns the prince that due to the birth of a son by his aunt, his life is in danger because his uncle Miraz (Sergio Castellito) wants to occupy the throne. To defend himself Doctor Cornelius gives him a magical horn that he can use to summon help. In the woods prince Caspian finds two dwarves, Trumpkin (Peter Dinklage) and Nikabrik (Warwick Davis) and a talking badger. The first [Trumpkin] is seized by Miraz’s army. All the while back in London 1300 years later, the Pevensie siblings discover that not only through wardrobes it is they can return to Narnia. Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Popplewell), Edmund (Skandar Keynes), and Lucy (Georgie Henley), are transported to the kingdom they rescued while at the train station even though they don’t notice it is not the same Narnia they once knew. Even more, the residents are no longer the same…

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Under the picture: While altering Prince Caspian for the big screen, the idea of possibly mixing the plot of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader came to mind.

…and have become distrustful since their [the Pevensies] leaving the creatures have suffered through many attacks and humiliations, from there they have retreated themselves to the depths of the woods.

Caspian reunites with the Narnians- including a hardened mouse by the name of Reepicheep- to which he convinces to help him take back the reins of the kingdom. At the same time the Pevensies rescue Trumpkin who leads them to where Caspian and the rest of the Narnians are located. All together for the same cause- to save Narnia from Miraz’s tyranny-, they lay low beneath the table of Aslan’s stone [Aslan’s How] (where the Lion was murdered in the first film); the truth is that Aslan in all these centuries of destruction has not been seen…Even though they have far less soldiers Peter suggests doing a surprise attack on Miraz’s castle. In the beginning his plan seems to work, but it doesn’t take long for it to turn on him and half of the Narnians die behind the fortress gates. It is about a monumental defeat that challenges the leadership [skills] of the young man. When Miraz’s troops with him at the lead- surrounded by his theoretical faithful servants General Glozelle (Pierfrancesco Favino) and Lord Sopaspian (Damian Alcazar)- come in front of the cave where the Narnians, Caspian, and the Pevensies are hiding. Their sole way of survival is if Aslan intervenes. The only one capable of finding him is Lucy, who has always had the necessary faith to trust in his return.

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Prince Caspian: Washes out at the box office

The script for Prince Caspian was written before the premiere of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and all while not knowing that it would gross worldwide an extraordinary 644 million dollars. The managers over at Disney studios with the association of Walden Media decided that the continuation should be showcased to years after later, during Christmas time of 2007 (first error: and I’ll tell why in a few moments). When they noticed that in that same date a movie by the name of The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep was about to be released- also being produced by Walden Media-, the executives of this asked Disney to retract the release of Prince Caspian a couple months, so that they wouldn’t be put head-to-head at the box office. Instead of postponing The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep – which ended up failing at the box office-, in the house of Mickey Mouse it was decided to release the continuation of The Chronicles of Narnia in May of 2008 (second error: and I’ll also explain the reason in a couple of seconds). Finally, when it was time for the premiere, Disney pushed aside the promotion for the film in Christian circles (third error), whose interest helped raise The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe so it could end up making 292 million dollars alone in the United States.
So when it was Prince Caspian’s turn to hit the big screen in the U.S. the result ended up being disappointing (but not in vain). The predictions pointed to an estimated 80 million dollars by the end of opening-weekend, fifteen more than the first film. Prince Caspian only made 55 million (in the moment I am writing these lines it already has 117 million, for which very difficultly it will reach 150 by the end of its commercial run). Why the stated errors? Very easy, error number one was not releasing Prince Caspian almost consecutively after the first film. The Harry Potter series and The Lord of the Rings (also including cases such as the Matrix trilogy) were very successful because their continuations were released no more than one-year later. Error number two was premiering the second film in North America amidst two super productions such as Iron Man and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which left no shot for the poor prince and the Pevensie children. And the third error…I’ve already explained it before (the truth is that the executives of Disney and Walden Media should’ve remembered that one of the reasons why The Golden Compass failed in the U.S. was its marked atheist character and that the Christian campaign was against it).

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A Forlorn Prince
When the time came to adapt Prince Caspian for the big screen, the screenwriters considered the option of combining their script with another one of the novels from The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S Lewis: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (something already done by the BBC in the television series produced in the 80s, which is detailed in the Wikipedia page for Prince Caspian). It wouldn’t have been a bad idea: the second part of the series is full of adventure and action, but its story falls short. It’s missing personality. Charisma. It even lacks vigor or energy (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader will begin to film at the end of the year and will be released for theatre in 2010).

