So cco invited me to the midnight showing of Prince Caspian at the El Capitan on Friday. For those of you who don't know, the El Capitan is an old theatre in Hollywood. It was purchased and renovated by Disney, so it is now used exclusively to show Disney films. Since we also saw LWW there, our Narnia streak continues...We got there a bit early so that we could see the costumes, props, and set pieces on display in the lobby and downstairs. However, before we got to that, we had to stuff our faces. :P Next door to the El Capitan is the Disney Soda Fountain, which, besides being a soda fountain, is also a store. After pawing the merchandise (a few tempting pins and such), we sat down at the counter for some sandwiches and a Narnia sundae. I had 2 cokes before we went in to the movie and that was a tactical error on my part...
I forgot my camera, so I don't have any pics...not until I pester cco to email me hers. :D
I'm not sure, but I think there were fewer pieces to see. The theatre was decorated to look like WWII-era London, complete with "underground" signs, red phone booth and mailbox. In the lobby were Peter's armor and the Pevensies' school uniforms. The pieces down in the (for lack of a better word) basement seemed to be mostly Telmarine and Miraz property. Weta has definitely done a fine job with all this. If you're interested in Narnia merchandise, I highly recommend the very limited edition Weta pieces. I believe they have a satyr statue, mounted Caspian, and minoboar bust available at present (see link to the right). I own several LWW pieces and they are large, detailed sculptures.
We finally got over to the theatre to take our seats for the movie. At the El Cap, reserved seating is $25 and includes popcorn (keepsake Caspian bucket) and bottled drink. The usher escorted us to our seats in the orchestra section as the organist began playing onstage. Yes, they employ an organist at the El Cap. ;) After that, there was a little staged swordplay by a Caspian look-alike before the screen came down for the film. If you liked LWW, you should be pleased by Caspian. It is not entirely faithful to the book, I won't say specifically how, but there's quite a bit more action and humor. There isn't a whole lot of explanation given for the backstory, so I suppose it could be a bit confusing to Narnia-virgins. For example, it might not be clear to the uninitiated that the Pevensies were adults when they left Narnia the first time. A little flashback might have been appropriate here.
On the way out, they were giving away card packs. I'm not sure of the manufacturer, but there were five character cards: Caspian, Peter, Susan, Ed, and Lucy (see pic above). Very pretty pictures. :)
Oh, and bonus random "celebrity" sighting...that KoJo fashion guy from the entertainment shows in the Hollywood and Highland parking structure.
