The Golden Compass (film)

The Golden Compass is a 2007 fantasy adventure film based on the 1995 book Northern Lights, the first novel in Philip Pullman's trilogy His Dark Materials. Written and directed by Chris Weitz, it stars Nicole Kidman, Dakota Blue Richards, Daniel Craig, Sam Elliott, Eva Green, and Ian McKellen. The project was announced in February 2002, but difficulties over the script and the selection of a director caused significant delays. At US$180 million, it was one of New Line Cinema's most expensive projects ever,[2] and its disappointing results in the US contributed to New Line's February 2008 restructuring.[3]

The Golden Compass
Theatrical release poster
Directed byChris Weitz
Produced byBill Carraro
Deborah Forte
Screenplay byChris Weitz
Based onThe Golden Compass
by Philip Pullman
Starring
Music byAlexandre Desplat
CinematographyHenry Braham
Edited by
Production
company
Distributed by
Release date
  • November 27, 2007 (2007-11-27) (London)
  • December 5, 2007 (2007-12-05) (United Kingdom)
  • December 7, 2007 (2007-12-07) (United States)
Running time
113 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$180 million[1]
Box office$372.2 million[1]

The film depicts the adventures of Lyra Belacqua, an orphan living in a parallel universe where a dogmatic ruling power called the Magisterium opposes free inquiry. Children in that universe are being kidnapped by an unknown group called the Gobblers who are supported by the Magisterium. Lyra joins a tribe of seafarers on a trip to the far North, the land of the armoured polar bears, in search of the missing children.

Before its release, the film received criticism from secularist organisations and fans of the His Dark Materials trilogy for the dilution of elements of the story which were critical of religion, as well as from some religious organisations for the source material's anti-religious themes. The studio ordered significant changes late in post-production, which Weitz later called a "terrible" experience.[4] Although the film's visual effects (which Weitz has called the film's "most successful element") won both a BAFTA and an Academy Award, critical reception of the film was mixed and its revenue was lower than the studio had anticipated.

Plot

The story is set in an alternate Earth dominated by a powerful church called the Magisterium that strictly controls the populace's beliefs and teachings. In this world, every person's inner spirit partially exists outside their body, manifesting itself as an animal companion called a dæmon. The dæmon communicates with the person and must remain in close physical proximity. Witches, however, have bird-shape dæmons that are able to travel long distances from their bodies.

Lyra Belacqua, whose dæmon is named Pantalaimon or "Pan", is an orphan being raised at Jordan College in Oxford. Her uncle, Lord Asriel, a noted explorer and scholar, has been absent seeking the elusive Dust, a cosmic particle that the Magisterium forbids to be mentioned. When Asriel returns to Oxford, Lyra saves his life after seeing a visiting Magisterium agent poison his wine. Asriel later gives a presentation to other scholars regarding his discovery that Dust existing in the North Pole links infinite worlds. Asriel receives a grant for another expedition. If his theory is proven, it could severely undermine the Magisterium's hold on the world.

Lyra meets Mrs Coulter, a wealthy, powerful woman presented as "a friend of the college". Mrs Coulter takes an interest in Lyra and invites her to stay in her home. Before they leave for a retrofuturistic London, the Master of the college entrusts Lyra with her uncle's alethiometer, a compass-like artifact that reveals the truth. Few individuals can decipher its symbols. The Magisterium has seized or destroyed all other alethiometers, and Lyra is warned to keep hers a secret, especially from Mrs Coulter.

Lyra notices the alethiometer continuously points to a symbol of a lady, a lightning bolt, and an infant, though she is unable to comprehend its meaning. Soon, Mrs Coulter's congenial manner changes and shows she is aligned to the Magisterium and its mandate. When Lyra casually mentions Dust, Mrs Coulter sternly warns her never to bring it up again.

Kidnappers called Gobblers have been snatching poor, orphaned, and Gyptian children, including Lyra's friends Roger, an Oxford servant boy, and Billy Costa, a young Gyptian. Lyra later discovers that Mrs Coulter is head of the General Oblation Board and realizes they are the "Gobblers".

When Mrs Coulter's dæmon attempts to steal the alethiometer, Lyra and Pan escape with it into the streets. Gobblers pursue her, but she is saved by Ma Costa, Billy's mother. Lyra is taken to the Gyptian king, John Faa, whose ship is heading north to rescue the captured children. Lyra shows the alethiometer to a wise Gyptian elder named Farder Coram and discovers she is able to decipher the device.