And so, during the first half of Prince Caspian, the titular character of the film is seeing strolling throughout as though he is afraid to outshine the principal characters, the Pevensie siblings. As I pointed out in the American journal The Opinion (and please forgive the shameless plug-in, but it is merely about a legal obligation), “instead of a valiant prince, he looks like a forlorn prince” (Barnes defended himself in an interview by a fellow journalist, commenting that his character “is young, without experience, which is why that initial impression is neither wrong nor unforeseen. In reality he doesn’t want to be a king, he doesn’t want that responsibility on his shoulders. He is obligated to be king. Showing that change from prince to hesitant to a proud king is something that I find more interesting as an actor than starting out as a hero”).
Narnia Counterattacks
For director Andrew Adamson it was clear that Prince Caspian was going to be The Empire Strikes Back [Star Wars] of The Chronicles of Narnia: a tale that is more dramatic and adult (something to which there is no doubt, according to the extraordinary and surprising beginning to which the anguished screams of a woman giving birth can be heard). What’s more he [Adamson] chose for “the villains to be humans,” making the film’s “story much more realistic.” Another notable detail –that is not found in Lewis’ book -is the Spanish accent of the Telmarines. For an instant it was thought that the accent should be French as a contrast between the British accent of the Pevensies. But at the end they decided to go for an “undefined” Mediterranean accent such as it was described by the some media in the United States, due to the origin from pirates of Miraz and his people. To coincide with that more grim appearance, the costume designer (Isis Mussenden) was inspired by the paintings of The Greek and the fascist, Spanish, and Japanese ensembles to design the wardrobe for the new residents of Narnia. And even Adamson (who doesn’t waste time: makes the Pevensie children return to Narnia within the first five minutes of having appeared in the scene) had to control himself when it came to the violence more prominently seen in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: the director was obligated to reshoot a scene showing an armored head rolling on the ground, he had to make it clear that there was no human head in it (although there was no problem in showing how a narnian kills a bear that poses a threat to Lucy). What he didn’t change- and he didn’t have to- was the resolute Christian tone of original story, which is showcased through the appearance of Aslan the lion (a clear representation of Jesus Christ) or that extraordinary final image made in the water that without a doubt is reminiscent of God.

All of the previous stated lends itself to the service of the final battle: a spectacular exhibition of visual effects created by a computer that converts the confrontation between the narnians and Miraz’s troops into a visual treat. Not forgetting the minor details (Caspian inside Nikabrik and the badger’s cave, Lucy’s hopeful gaze when she thinks she has seen Aslan, the brief appearances of the Lion- with the benevolent voice of Liam Neeson in the original film-, the humor that is contributed by Reepicheep the mouse especially during the night raid of the Telmarine castle, and the coronation of Miraz as king) where Prince Caspian manages to reach the impeccable results of the previous film.

To Resume: (top right column; in blue)
*The Best: Andrew Adamson’s production.
*The Worst: the story is missing vivacity.
The Sequence: the night raid of Miraz’s castle and the subsequent battle between the Narnians and the Telmarines.
The Instant: the confrontation between Peter and king Miraz, head to head (or sword to sword…).
The Scene: the final appearance of Aslan and the mountain of water.
The Shot: the presentation of Reepicheep.
The Moment: the intent to resurrect the White Witch, who only needs one drop of Caspian’s blood to return from her imprisonment.
The Line: “You might find that Narnia is a more savage place than you remember” (Trumpkin to the Pevensie siblings).
The Filming: took place in New Zealand, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Poland, and Great Britain.
The Novel: C.S. Lewis wrote Prince Caspian in 1941 and it was published two years later. It is the second book of The Chronicles of Narnia series, although in chronological order it is the fourth.
The Precedent: The BBC adapted four of the seven novels by C.S. Lewis that dealt with The Chronicles of Narnia. The television version of Prince Caspian aired in1989.
The Spanish Accent: Ben Barnes, the English actor that gives life to prince Caspian required a dialect coach to imitate the Spanish accent with which the Narnians speak. “But I didn’t have one for the audition, in which I had to speak with a Spanish accent,” recalls Barnes in an interview he did for “The Opinion.” To imitate one “I looked for DVD’s where they spoke in that accent, but I didn’t find anything. So then I watched The Princess Bride and I was inspired by the character Inigo Montoya that was played by Mandy Patinkin, (also, upon accepting the role of prince Caspian, Barnes had to abandon the stage production of “The History Boys” in London, without telling the producers who threatened to sue him.
The Hispanic Presence: The cast includes the names of the Spaniards Simon Andreu as Lord Scythley (in an intervention that was considerably reduced in the editing room) and Alicia Borrachero as queen Prunapismia, and the Mexican Damian Alcazar as Lord Sopespian.
The Special Effects: In total there are 1500 special effects in the film, 700 more than The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.
The Statistics: The budget was around 200 million dollars. The film made 117 million in its first three weeks in the U.S. alone.
Internet: www.disney.go.com/disneypictures/narnia/
Why: is that family adventure films are much more successful in the international market than in the United States?

