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Disney’s plans
to take ‘Narnia’
tale to church
By Mark Caro (KRT)
Chicago Tribune
Until recently if you saw
“churches” and “Disney” in the
same sentence, you might
expect the word “protest” to be
lurking somewhere in between.
But now Disney, which has run
afoul of certain evangelical
groups in the past, is wooing
those same people in an
attempt to create a film fran¬
chise the magnitude of “The
Lord of the Rings” crossed
with “The Passion of the
Christ.”
For this equation to work
for “The Chronicles of Narnia:
The Lion, the Witch and the
Wardrobe,” however, Disney
won’t be the only party stretch¬
ing its boundaries. It’s one
thing for a disenfranchised
church-going audience to flock
to an overtly religious state¬
ment such as Mel Gibson’s
“The Passion of the Christ.”
It’s quite another for them to
embrace something they’ve
traditionally shunned: a
Hollywood fantasy.
“The Lion, the Witch and
the Wardrobe,” which Disney
will release nationwide Dec. 9,
is the first feature-film adapta¬
tion of the late British author
C.S. Lewis’ beloved, immense¬
ly popular seven-book
“Narnia” series. A tale of four
siblings who discover a won¬
drous land through the back of
CAROL from IB
play for the second year.
Besides attending to numer¬
ous back-stage necessities,
Sherouse Riley is also acting
in the play.
Set in 1843, Dickens play
is about Ebenezer Scrooge, a
wealthy yet lonely and unhap¬
py man who cares only about
money and nothing about any¬
one else. After being visited by
the ghost of his late business
partner, Jacob Marley, Scrooge
is then visited by three ghosts
— all remind Scrooge about
his past, present and possible
dismal future if he does not
change his ways.
Sherouse Riley said that
seeing “A Christmas Carol”
every year is a tradition many
families look forward to.
“It is such a wonderful
show — it truly has something
for everybody and for people
of all ages,” said Sherouse
Riley. “It has some romance,
some sadness, laughter, and of
course is a gentle reminder to
all of us that this time of year
is about giving.”
In the spirit of giving, for
one of the show’s matinees,
Rosewater Theatre donates all
proceeds to the United Way.
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JUST FRIENDS (PG13) (FRI-SUN 12:15) 2:35,4:55,7:30,9:55
ZATHURA(PG) (FRI-SUN 12:15)2:25,4:50,7:25,9:45
DERAILED (R) (FRI-SUN 12:00) 2:20,4:45,7:20,9:50
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SAW II (R) 5:10,7:35,9:45
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FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS — Sunday, December 4,2005
a wardrobe and become
entangled in a classic tale of
good vs. evil amid talking ani¬
mals and other magical crea¬
tures The Lion, the Witch
and the Wardrobe” has been a
favorite of young readers since
its 1950 publication.
Many of these readers have
enjoyed this story and subse¬
quent books as pure imagina¬
tion-tickling fantasy. But the
faith community also long has
embraced “Narnia” and its
author, considered an impor¬
tant religious writer for books
such as “Mere Christianity,” an
argument for orthodox
Christianity. They don’t have
to squint too hard to see the
parallels between Jesus Christ
and “Narnia” hero Aslan, the
majestic lion who sacrifices
himself for humans’ salvation.
So the movie, directed by
“Shrek” co-director Andrew
Adamson and starring Tilda
Swinton as the White Witch
and Liam Neeson as the voice
of Aslan, offers Disney a rare
opportunity to reach two mas¬
sive audiences: the young, fan¬
tasy-oriented moviegoers who
turned the Harry Potter series
and “The Lord of the Rings”
into lucrative franchises and
the often-movie-averse
Christian population that pro¬
pelled “The Passion of the
Christ” to unprecedented box
office heights.
Disney thus has been
66
It is such a wonderful show - it
truly has something for everybody
and for people of all ages. It has
some romance i, some sadness,
laughter, and of course is a gentle
reminder to all of us that this time
of year is about giving.
- Lisa Sherouse Riley, Rosewater managing
director
“We did this last year as well,”
said Sherouse Riley. “We were
very pleased to donate almost
$3,000 to the United Way.”
When asked if Dickens’
tale about an ornery old man
named Ebenezer Scrooge is
still relevant in the 21st centu
ry, Sherouse Riley gave a
resounding yes.
