The first 5 minutes of The Golden Compass has been loosed on the aetherweb! I have plundered YouTube and present it for you now!
I must admit that the first 5 minutes look good to me. The location shots are awesome, acting looks solid and Daniel Craig looks very erudite in his study. Our own Darren Conley said this film was “ok” but I still look forward to the watching the film for myself.
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Meh, I’m sick of obviously CGI animals. It just makes the whole thing look silly.
I saw a sneak peek screening on Friday night and I was pretty impressed. Here’s my movie-blog-esque review (no spoilers):
The Good:
The special effects in this film are nicely done. You quickly forget the animal “demons” running with each adult is CGI. The landscape and cityscapes are just majestic on the big screen.
The acting by the leads (Craig, Kidman, Richards) is top notch. Nicole Kidman does a great job of scaring the adult characters while trying to endear herself to the child characters. Daniel Craig does well while on camera, but his part is smaller than you might like. Dakota Blue Richards plays the child lead and does a convincing job as a tough (and clever) orphan.
In addition, the characters are nicely developed (or as developed as you can get in a 2 hour movie with sequels on the way). Sam Elliot’s character was probably my favorite.
I haven’t read the books, but my wife has and tells me that this movie closely tracks the first book (Golden Compass in the USA, Northern Lights everywhere else). My wife did say that the movie ends a little sooner than the first book.
The fighting polar bears (Panser Bjorn) are pretty fun too. Bears that talk, fight and drink whiskey are A-OK in my book. BTW, Ian McKellen voices the lead Panser Bjorn.
The Bad:
Some of the child actors temporarily spoil the ride a bit. While I think Richards did a good job, some of the other child actors were just passable and unconvincing.
As I mentioned earlier, I haven’t read the book(s), but it seemed like the screenwriters were trying to jam pack the script with nearly every character and sub-plot of the book. There are witches, and demons and Gyptians and Panser Bjorn and the Scholars and…you get the picture. Many movies based on books in the fantasy genre seem to suffer from this. Even Lord of the Rings seemed a bit crowded in the original theatrical releases.
The Ugly:
This movie is already drawing controversy that’s not deserved. Numerous religious groups in my neck of the woods (Texas) have already condemned the movie as “anti-God” because of the original author’s self-proclaimed atheism. Some clergy are calling for a boycott.
Yes, if you look at the movie from the perspective of the “bad guys” being “The Church” and the “good guys” being free will agnostics and atheists, then you will probably see a bias. However, if you put all of that aside and look at it with an open mind, it’s just a story about good versus evil with a little rebellion against authority put in for good measure. That’s it.
It seems many clergy admit that the movie itself isn’t *explicitly* anti-God, but they fear that the movies will be “bait” for the books (and that’s where the message is more direct).
Overall:
Very enjoyable. It never felt like a 2 hour movie to me. There were always things to keep you engaged in the story. This is a bit of a dark movie for kids, but I think pre-teens and adults will enjoy it. The plot was pretty good, but they clearly set things up for a sequel at the end.
My rating: 8.5/10
@sibbe
Any specifics?
(crap, this is the first bad news I’ve heard of it)
Worst movie i’ve seen this year
Having read the books I am ecited to merely see it come to film. The visuals I have seen look amazing, the acting talent is more than decent, the plot is interstng enough to be put into film, I really hope this film turns out as good as I think it will.
As for keeping the movie fresh throughout the two hours; look at the Lord of the Rings, those movies had me lovin the ride every second AND they were longer. I’m not saying this movie compares, but I know holding the two hours is possible.
Can’t Wait!
The general consensus seems to be that the film is solid but lacking that something special and i’ve had my doubts for a month that the film is going to be a big hit (and it needs to be). Mind you, i didn’t think Narnia was going to be huge, initially, and i was totally wrong.
I do know (and this is for those of you who end up liking the film a lot) that you shouldn’t buy the first DVD that comes out. You know damn well that New Line will be bringing out the 4 disc director’s cut next December.
Hmmmm.My verdict is still out.Not quite sure about this film yet.Daniel Craig is a huge plus but im not sure itll be exiting enough to hold over a 2 hour film.Ill probably end up seeing it(although I dont think itll be very good)
I’m going to a screening tonight. Hope it doesn’t suck.