The Director: Andrew Adamson
From Auckland (New Zealand) he started his career as a special effects creator for Toys, Batman Forever, Time to kill, and Batman & Robin. As a matter of fact his biggest professional success did not happen until he tried his luck as the director for Shrek, which he co-directed with Vicky Jenson and made 480 million dollars worldwide. After filming Shrek 2 in collaboration with Kelly Asbury and Conrad Vernon, he would then assume role as director for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe whose sequel: Prince Caspian he has just finished directing.

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Interview
Still there are many movie lovers who when they hear the name Andrew Adamson have no clue as to who he is. Yet, there is a director, who has revolutionized the cinema in the 21st century, he is precisely this New Zealand native who comes from the world of special effects and was the creator of Shrek and the director of the first two movies from the saga to then lead the world created by C.S. Lewis The Chronicles of Narina: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe into movie theatres, and now he does the same with Prince Caspian, like in the three previous films he has done, Adamson broke records when it came to audiences in its north American screening.

Director of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian – Andrew Adamson
“There is nothing in the film Prince Caspian that does not appear in the book”

Did it worry you that Prince Caspian would have a much different tone than the previous film?
-Not really because from the beginning I knew that all of these books have a different tone. For example, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader establishes a challenge because it is a very episodic book. That is to say the characters are thrown into voyage that takes them from one island to another. In constructional terms it is very difficult to count on that in a movie just as it complicated to count on a line to connect all of these different stages, anyways, this is one of my favorite books because it is about the maturing of a young man. What I mean is the classic voyage into the unknown, with magical islands, secret creatures, and all of those wonderful things.

Was it difficult to integrate the new actors with the already formed group of protagonists from the previous film?
-No, to tell you the truth I was very lucky when it came to that. I think principally it’s due to the fact that I hire people I can get along with because I know I will be spending a lot of time with them. I’ve noticed that generally, if I get along with them, they will get along with each other, which is very good. That was a very important detail when it came to casting an actor to play prince Caspian because he had to be someone who could get along with the group, which has really become a family. For example, it was great when we all watched the movie together and Georgie was hugging Ben. They have all rally kept in touch and they warmly welcomed Ben and the other new actors.

What do you think differentiates the two Chronicles of Narnia films?
-In the previous film the plot revolved around the children and everything was presented through their point of view. This story is different and structurally it is more original, that is to say it has a more complicated plot. In the book everything is narrated retrospectively and most of the text is a narration of everything that has happened in the children’s absence. When I started working on the adaptation for the big screen of the book I knew that I was going to have to change that structure [of the book] and turn it into a story with three plots. That is how we came to the story through Miraz, Caspian, and the Pevensie siblings [point of view], which finally cross during the final battle. I also wanted for all of these worlds from which they come from to be inhabited by more interesting characters. In the previous film it was necessary for us to use the time we had to tell the children’s story and present them to the public. This time I had more space to expand the story of the other characters. It’s funny how I somehow followed the same line that I used for Shrek and Shrek II. What I mean is the first film about the ogre was simply sweet and innocent, and it concentrated on describing the main characters. In change, the second one was more complex with a big integration from the characters and the more intricate situations. I think I used that form of narration because it also worked for The Chronicles of Narnia.

Did it worry you how this second part was going to affect the natural process of growing-up of the protagonists?
- To tell you the truth it did, and as a matter of fact the children have grown a lot.