After consulting with Magisterium agent Fra Pavel, Mrs Coulter sends two mechanical spy-flies after Lyra. One is batted away but the other is caught and sealed in a can by Farder Coram, who says the spy-fly has a stinger filled with a sleeping poison. Meanwhile, Lord Asriel has reached Svalbard, the kingdom of the Ice Bears, but he is captured by Samoyed tribesmen hired by Mrs Coulter.

The witch queen, Serafina Pekkala, visits Lyra and tells her the missing children are in an experimental station called Bolvangar. At a northern port, Lyra is befriended by a Texan aeronaut named Lee Scoresby. He advises her to hire him and his friend Iorek Byrnison, an armoured bear that Lee has come to rescue. Once a prince of the armoured bears, Iorek is now exiled in shame, the local townspeople having tricked him out of his armour. Lyra uses the alethiometer to locate Iorek's armour. After recovering it, Iorek joins the Gyptian trek northward, along with Scoresby.

Lyra, astride Iorek, goes to an abandoned building the alethiometer pointed her toward. There, Lyra finds Billy Costa, who has been surgically separated from his dæmon. The Gobblers are experimenting on the kidnapped children using a procedure called "intercision". Lyra reunites Billy with Ma Costa, but the group is attacked by Samoyeds, who capture Lyra. Iorek and Lee follow her in Lee's airship. Lyra is taken to the bear king Ragnar Sturlusson. Knowing Iorek will be outnumbered, Lyra tricks Ragnar into fighting Iorek one-on-one. Ragnar, who usurped Iorek's throne, initially appears to be winning; Iorek feigns weakness and kills Ragnar, avenging his father and regaining his kingdom.

Iorek carries Lyra to Bolvangar, but only Lyra crosses a narrow ice bridge before it collapses. Upon reaching the station, Lyra is welcomed in and reunited with Roger. While snooping around, Lyra overhears Mrs Coulter telling the station scientists that Asriel escaped capture and has set up a laboratory but that Magisterium soldiers are going there to arrest and execute him for heresy. Lyra also overhears the scientists discussing experiments to sever a child from their dæmon. Caught spying, Lyra and Pan are thrown into the intercision chamber but Mrs Coulter rescues her.

When Lyra awakens, Mrs Coulter explains that she and the Magisterium believe intercision protects children from Dust's corrupting influence. She reveals she is Lyra's mother but was forced to give her up; Lyra realises that Asriel is her father. When Mrs Coulter wants the alethiometer, Lyra instead gives her the can containing the spy-fly. The fly stings Mrs Coulter, rendering her unconscious. Lyra destroys the machine, setting off a series of explosions.

Outside, the fleeing children are attacked by Tartar mercenaries and their wolf dæmons. Iorek, Scoresby, the Gyptians, and flying witches led by Serafina join the battle. The Tartars are defeated and the children rescued. Lyra, Roger, Iorek, Lee, and Serafina fly further north to search for Asriel. Confirming Serafina's prophecy of an upcoming war with Lyra at the centre, Lyra is determined to fight the Magisterium, who plot to control all the other worlds in the universe.

Cast
Nicole Kidman at the film's premiere.
  • Dakota Blue Richards as Lyra Belacqua, who embarks on a voyage to battle the forces of evil and rescue her best friend. New Line Cinema announced 11-year-old Richards' casting in June 2006.[5] It was her first acting role.[6]
  • Nicole Kidman as Mrs Coulter, an influential woman who takes an interest in Lyra (and later admits that she is Lyra's mother). Kidman was author Philip Pullman's preferred choice for the role ten years before production of the film,[7] and despite initially rejecting the offer to star as she did not want to play a villain, she signed on after receiving a personal letter from Pullman.[8]
  • Daniel Craig as Lord Asriel, Lyra's strict and mysterious adventurer uncle. In July 2006, it was reported that Paul Bettany was in talks to play the role.[9]
  • Sam Elliott as Lee Scoresby, a Texan aeronaut who comes to Lyra's aid. Pullman has singled out Elliott's performance as one the film got "just right".[10]
  • Eva Green as Serafina Pekkala, a witch queen.
  • Jim Carter as John Faa, the king of the Gyptians.
  • Clare Higgins as Ma Costa, member of a Gyptian family that aids Lyra.
  • Ben Walker as Roger Parslow, Lyra's best friend, who is kidnapped and taken north.
  • Charlie Rowe as Billy Costa, son of Ma Costa, and Lyra's friend.
  • Christopher Lee as the Magisterium's first high councilor. Lee's casting was also at New Line's behest, rather than that of Chris Weitz.[5]
  • Tom Courtenay as Farder Coram, Gyptian second-in-command and advisor to John Faa.
  • Derek Jacobi as the Magisterial emissary.
  • Simon McBurney as Fra Pavel, a Magisterial agent.
  • Jack Shepherd as master of Jordan College.
  • Magda Szubanski as Mrs Lonsdale.
  • Edward de Souza as the Magisterium's second high councilor.
  • Paul Antony-Barber as Bolvangar Doctor.
  • Jason Watkins as Bolvangar Official.
  • Jody Halse as Bolvangar Orderly.
  • Hattie Morahan as Sister Clara.

