THE ROAR OF `NARNIA' THAT'S A BIG-BUDGET VERSION OF THE C.S. LEWIS CHILDREN'S CLASSIC YOU HEAR COMING TO THEATERS.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Writer

Andrew Adamson didn't step lightly into making the first feature film of ``The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,'' the initial book in writer C.S. Lewis' beloved ``Chronicles of Narnia'' fantasy series. Adamson had directed the blockbuster ``Shrek'' movies, but had never made a live-action movie before, not to mention one with a budget of $150 million.

Lewis' ``Narnia'' books have sold more than 95 million copies in 41 languages since ``The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' was published in 1950. Adamson knew the ``Narnia'' world well, having read and loved the books as a child. He also knew that the books' popularity guaranteed that interest in the movie would be high, bordering on rabid - typical for fantasy novels.

What elevates ``Narnia'' above and beyond the usual fan-boy project is that, for millions of readers, Lewis' books contain powerful Christian themes of sacrifice and resurrection. In ``The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,'' Aslan, the titular lion, sacrifices himself in place of one of the book's heroic children and is later resurrected, as powerful - if not more so - as he was before.

``When I read the books as a kid, I enjoyed them as pure adventure stories, but we certainly talked about how powerful they are for people of faith,'' Adamson says. ``I feel comfortable that I've made a movie of the book. And if you found spiritual messages in the book, you'll probably find them here. If not, you won't. However you enjoyed the books, you'll enjoy the movie.''

The dividing line isn't lost on Disney, which is distributing ``Narnia'' and partnered with Walden Media in financing the film. Disney has aggressively marketed the movie to evangelical Christian churches and organizations, using the same company - Motive Marketing - that Mel Gibson utilized in pushing ``The Passion of the Christ.''

Among the gambits: Disney gave hundreds of thousands of tickets to churches and Christian organizations for early ``Narnia'' screenings. Saddleback Church, the Orange County mega-church run by Rick Warren (author of No. 1 best seller ``The Purpose-Driven Life'') has bought 20,000 tickets for a special ``Narnia'' screening to be held Thursday, the day before the film's general release in theaters.

``Narnia'' outreach materials have been given to the 1,500 pastors and religious leaders who attended special preview events held in the past couple of months in several cities. Douglas Gresham, C.S. Lewis' stepson and the film's co-producer, was on hand to meet and greet at many of the promotions.

But given that ``Narnia'' is a hugely expensive endeavor (unlike Gibson's ``Passion''), Disney is also casting its net wide in hopes of luring huge crowds to multiplexes next weekend. Gresham - who controls the Lewis estate (and declined to be interviewed for this story) - has, for the first time, allowed licensing of the ``Narnia'' characters. Thus, in the coming weeks, expect to see Aslan everywhere - on cereal boxes, in Happy Meals and on toilet paper wrapping.

``It's a win-win situation for Disney,'' says Boston University theology professor Bryan Stone, author of the book ``Faith on Film.'' ``They can really market the movie to a Christian audience without affecting their marketing to a mainstream audience because the mainstream audience won't know any different.

``But it's an interesting tightrope they're walking because they don't want to alienate mainstream audiences who might not buy tickets to a movie they think is 'religious,' '' Stone adds. ``They need this film to be a blockbuster in order to make their investment back.''

Lewis himself wouldn't want general audiences to be put off either, say a number of authors who have written about him. Lewis was a scholar at Cambridge and Oxford, and wrote on a variety of subjects, including theology (``Mere Christianity'' and ``The Screwtape Letters'' are two of the most influential Christian books of the 20th century), poetry, science fiction and, of course, fantasy.

The ``Narnia'' books, seven titles published between 1950 and 1956, sprung from Lewis' late-night conversations with friend and fellow writer J.R.R. Tolkien. The idea was to create the type of fantasy story that he and Tolkien enjoyed reading as children.

``He wanted these stories to be enjoyed by as many people as possible,'' says Will Vaus, the founder of two C.S. Lewis societies and author of ``Mere Theology: A Guide to the Thought of C.S. Lewis.'' ``He wouldn't want 'Narnia' to be presented in a way that excluded anyone.''

Adds Bowling Green State University professor Bruce Edwards, author of two books on the ``Narnia'' series: ``Lewis didn't think he was writing an allegory. He thought he was writing an adventure tale that resembled his world view. But he wasn't big on allegory as a literary genre because he found it pedantic. He was writing stories, not sermons. He wanted you to be lost in this adventure. If, after reading it, you found something else there, all the better.''

Adamson and the Lewis scholars are quick to note that resurrection stories are not peculiar to the Christian faith.

``Practically every culture, every belief system has them,'' Adamson says. ``And if you're looking for an allegorical tale, how about Neo from 'The Matrix'? Or Obi-Wan Kenobi?''

The filmmaker adds that he is comfortable with the way Disney is marketing ``Narnia,'' believing the company is ``being responsible to fans of the book, both religious and otherwise.''

Edwards, who saw the movie at an early screening and calls it a ``pretty amazing achievement,'' wishes that the film could stand on its own terms and not be politicized.

``In some circles, 'Narnia' is arriving self-announced as a Christian film that does X, Y and Z, and Lewis would object to that,'' Edwards says. ``If you can't enter into Narnia and enjoy the world for itself, then you're missing the point.''

``Some people are upset about the Happy Meals, but I don't think Lewis would care,'' Edwards adds. ``You can't treat something badly that's not intrinsically sacred anyway. I love the books, but I want people to see the movie for the right reasons. I don't want to see people go door-to-door handing out a 'Narnia' tract, saying, 'Here's the good news about Aslan.' That would be absurd.''

Glenn Whipp, [phone]

glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com

White Witch is wickedly fun for Swinton

When considering whether she wanted to play the role of the evil White Witch in ``The Chronicles of Narnia,'' Tilda Swinton remembered what Margaret Hamilton once said about being the Wicked Witch of the West in ``The Wizard of Oz.''

``She was talking about waiting for a subway train in New York and noticing, out of the corner of her eye, little children backing away from her,'' Swinton recalls. ``And I thought, 'Is this what I want? Children shying away from me for the rest of my life?' ''

The Scottish-born Swinton, an indie-filmmaker favorite for such films as ``Broken Flowers,'' ``The Deep End'' and ``Orlando,'' took the role, of course, knowing what all actors know - playing the baddie is great fun.

``What I loved about the White Witch is that she's not a stereotypical villain with the whole mustache-twirling thing,'' Swinton says. ``Her evil is more unfathomable. It's a kind of coldness, an emotional remove. She's quiet.''

In the film, the White Witch has cast a spell over Narnia, creating a winter that never ends. The four children who venture through the wardrobe door into Narnia must summon their strength to join with the mystical lion Aslan and break the witch's curse.

``It's intense,'' Swinton says. ``My children (twin girls, age 7) don't want to see it. I think they're very wise.''

As for other children who have seen it, Swinton says she's already had her subway moment.

``After a recent screening, there was a question-and-answer session and this tiny child - way too young for the movie, I would have thought - was bursting to come up to me,'' Swinton says. ``She couldn't get close enough. So there you have it - the insatiable masochism of the child. Or her exceptional good taste.''

- G.W.

CAPTION(S):

4 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) FAITH IN NARNIA

Disney put $150 million into the C.S. Lewis fantasy classic, knowing it already had a spiritual base

(2 -- 3) no caption (``The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'')

(4) no caption (White Witch)

Box:

White Witch is wickedly fun for Swinton (see text)