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He has the perfect appearance to be a heartthrob and yet not so long ago this England native of twenty-six years was simply a busy theatre actor that was part of the celebrated production of “The History Boys” in London. We first saw him in a small role in the movie Stardust where he portrayed a young Dunstan Thorne (mainly played throughout the film by Charlie Cox), the big screen seemed to evade him something that changed when director Andrew Adamson opted to choose an unknown actor to play the role of prince Caspian in the second part of The Chronicles of Narnia. And even though he had to goodbye to the successful theatre production [“The History Boys”] to go film in New Zealand, the choice Barnes made was proven to be the right one. He has already finished filming two films in which he was the main protagonist Bigga Than Ben and Easy Virtue and his participation in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader has already been asserted, which will premiere in 2010.

Interview
The protagonist of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian- Ben Barnes

What did you do to convince the producers that you were the right actor to play prince Caspian?
-I don’t know, everything happened so fast. What I mean to say is that I literally found out the day before that they were casting for this role, what I just went home and since they were asking for us to speak with a Spanish accent, I started to search through my DVD collection for any movie with Antonio Banderas in it. Since I didn’t have one I kept looking until I found an old version of The Princess Bride and I paid close attention to see if I could capture some of the words. When I was on set I had to imitate the Spanish accent while holding up a sword to the villain Miraz’s throat telling him “did you kill my father?” and I thought that it reminded me of something. Anyways, I couldn’t have been more prepared for the role because as I’ve said before, I am a huge fan of the saga and I was very familiar with the book. That was a point in my favor seeing as I didn’t have to run home and read the story to prepare for the character. What’s to say is that I already knew Caspian was a fragile and vulnerable young man who doesn’t feel secure in deserving the responsibility that has been placed on his shoulders, he doesn’t even feel comfortable with the position of power to which he has been placed. I think this characteristic of Caspian’s helped all of us who were trying for the part because actors tend to feel nervous and anxious when they are put through these types of try-outs. Either way I don’t think there was a reason as to why they chose me and not another candidate. They were probably running out of time and they decided that the next one that came through the door was going to get the part. And then I came in…

Do you remember the moment when you found out that you had gotten the part?
-Of course. I cannot even begin to describe what that night was, when I found out I had gotten it. They told me they were going to call me when they had made their decision and I said that they could call me whenever that happened because I just had to know and that’s how it was: they called me at four in the morning London time and I just started to run my house yelling out of how happy I was. I cannot explain to you the excitement I felt because I had gotten my first leading role in a big Hollywood movie and particularly when it’s about something I grew up reading. In your life you don’t always come across moments like these.

How was it afterwards? While you were waiting for the filming to begin…
-I remember that while I was preparing for the audition I rented the first movie and I was very impressed. I noticed that it was a super production. But I also remember watching the BBC series, which was lovely. I was only 8 years old. It was something magical and at the same time something realistic. But now when I look back I notice that it is about a dwarf in a mouse suit. There weren’t even any special effects. It wasn’t a mouse it was a man. And that is something I have talked about with Warwick Davis because he was in the series. I watched a couple minutes worth of the series when we were filming and I had to stop because it was too difficult to watch it for a while. It’s like when you start to watch old episodes of He-Man again and you notice that they are using the same background constantly. You don’t want it to lose the magic, but kids today don’t know how lucky they are.

Were you let down by the fact that your character is much younger than yourself?
-Honestly, I think I played a character with no age set. I think trying to appear younger or older is very difficult and to try to do that is to look for a lot of problems. I believe that age and appearances have a very narrow relationship, and the public can choose to believe it or not. In this case, for our version of the story, the most important thing was for Peter and Caspian to appear to be of similar ages and I think we succeeded in that.

How was it to film the kissing scene between your character and Anna Popplewell’s?
-It was very simple. I’m already accustomed to it because I’ve had kissing scenes before in almost all of my previous works until this time. Anyways, it’s always fun to do them. Although, what worried me about that scene, to be honest was that the kiss was not written in the book. Like a good fan of The Chronicles of Narnia, I noticed this detail immediately. Also, we filmed a very important scene between Susan and Caspian that in the end is not in the film. When the DVD comes out, people will be able to see it in the deleted scenes section, but I think that the decision to take it out favored the finished film. I fully understand the reason for which they did it and when I finally watched the movie I was relieved that the scene was no longer there. Even though it was a very well made and very believable scene. There are certain special looks between the two characters, but then they go out and live an adventure together without saying one word to each other even though they feel something for one another. Finally, when they are saying goodbye Susan decides to kiss him once she realizes she will never see him again. I think that scene turned out very believable and it’s all because of Anna and the director, Andrew Adamson. All I had to do was stay on my feet and receive the kiss, which must be the easiest job in the world. I believe that moment was very subtle and I think that something similar happens in the way Peter and Caspian’s relationship is narrated. In the beginning, I was worried that the rivalry between the two boys was going to be seen as two animals fighting over their territories, but I later noticed that their confrontations is something that surges throughout the story that is being told and the situations they are being thrown into, such as the tragedy of losing hundreds of people during the night raid. The situation has put them at the edge of abyss and none of them is sure of their place in the world. Peter was a leader and he has lost his power and Caspian is very ambivalent when it comes to his position. Caspian doesn’t feel ready to be a leader or a man, but either way he is forced to take control of the situation. For all of these reasons, I was satisfied with the subtly of certain details and with the feeling of maturity that came from both these characters.