Voice cast
  • Ian McKellen as Iorek Byrnison, an armoured bear (panserbjørn) who becomes Lyra's friend and comrade. Nonso Anozie had recorded lines for the part of Iorek Byrnison, but was replaced by McKellen at a late stage as New Line wanted a bigger name in the role.[11] New Line president of production Toby Emmerich claimed that he "never thought Anozie sounded like Iorek" and while he initially trusted director Weitz's casting decision, he "never stopped thinking that this guy didn't sound right." The recasting was against Weitz's wishes, though he later said "if you're going to have anyone recast in your movie, you're happy it's Ian McKellen."[5]
  • Freddie Highmore as Pantalaimon, Lyra's dæmon. Pan was originally to be voiced by an older actor, but they called in Highmore instead, as it would be more of an intimate relationship if Pan and Lyra were the same age, and also would underscore the contrast between Lyra's relationship with him versus her relationships with older male characters such as Lord Asriel, Lee Scoresby and Iorek.
  • Ian McShane as Ragnar Sturlusson, king of the panserbjørne. Ragnar's name in the book was Iofur Raknison, but the name was changed to prevent confusion between him and Iorek.[12] However, in the German-language version of the film, the dialogue retains the name "Iofur Raknison", whilst the subtitles reflect the change.
  • Kathy Bates as Hester, Lee Scoresby's jackrabbit dæmon.
  • Kristin Scott Thomas as Stelmaria, Lord Asriel's dæmon.

Production

Development
"Peter's operation was so impressive that, well, I realised the distance between me and Peter Jackson… At that moment, I realised the sheer scope of the endeavor. And I thought, 'You know what? I can't do this'."
 — Director Chris Weitz on his initial departure from the project[5]

On February 11, 2002, following the success of New Line's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the studio bought the rights to Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy. In July 2003, Tom Stoppard was commissioned to write the screenplay.[6] Directors Brett Ratner and Sam Mendes expressed interest in the film,[6] but a year later, Chris Weitz was hired to direct after approaching the studio with an unsolicited 40-page treatment.[13] The studio rejected the script, asking Weitz to start from scratch. Since Weitz was an admirer of Stoppard's work, he decided not to read the adaptation in case he "subconsciously poached things from him."[14] After delivering his script, Weitz cited Barry Lyndon and Star Wars as stylistic influences on the film.[6] In 2004, Weitz was invited by The Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson onto the set of King Kong (2005) in order to gather information on directing a big-budget film, and to receive advice on dealing with New Line Cinema, for whom Jackson had worked on Lord of the Rings. After a subsequent interview in which Weitz said the novel's attacks on organised religion would have to be softened, he was criticised by some fans,[5] and on December 15, 2004, Weitz announced his resignation as director of the trilogy, citing the enormous technical challenges of the epic.[6] He later indicated that he had envisioned the possibility of being denounced by both the book's fans and its detractors, as well as a studio hoping for another Lord of the Rings.[5]

On August 9, 2005, it was announced that British director Anand Tucker would take over from Weitz. Tucker felt the film would thematically be about Lyra "looking for a family",[6] and Pullman agreed: "He has plenty of very good ideas, and he isn't daunted by the technical challenges. But the best thing from the point of view of all who care about the story is his awareness that it isn't about computer graphics; it isn't about fantastic adventures in amazing-looking worlds; it's about Lyra."[15] Tucker resigned on May 8, 2006, citing creative disagreements with New Line, and Weitz returned to direct.[6] Weitz said "I'm both the first and third director on the film … but I did a lot of growing in the interim."[16]

