"the fact that it was based on Jesus was pretty much a no brainer."
It is a no brainer. His step-son said that it was not meant to be an allegory of Christ and that always confused me because it was just so obvious.
"His step-son said....."
Well, if one plainly examines C.S. Lewis' writings, and has a basic understanding of Jesus Christ, as well as allegorical style, it's truely a "no brainer."
What has escaped C.S. Lewis' step-son's understanding is beyond me.
"It's not a Christian film and the Narnia books aren't Christian novels....Jack didn't intend the Narnia books to be an evangelistic fantasy... The myths of Narnia are partly those of the great man-made religions - Norse mythology, Hindu mythology, as well as the true myth of Christ. Exposure to man's myths will make young viewers ask questions about themselves - and only later will the seed of faith take root.
h/t http://clivedavis.blogs.com/clive/2005/12/in_out_of_the_w.html
Actually, Lewis himself said that his works were not allegories. And he was emphatic about that. Allegories tend to be rigid; Lewis was writing stories into which he injected all sorts of figures from Christianity and from myths and legends. He believed that the story of Christ redeeming man is the Real story of stories, and he liked to tell stories reflecting that. But that's different from being an allegory.