Were there any embarrassing moments during shooting?
-Yes, there were some episodes of that type. For example, during my first day on set I wasn’t going to do any scenes, but I had to try on the costume and the make-up. I had hair extensions as well as a wig because they still didn’t know which of the two was going to be better. They had also given me a fake tan and they had spent two hours doing the finishing touches of the costume because once we started shooting it wouldn’t be able to change. I was like this in character and waiting for my castmates to come on set. And in that moment comes in the director, Andrew and he came to talk to me, which made me really nervous because I had only seen him twice before. Then comes Will, who had already decided to pull a prank on me, in which he pretends to sneeze and sprays my face with orange juice. The problem was that instead of pretending he accidentally squeezed the bottle too hard and all of the drink was all over me. In that moment I got really mad, but he went out running and he disappeared because he is very fast. In any way I just stood there, surrounded by the poor people who had spent an eternity dressing me, putting on my make-up, and doing my hair and they just looked at me with their mouths open. Will had already left and I couldn’t talk to Andrew because I had to go back and change again. It was a really embarrassing moment for me. In another occasion, they did another prank on me in the beginning of the film in which my professor is to wake me and put his hand over my mouth. We had done the scene correctly, but Andrew said he wanted to do it over again with less lights. And so I went back and closed my eyes, pretended to be asleep, which leaves you in a very vulnerable position seeing as you cannot see what is going on around you. Then all of a sudden I felt a pair of lips kissing me and I thought when I open my eyes it better not be the professor or else I’m going to get really mad. I then noticed that it was the director’s production assistant who was kissing me, which didn’t bother me because she is very attractive. I’m pretty sure that take will be included in the additional footage.

Were you able to get back at Will?
Honestly, no. But I always made fun of him when he used his sword. I would say to him “your sword isn’t as big as mine, right?”. And since I was right he couldn’t say anything to me and it was a point in my favor.

Was it fun for you to do the action scenes or did you feel it was just part of the job?
-I think it was a little bit of both. The part that I really enjoyed was when we practiced the choreography for the battles, but when I finally had to do the scenes it was tiring seeing as we filmed until four in the morning, under the rain, and as if that wasn’t enough I have an injury from playing tennis that really bothered me. But on the other side, I must say that it is very satisfying that I confronted eight men and I could beat them one after another with ease. Overall I knew I had to win all the battles because I had already signed a contract to appear in the next film of the saga.

What did you feel while walking down Times Square, in the middle of New York and seeing your face on a giant poster?
-Well, it was really weird. In reality, the poster that really impacted me was the one I saw while driving down Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. It was 10 stories high and I was left breathless when I saw it. It impressed me so much that I had to pull over my vehicle. I felt a little intimidated and nervous, but I really don’t know why that happened to me because I knew the film was going to get a huge amount of graphic public promotion in the streets. When I told this to my brother, he found it to be funny and he told me that the man in the photo is not me, but a character because in real life I am not that tanned.

In how many more movies from the saga are you going to participate in?
-For now it is only confirmed that I will work on the next one, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. I think it’s going to be very exciting seeing as it is my favorite book and I love the plot, which is an adventure that takes you to different places. As a matter of fact, I’m quite nervous to see how they adapt the story, seeing as the book is very episodic because I think it is very difficult to transform a story with those characteristics into a cinematic script, which is necessary to find an argumentative nucleus that can combine all of these episodes. Nonetheless they have assured me that the plot will be based on the personal discovery of Caspian in relation to the phrase the prince says at the end of the second film, when the kings and queens of Narnia rise and he confesses that he doesn’t feel ready to assume his new role. Of course in the third film he will have to carry the responsibility of being king for which I am very anxious to see how it is faceted into his personality because I think it will be very interesting.

