THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER

Starring: Ben Barnes, Skandar Keynes, Georgie Henley and featuring the voices of Liam Neeson and Simon Pegg
Directed by: Michael Apted
Opens: December 10, 2010

That’s right -- Harry Potter and the Fockers aren’t the only returning franchises this holiday season. The third Narnia installment sees Lucy (Henley) and Edmund (Keynes) return to Narnia, where they are met by King Caspian (Barnes) -- and nefarious dragons and whatnot -- aboard the Dawn Treader.

What We Think: Though Dawn Treader doesn’t arrive in theaters with the same degree of hype as the two aforementioned franchise entries, there’s reason for fans of the C.S. Lewis book series to expect a return to form following the lukewarm response/performance of 2008’s Prince Caspian -- and that reason is the meticulous director, Apted, who has taken over for Andrew Adamson. Plus, Fox, which took the reins from Disney, has no doubt learned precisely what didn’t work with Caspian.

Cool to Know: 20th Century Fox took over from Disney while the film was being shot, due to budgetary disagreements. Perhaps that wasn’t so cool to know for Dawn Treader’s financiers.