According to producer Deborah Forte, Tucker wanted to make a smaller, less exciting film than New Line wanted. New Line production president Toby Emmerich said of Weitz's return: "I think Chris realised that if he didn't come back in and step up, maybe the movie wasn't going to get made … We really didn't have a Plan B at that point."[13] Weitz was attracted back to the project after receiving a letter from Pullman asking him to reconsider. Since his departure, blueprints, production design and visual effects strategies had been put into position, and while Weitz admitted that his fears did not vanish, the project suddenly seemed feasible for the director.[5]

Filming

Filming began at Shepperton Studios on September 4, 2006,[6] with additional sequences shot in Switzerland and Norway.[13] Filming also took place at the Old Royal Naval College at Greenwich,[17] Chiswick House in London, and in Radcliffe Square, Christ Church, Oxford, Exeter College, Oxford, The Queen's College, Oxford, The Historic Dockyard Chatham[18] and Hedsor House in Buckinghamshire.

Design

Production designer Dennis Gassner says of his work on the film:

The whole project is about translation—translation from something you would understand into something that is in a different vernacular. So, it's a new signature, looking into another world that seems familiar but is still unique. There's a term I use—called 'cludging'—it's taking one element and combining it with another element to make something new. It's a hybrid or amalgamation, and that's what this movie is about from a design perspective. It's about amalgamating ideas and concepts and theoretical and physical environments.[19][20]

Rhythm and Hues Studios created the main dæmons and Framestore CFC created all the bears.[21] British company Cinesite created the secondary dæmons.[22]

Differences from the novel

Numerous scenes from the novel did not feature in the film or were markedly changed. On December 7, 2007, New York magazine reviewed draft scripts from both Stoppard and Weitz; both were significantly longer than the final version, and Weitz's draft (which, unlike Stoppard's, did not feature significant additions to the source material) was pronounced the best of the three. The magazine concluded that instead of a "likely three hours of running time" that included such scenes as Mrs Coulter's London party and Lyra's meeting with a witch representative, the studio had opted for a "failed" length of under two hours in order to maximise revenue.[23]

On October 9, 2007, Weitz revealed that the final three chapters from Northern Lights had been moved to the film's potential sequel, The Subtle Knife, in order to provide "the most promising conclusion to the first film and the best possible beginning to the second,"[24] though he also said less than a month later that there had been "tremendous marketing pressure" to create "an upbeat ending."[25] (The San Francisco Chronicle found this "truncated" ending abrupt.[26]) Author Pullman publicly supported these changes, saying that "every film has to make changes to the story that the original book tells—not to change the outcome, but to make it fit the dimensions and the medium of film".[27] In addition to removing the novel's unsettling ending, the film reverses the order in which Lyra travels to Bolvangar, the Gobbler's outpost, and then Svalbard, the armoured bears' kingdom.[28] (Neither deviation from the book features in Scholastic Publishing's The Golden Compass: The Story of the Movie novelisation.) In July 2009, Weitz told a Comic Con audience that the film had been "recut by [New Line], and my experience with it ended being quite a terrible one";[4] he also told Time magazine that he had felt that by "being faithful to the book I was working at odds with the studio".[29] In 2011, Pullman told an audience at the British Humanist Association annual conference that he was also disappointed by this decision, and hoped that a director's cut of the film would be released some day including the footage cut by New Line.

In the book, the Jordan College Master reluctantly poisons Lord Asriel's wine; in the film a visiting Magisterium official undertakes (more willingly) this action. The alethiometer is mentioned multiple times throughout the film as a "golden compass".

In the film, Billy Costa replaces Tony Makarios as the victim of intercision, and Tony is left out. Billy has the daemon Ratter, which is Tony's in the book. Billy features in the first scene of the film, whereas, in the book, he is first seen at Bolvangar, and is saved before ever having to go through intercision.

