They're baaack.

Those plucky Pevensie children, the young and improbable heroes of 2005's "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," make an impressive if somewhat repetitive return in the second installment, "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian." A little bit older, living in London, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy are wistfully pining for the days when they ruled the parallel universe known as Narnia when they are suddenly whisked back, this time by way of an accommodating tube station.

Once returned to their former fanciful realm, they discover that it has been taken over -- not by their erstwhile nemesis, the White Witch, but by the wicked King Miraz (Sergio Castellitto), who has driven the Narnians of old underground and set out to murder Narnia's rightful ruler, the young and handsome Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes). Once again, the four young crusaders do battle with the forces of evil, and once again they prove that a ragtag team of dwarves, centaurs, satyrs and sundry talking animals can overcome swords and catapults through the sheer force of goodness.

"Prince Caspian," like its predecessor, delivers sweeping, swashbuckling action in a handsome production, albeit one that leaves viewers feeling quite pummeled by the end of its nearly 2 1/2 -hour running time. Full to bursting with duels, battles, showdowns and other literal and figurative forms of ritualized aggression, this chapter of the "Narnia" series sometimes seems like an endless Battle Royale. But as portrayed by William Moseley, Skandar Keynes, Georgie Henley and especially Anna Popplewell as Susan, the Pevensies still make for terrific tween protagonists, and Aslan, the majestic mythical lion voiced by Liam Neeson, is still a breathtaking manifestation of the Cat Upstairs.

-- Ann Hornaday (May 16, 2008)

Contains epic battle action and violence.