“I think in many ways
there is a little bit of Scrooge
in all of us,” said Sherouse
Riley. “During the holidays,
sometimes we'tend to get all
; &
Photo/Walt Disney Pictures
‘The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe,’ is based on the children’s book by devout
Christian theologian C.S. Lewis.
attempting a tricky dance that
involves assuring Christian
higher-ups that “The Lion, the
Witch and the Wardrobe” stays
true to Lewis’ Christian roots
while telling everyone else that
the movie has mass, secular
appeal.
David Miller, entertainment
analyst for the Los Angeles
based Sanders Morris Harris
Group, estimated that Disney
is spending about $180 million
on “The Lion, the Witch and
the Wardrobe”: $100 million
on the film, $80 million on
marketing. “This is a series of
books just like ‘Lord of the
Rings’ that has universal
appeal in languages all over
the world, so it seems like a bet
worth taking,” he said. “But
it’s an expensive bet.”
99
immersed in the hustle and
bustle of it all and often forget
the true meaning of
Christmas.” Seeing Scrooge’s
change of heart, his transfor
mation from a hateful, selfish
person to a loving, kind and
giving soul is what continues
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Rice said the “grassroots”
outreach to Christian groups
has gobbled up less than 5 per¬
cent of the movie’s marketing
budget, yet this campaign has
been far-reaching nonetheless.
Disney’s efforts at good
faith, so to speak, already have
paid off with parts of the
Christian community. Late this •
summer the American Family
Association ended its nine-year
Disney boycott, in part because
of the studio’s involvement
with “Narnia.” The AFA, along
with other groups on the reli¬
gious right, had been protest¬
ing Disney for gay-oriented
events at its theme parks
(which haven’t disappeared) as
well as its ownership of
Miramax, which released such
iconoclastic fare as “Priest”
A Christmas Story
Where: The Cumming Playhouse,
101 School St. in Cumming
When: Nov. 25 through Dec. 17
Every Thursday, Friday & Saturday at 8 p.m.
Sunday matinees at 2:30 p.m.
Cost: Adults Friday and Saturday —- $20
Adults Thursday and Sunday — $18
Seniors 60+ and students 18 and under — $16
Groups of 25 or more — $16 each ticket
All seats are reserved seating. Tickets can be
purchased at the Cumming Playhouse, or by call¬
ing ahead to the Cumming Playhouse office at
(770) 781-9178. The Cumming Playhouse is
easily accessible from Georgia 400. Parking is
free. For more information, contact Nancy
Spence at (770) 781-9178 or
visit www.playhousecumming.com
or www.rosewatertheatre.com.
to inspire audiences year after
year.
and “Bad Santa” before the
founding Weinstein brothers
departed in September.
“We felt like Disney was
being more responsive to the
Christian community with a
movie like this and also the
fact that (former Disney CEO)
Michael Eisner was gone and
they got rid of Miramax,” AFA
President Tim Wildmon said,
adding that Disney is currently
working with AFA’s media
division to promote “Narrwa”
on the group’s 180 radio sta¬
tions.
The question now is
whether Disney can have and
eat its secular and religious
cakes. In a cultural climate that
pits “red” vs. “blue” states,
conservatives vs. liberals and
the religious vs. the secular,
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I
one group’s embrace of a
movie might reflexively trigger
an opposite reaction from
another.
“When they’re marketing it
to the church, they’re saying,
‘This is an opportunity to take
the Christian message to a
broader culture,”’ said Seattle
based faith and culture com¬
mentator Dick Staub, author of
“Christian Wisdom of the Jedi
Masters.” “And so it feels to
the broader culture a bit like a
Trojan horse.”
But entertainment analyst
Miller said he doesn’t expect
Disney’s Christian outreach to
scare off non-religious movie¬
goers, noting, “I think there
will be a number of different
constituencies who go to see
the fdm for different reasons.”
CALL from IB
number of folks who celebrate
Christmas.
We ought to all be able to
celebrate our varied traditions,
whether it’s Baby Jesus or
Rudolph, the Red-Nosed
Reindeer. And if you believe
in absolutely none-of-the
above, then you can watch and
see what everybody else is up
to.
It won’t kill a Jewish kid to
eat a Santa Claus cookie or a
Christian kid to have a potato
cake. It’s a big tent we live
under.
Now, before the politically
correct police lock me up, let
me say Happy Hanukkah,
Merry Christmas and may we
all find Umoja, which is
Kwanzaa-speak for unity.
Harris Blackwood is the
author of “When Old
MowersDie. ” His e-mail
address is harrisb@forsyth-