Tasha Robinson of The A.V. Club argued that through the use of a spoken introduction and other exposition-filled dialogue, the film fails by "baldly revealing up front everything that the novel is trying to get you to wonder about and to explore slowly".[28] Youyoung Lee wrote in a December 2007 Entertainment Weekly that the film "leaves out the gore", such as the book's ritualistic heart-eating that concludes the bear fight, "to create family-friendlier fare".[30] Lee also said that the film "downplays the Magisterium's religious nature", but Robinson argued that the depiction of the church in the film is as "a hierarchical organisation of formally robed, iconography-heavy priests who dictate and define morality for their followers, are based out of cathedrals, and decry teachings counter to theirs as 'heresy.' ... doing ugly things to children under cover of secrecy". Robinson then asks, "Who are most people going to think of besides the Catholic Church?"[28] The film gives more prominence to scenes showing the Magisterium officials' perspective than the novel. The novel rarely mentions explicitly the Magisterium's intentions, relying on the gossip of others, and the comments of Mrs Coulter.

Although the character of Mrs Coulter has black hair in the novel, Pullman responded to the blonde Kidman's portrayal by saying "I was clearly wrong. You sometimes are wrong about your characters. She's blonde. She has to be."[31]

Controversies

Several key themes of the novels, such as the rejection of religion and the abuse of power in a fictionalised version of the Church, were diluted in the adaptation. Director Weitz said that "in the books the Magisterium is a version of the Catholic Church gone wildly astray from its roots", but that the organisation portrayed in his film would not directly match that of Pullman's books. Instead, the Magisterium represents all dogmatic organisations.[32] Weitz said New Line Cinema had feared the story's anti-religious themes would make the film financially unviable in the US, and so religion and God ("the Authority" in the books) would not be referenced directly.

Attempting to reassure fans of the novels, Weitz said that religion would instead appear in euphemistic terms, yet the decision was criticised by some fans,[33] anti-censorship groups, and the National Secular Society (of which Pullman is an honorary associate), which said "they are taking the heart out of it, losing the point of it, castrating it ..."[34] and "this is part of a long-term problem over freedom of speech." The Atlantic wrote: "With $180 million at stake, the studio opted to kidnap the book's body and leave behind its soul."[35] The changes from the novel have been present since Tom Stoppard's rejected version of the script,[13] and Pullman expected the film to be "faithful",[32] although he also said: "They do know where to put the theology and that's off the film."[35] A Christianity Today review of the film noted that "'Magisterium' does refer, in the real world, to the teaching authority of the Roman Catholic Church, and the film [is] peppered with religiously significant words like 'oblation' and 'heresy'", adding that when one character smashes through the wall of a Magisterium building, the damaged exterior is "decorated with [Christian] Byzantine icons."[36]

On October 7, 2007, the Catholic League called for a boycott of the film.[37] League president William A. Donohue said he would not ordinarily object to the film, but that while the religious elements are diluted from the source material, the film will encourage children to read the novels, which he says denigrate Christianity and promote atheism for children.[38] He cited Pullman telling The Washington Post in 2001 that he is trying to undermine the basis of Christian belief.[39] The league hoped that "the film [would fail] to meet box office expectations and that [Pullman's] books attract few buyers",[40] declaring the boycott campaign a success after a North American opening weekend which was lower than anticipated.[41]

Albert Mohler, the president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, agreed that the broad appeal of the film was a dangerous lure to the novels, which he criticised for carrying a clear agenda to expose what Pullman believes is the "tyranny of the Christian faith" and for providing "a liberating mythology for a new secular age."[42] Denny Wayman of the Free Methodist Church made the assertion that The Golden Compass is a "film trying to preach an atheistic message".[43] Other evangelical groups, such as the Christian Film and Television Commission, adopted a "wait-and-see" approach to the film before deciding upon any action,[44] as did the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales.[45] Some religious scholars have challenged the view that the story carries atheistic themes,[46][47] while in November 2007, a review of the film by the director and staff reviewer of the Office for Film and Broadcasting of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) appeared on the website of the Catholic News Service and in Catholic newspapers across the country. The review suggested that instead of a boycott, it may be appropriate for Catholic parents to "talk through any thorny philosophical issues" with their children.[48] However, on December 10, 2007 the review was removed from the website at the USCCB's request.[49] On December 19, 2007, the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, published an editorial in which it denounced the film as godless.[50]

