The Golden Compass

Movie Man Mike gives us our first look at this controversial movie

The Golden Compass: B. I enjoyed this movie, but I was sorely disappointed in it at the same time. The story did not translate well to the screen. The script of this film is so tightly cut that the audience never gets the full flavor of the events and the characters and the relationships between the characters, as they are developed in the book. Visually, I really liked the film. And, having read the book, I followed the story line, but I felt almost cheated by the lack of depth and I found myself wondering if others who had not read the book could follow its fast pace. I have to wonder if it would have been better to break the book into two full-length feature films so that the storylines and the characters could be better developed. Lord Asriel, played by Daniel Craig, is such a prominent figure in Lyra’s (Dakota Richards) life and mind, it is incredible that he has all of about 5 minutes of screen time. One of my favorite characters, Iorek Byrnison—a bear (voice of Ian McKellen)—was probably what made it worth the price of admission to see the film. With reservations, I give this film a lukewarm recommendation.