The Golden Compass

Nicole Kidman, that guy who played the last James Bond, a girl with some sort of strange name, and one really cool CG ferret (who is by far THE best character)

2007

I keep hearing that The Golden Compass is controversial, and I do not see what is so controversial about it - perhaps the word choice? "Daemons" meaning "soul" and "dust" (with all the drug implications) as a portal to other worlds? Would someone please tell me why exactly the inimitable "THEY" are calling this movie controversial?

The only thing truly in controversy is the plot, which it weak at best. Also, it was edited poorly, as there seem to be clips misssing (her jumping off the ice bridge that's cracking under her feet, for example), characters that are there but disappear half an hour into the movie (most notably, Mr. Bond)

and yes, the thing sets itself up for a sequal, which I always find rather presumptuous for a movie (excepting, of course, The Lord of the Rings, which was born a trilogy and can actually be considered one 14-hour movie split up over 3 years!) and that "ending" is in itself an indicator of bad scripting.

However, the ideas are interesting, and if handled differently (i.e. more coherently) this could have been a superlative film. As it stands (or falls), the movie is like a chair made of the finest mahagony but built without any sort of measurements or plan - so basically you come away with a nice looking, but rickety footstool.

VG