Pullman said of Donohue's call for a boycott, "Why don't we trust readers? Why don't we trust filmgoers? Oh, it causes me to shake my head with sorrow that such nitwits could be loose in the world."[45] In a discussion with Donohue on CBS's Early Show, Ellen Johnson, president of American Atheists, said that rather than promote atheism, the film would encourage children to question authority, saying that would not be a bad thing for children to learn.[51] Director Weitz says that he believes His Dark Materials is "not an atheistic work, but a highly spiritual and reverent piece of writing",[33] and Nicole Kidman defended her decision to star in the film, saying that "I wouldn't be able to do this film if I thought it were at all anti-Catholic."[16] Some commentators indicated that they believed both sides' criticism would prove ultimately impotent and that the negative publicity would prove a boon for the film's box office.[45][52][53] Sales were in fact poor; one week after the film's release, Roger Ebert said of the Catholic campaign, "any bad buzz on a family film can be mortal, and that seems to have been the case this time."[54] The planned film trilogy has not been continued, prompting actor Sam Elliott to blame censorship and the Catholic Church.[55]

Nevertheless, in a production independent of the film, a His Dark Materials television series debuted in November 2019, and does not skirt around the parallels the novels draw between the fictional Magisterium and the real-world Church; e.g., Magisterium officials in the show wear priests' cassocks and collars, unapproved teachings are called "heresy", and prayers at the dinner table are said in Latin.

Release

The film premiered in London on November 27, 2007, and was released on December 5, 2007, in British cinemas by Entertainment Film Distributors and released on December 7, 2007, in American cinemas by New Line Cinema.

Home media

The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray formats in the United Kingdom on April 28, 2008, and the United States on April 29, 2008. The movie is closed-captioned by the National Captioning Institute on its first home video release. The extra material on the single-disc DVD consists of previews of upcoming New Line Cinema films. The two-disc edition includes a commentary from writer/director Chris Weitz, eleven "making-of" featurettes, a photo gallery, and theatrical and teaser trailers. The Blu-ray Disc features the same extras from the two-disc DVD edition.[56] Exclusive to Blu-ray Disc is visual commentary picture-in-picture feature which enables viewers to access behind-the-scene features while watching the movie.

Shortly before the film's release, Weitz suggested that an extended cut of the film could be released on DVD, saying "I'd really love to do a fuller cut of the film"; he further speculated that such a version "could probably end up at two and a half hours."[57] This proposed cut would presumably not include the original ending: MTV reported in December 2007 that Weitz hoped to include that material at the beginning of a possible The Subtle Knife adaptation, and that a Compass Director's Cut might feature "a moment" of it as a "teaser".[58] Cast members Craig and Green have echoed this hope for such a DVD cut; so far, however, no official announcement has been made.[58]

Reception

Box office

The North American opening weekend return was "a little disappointing" for New Line Cinema,[59] earning US$25.8 million with total domestic box office of $70 million compared to an estimated $180 million production budget.[1] Despite this, the film's fortunes rebounded as its performance outside the United States was described as "stellar" by Variety,[60] and as "astonishing" by New Line.[61] In the United Kingdom, the film grossed $53,198,635 and became the second-highest-grossing non-sequel of 2007 there (behind The Simpsons Movie). In Japan, the film was officially released in March 2008 on 700 screens, ultimately grossing $33,501,399; but previews of the film between February 23–24, 2008, earned $2.5 million. By July 6, 2008, it had earned $302,127,136 internationally, totaling $372,234,864 worldwide.[1] Overseas rights to the film were sold to fund the $180 million production budget for the film, so most of these profits did not go to New Line.[62] This has been cited as a possible "last straw" in Time Warner's decision to merge New Line Cinema into Warner Bros. Pictures.[3]

Critical response

Reviews of The Golden Compass were mixed.[63] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 42%, based on 194 reviews, with an average score of 5.61/10. The critical consensus reads: "Without the bite or the controversy of the source material, The Golden Compass is reduced to impressive visuals overcompensating for lax storytelling."[64] At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 51, based on 33 reviews.[65]

Manohla Dargis of The New York Times said that the film "crams so many events, characters, ... twists and turns, sumptuously appointed rooms and ethereally strange vistas ... that [it] risks losing you in the whirl" and that while The Golden Compass is "an honorable work," it is "hampered by its fealty to the book and its madly rushed pace."[66] James Berardinelli of ReelReviews gave the film two and a half stars out of four, calling it "adequate, but not inspired" and criticising the first hour for its rushed pace and sketchily-developed characters.[67] James Christopher of The Times of London was disappointed, praising the "marvellous" special effects and casting, but saying that the "books weave a magic the film simply cannot match" and citing a "lack of genuine drama."[68]

