Mike’s Reviews

Just watched “The Golden Compass” today and I find the movie pretty much interesting especially with the “chain letter preludes” that I got warning against watching it. The story is primarily a fantasy set in a parallel world very much like to our own. The main character - Lyra (Dakota Blue Richards) is a child entrusted by her uncle Lord Asriel (Daniel Craig) to Jordan College.

I won’t give out much of the story as it may spoil the surprise and I’d rather just tell you my thoughts about the film.

The Golden Compass Merchandise

Controversies… an email has been circulating well before the movie was shown warning us that this movie is Atheism for kids. While it does look like it’s quite a bit anti-religion with the Magisterium quite reminiscent of the church, there is no mention of God or religion though similarities can be seen. Read more about the controversies here and here.

The characters did act quite well and the special effects were great though I would love to have seen Daniel Craig (Lord Asriel) and Nicole Kidman (Marisa Coulter) act more. Well of course I can’t blame them for focusing more on Lyra since the story revolves around her and her daemon.

Another thing of interest in the film is the Alethiometer, also known as The Golden Compass. Unlike other compasses, the Alethiometer doesn’t point to true north but seeks Truth itself. The idea of such a device is pretty much captivated me as I am somehow seeking for truth. I’d definitely love to have such a thing.

Lessons taught… the movie kind of teaches the viewers not to just “obey” the authorities but also learn to question them. The main characters in the movie are often those who want to do things their way while the “bad guys” are doing everything in their power to force the people to obey. While obedience is not a bad thing, I think “blind obedience” can be fatal - especially when we teach our children to just “obey without questioning”.

Then there also what they call daemons in the movie. A daemon is - according to the official website - a cross between a bestfriend and a soul. Every person in in the movie has a daemon but the Magisterium doesn’t want that so they do some nasty stuff - things unimaginable in Lyra’s world. I checked their website for info and found out that I can “know my daemon” by answering a series of questions and here she is…

A daemon basically reflects the true personality of its partner and losing one is like losing one’s soul.

So how did the movie go? All in all it was great and deserves to be watched. Take the entire family with you and watch. I’ll give it a 4 out of 5 for a good story, nice acting and amazing effects. Why 4 instead of 5? Well I was actually hoping it to be as brave as how Philip Pullman wrote it.