Was it difficult to say goodbye to “The History Boys” to do this film?
-It definitely was a difficult period for me. It was much harder than I had imagined because my dream was always to be a part of the National Theatre. If you are British, are 10 years old, and you go with your parents to the National Theatre, there is your pinnacle of acting. And suddenly they offer me this job. I was on tour for six months in the U.K and in the West End with this awe-inspiring production from the brilliant dramatist Alan Bennett. Then a couple weeks before it ended, I get this opportunity to work on a film based on a book by C.S. Lewis, another British legend in a movie that is in a medium for which I have little experience. I had only worked on two full-length films in my career, and I had the bad luck that both of them were going on in the same year. I know I could’ve sounded unpleasant and arrogant if I say that I wasn’t glad to be able to make both my dreams come true, seeing how I consider myself a very loyal person and it was very difficult for me to have to renounce the play to be able to do Narnia. I thought everything was going to go well, but it wasn’t that simple.

Is it very different to work on a movie than it is in the theatre?
-You need different talents. In the theatre you have to spend two and a half hours on the stage while in a movie such as this one you have to spend seven months on the same path to make something that is only two and a half hours. The problem is that you can end up preparing yourself too much for one scene because that is the only thing you are doing that day and it turns into the most important thing in your life. But the truth is that maybe that scene isn’t so important because it is only part of something much bigger. There are times in which you have to learn to relax a little because you can’t do a scene with too much intensity. I think it is something that takes time to learn, to be able to establish the difference and to accustom yourself from the cinema to the theatre and vice versa. Logically, most of my experience comes from the theatre but I am excited to work more frequently within the cinema.

How are you handling your new heartthrob status?
-Honestly, I face this by putting my head down and feeling embarrassed when people talk to me about the subject. But, besides that I find it to be fun. What I mean is that it is flattering to see your image in publicity posters. I remember when Mark Johnson brought me the poster and I saw it for the first time and I told him that when people see my face on the poster they’re not going to know who I am. He told me that he has already noticed that, but that he couldn’t do anything since the book and the movie included prince Caspian, which is why my image had to be on the covers.

At what age did you start acting?
-When I was 15, someone from the National Youth Music Theatre came to do auditions at my school in England. I had sung in the school choir, but since my voice changed I didn’t have a good pitch I thought that musical theatre might be a good idea. In the following five or six years the musical aspect began to disinterest me gradually and then I went into study theatre in college.

Are you worried about possibly being typecast as the same character?
-To tell the truth, I feel like I’ve been very lucky throughout my career. I should make it clear that most of my work hasn’t been seen by major audiences because generally I’ve worked in small theatres, small films, or in pilot episodes that were never aired. Nonetheless, I’ve had the opportunity to portray a great variety of characters such as a football player, a Russian thug who lives in London, a Spanish prince, a Yorkshire student, among others. I have been so lucky to be able to play these types of characters that I haven’t even been able to use my own accent. Either way I would like for this variety to be in my future roles. I think that I will probably be able to do this because however big the movies are in which the actor is participating, the more labored
opportunities he will be presented with. After that it is only a question of choosing the appropriate projects, it’s to say those that I feel I can do because for me the most important thing on one hand is that I believe the story should be told, and on the other to feel that I can do a good job portraying my character. What I do think is that I should avoid projects that include horse riding and swords because it is very clear that it would not be a good decision in the long haul.

What can you say about Easy Virtue, the film you are filming along with Jessica Biel?
-It takes place in the year 1928 and I think the best way to describe it is to compare it to Meet the Parents with Ben Stiller. Except that in this case, it is about a set of very aristocratic parents. In the movie, I decide to get married with an American girl and I take her home to meet my family who are English. My parents are played by Colin Firth and Kristin Scott Thomas. The plot has very comedic moments but also some dark connotations. It is directed by Stephen Elliot, from The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, which in some way has the same style, what I mean is it’s a very entertaining and ridiculous plotline with a touch of darkness and sadness beneath the surface.

Was there a memorable incident during this filming?
-No, but something ironic was that during the filming of Narnia I spent the whole time riding a horse. We had already filmed seven months worth of crossing rivers and mountains, going up and down ramps, fighting with swords and never did I once fall from the horse. While in this film I only had one day of filming on a scene on a horse that takes place during a foxhunt. During the first take I came upon a ditch, which frightened the horse and I went flying out. I really bruised my ego, but luckily that is the only thing that happened.