Time rated it a "B" and called it a "good, if familiar fantasy," saying "The find is Dakota Blue Richards ... who's both grounded and magical."[69] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian rated it four stars out of five, praising Nicole Kidman's casting and saying it had "no other challengers as [2007's] big Christmas movie."[70] Leonard Maltin gave the film three out of four stars, and said that "Richards is persuasive" and that it "does a good job of introducing us to an unfamiliar world." Critic Roger Ebert awarded the film four out of four stars and called it "a darker, deeper fantasy epic than the "Rings" trilogy (The Lord of the Rings), The Chronicles of Narnia or the Potter films," saying that it "creates villains that are more complex and poses more intriguing questions. As a visual experience, it is superb. As an escapist fantasy, it is challenging ... I think [it] is a wonderfully good-looking movie, with exciting passages and a captivating heroine."[71]

Pullman himself was described by a London Times interviewer as sounding "ambivalent" and "guarded" about the film, saying in March 2008: "A lot of things about it were good… Nothing's perfect. Nothing can bring out all that's in the book. There are always compromises". He hoped, however, that the rest of the trilogy would be adapted with the same cast and crew.[72] In July 2009, after this possibility had been exhausted, Weitz told Time magazine that he thought the film's special effects ended up being its "most successful element."[29]

At the British Humanist Association conference in 2011, Pullman said that there were not, after all, going to be more films with the same cast and crew. While praising the portrayals of his characters by Nicole Kidman and Dakota Blue Richards, Pullman said that he was disappointed with the final film and New Line's re-editing of it.

Debbie Day of Premiere magazine said "The Golden Compass ultimately fails as a film in its broad strokes and inadequate scene development."[73]

Accolades

The Golden Compass won the 2008 BAFTA Film Award for Special Visual Effects[74] and an Oscar for Best Visual Effects notably beating what many considered to be the front-runner, Michael Bay's Transformers which had swept the VES awards prior.[75] It was also nominated for two Critics' Choice Awards in 2007 ("Best Family Film," and "Best Young Actress" for Dakota Blue Richards[76]), five Satellite Awards and the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form. The Golden Compass was nominated for the National Movie Award for Best Family movie but lost to Disney/Pixar's WALL-E.

Award Category Nominee Result
Academy Awards Best Visual Effects Michael L. Fink
Bill Westenhofer
Ben Morris
Trevor Wood		 Won
Best Art Direction Dennis Gassner (art director)
Anna Pinnock (set decorator)		 Nominated
BAFTA Awards Best Special Visual Effects Michael L. Fink
Bill Westenhofer
Ben Morris
Trevor Wood		 Won
Saturn Award Best Fantasy Film Nominated
Best Performance by a Younger Actor Dakota Blue Richards Nominated
Best Costume Ruth Myers Nominated
Best Special Effects Nominated
Excellence in Production
Design Award		 Fantasy Film Dennis Gassner (production designer)
Richard L. Johnson (supervising art director)
Chris Lowe (art director)
Andy Nicholson (art director)
Tino Schaedler (art director - digital sets)
James Foster (standby art director)
Gavin Fitch (assistant art director)
Helen Xenopoulos (assistant art director)		 Won
AFI International Award Best Actress Nicole Kidman Nominated
Critics' Choice Movie Awards Best Young Actress Dakota Blue Richards Nominated
Best Family Film Nominated
CDG Award Excellence in Fantasy Film Ruth Myers Won
Gold Derby Awards Visual Effects Michael L. Fink
Ben Morris
Bill Westenhofer
Trevor Wood		 Nominated
Golden Trailer Awards Best Animation/Family TV Spot Nominated
Best Animation/Family Poster Nominated
Hugo Award Best Dramatic Presentation - Long Form Chris Weitz (written by/director)
Philip Pullman (based on the novel by)		 Nominated
IFMCA Award Best Original Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction Film Alexandre Desplat Won
Film Score of the Year Nominated
IOFCP Award Best Visual Effects Michael Fink
Bill Westenhofer
Ben Morris
Trevor Wood		 Nominated
ALFS Award British Breakthrough - Acting Dakota Blue Richards Nominated
Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing - Music in a Feature Film Gerard McCann (supervising music editor)
Peter Clarke (music editor)
Robert Houston (additional music editor)
Andrew Dudman (additional music editor)
Sam Okell (additional music editor)
Stuart Morton (additional music editor)		 Nominated
National Movie Awards Best Family Film Nominated
Best Performance - Female Nicole Kidman Nominated
Dakota Blue Richards Nominated
Satellite Awards Best Motion Picture, Animated or Mixed Media Nominated
Best Cinematography Henry Braham Nominated
Best Original Song Kate Bush (for the song "Lyra") Nominated
Best Sound Mike Prestwood Smith
Mark Taylor
Glenn Freemantle		 Nominated
Best Visual Effects Nominated
SLFCA Award Best Animated or Children's Film Nominated
Best Visual/Special Effects Nominated
Genre Award Best Actress in a Movie Nicole Kidman Nominated
Visual Effects Society Outstanding Visual Effects in an
Effects Driven Motion Picture		 Michael L. Fink
Susan MacLeod
Bill Westenhofer
Ben Morris		 Nominated
World Soundtrack Award Soundtrack Composer of the Year Alexandre Desplat Nominated
Taurus Award Best High Work Paul Herbert
Nicholas Daines		 Nominated
Yoga Award Worst Foreign Actress Nicole Kidman Won
Worst Foreign Film Chris Weitz Won
Young Artist Award Best Family Feature Film (Fantasy or Musical) Nominated
Best Performance in a Feature Film -
Leading Young Actress		 Dakota Blue Richards Nominated

Music
The Golden Compass
Soundtrack album by
Alexandre Desplat
ReleasedJanuary 22, 2008
Recorded2007
GenreSoundtrack
Length73:49
LabelWaterTower Music
ProducerAlexandre Desplat
Alexandre Desplat soundtracks chronology
Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium
(2007)		 The Golden Compass
(2008)		 Afterwards
(2008)
Singles from The Golden Compass
  1. "Lyra"
    Released: 2007

French composer Alexandre Desplat composed the film's music. British singer Kate Bush wrote and performed the song "Lyra" which is played over the end credits.[77] The film's soundtrack album was released on January 22, 2008, by WaterTower Music.

Track listing
All music is composed by Alexandre Desplat (except "Lyra", written and performed by Kate Bush).
No.TitleLength
1."The Golden Compass"2:20
2."Sky Ferry"2:42
3."Letters from Bolvangar"2:32
4."Lyra, Roger and Billy"1:28
5."Mrs Coulter"5:19
6."Lyra Escapes"3:43
7."The Magisterium"1:58
8."Dust"1:09
9."Serafina Pekkala"1:49
10."Lee Scoresby's Airship Adventure"1:18
11."Iorek Byrnison"5:27
12."Lord Faa, King of the Gyptians"2:18
13."The Golden Monkey"2:03
14."Riding Iorek"4:39
15."Samoyed Attack"1:21
16."Lord Asriel"2:08
17."Ragnar Sturlusson"6:19
18."Ice Bear Combat"2:16
19."Iorek's Victory"1:27
20."The Ice Bridge"1:32
21."Rescuing the Children"2:19
22."Intercision"2:48
23."Mother"3:34
24."Battle with the Tartars"4:29
25."Epilogue"3:32
26."Lyra" (written and performed by Kate Bush)3:19
Total length:73:49

Video game
Main article: The Golden Compass (video game)

The video game for this film was released in November 2007 in Europe and December 2007 in North America and Australia for the PC, Wii, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS and the Xbox 360. It was developed by Shiny Entertainment and published by Sega.[78]

Players take control of the characters Lyra Belacqua and Iorek Byrnison in Lyra's attempt to save her friend Roger from the General Oblation Board. As this game does not fully take into account the changes made by the final version of the film, a small amount of footage from the film's deleted ending can be viewed near the end of the game, and the order in which Lyra travels to Bolvangar and Svalbard follows the book and not the film.

Future

Cancelled sequels

At the time of The Golden Compass's theatrical release, Chris Weitz pledged to "protect [the] integrity" of the prospective sequels by being "much less compromising" in the book-to-film adaptation process.[25] New Line Cinema commissioned Hossein Amini to write a screenplay based on the second book in the trilogy, The Subtle Knife, potentially for release on May 2010, with the third book of the trilogy, The Amber Spyglass, to follow. However, New Line president Toby Emmerich stressed that production of the second and third films was dependent on the financial success of The Golden Compass.[79] When The Golden Compass did not meet expectations at the United States box office, the likelihood of a sequel was downplayed by New Line. According to studio co-head Michael Lynne, "The jury is still very much out on the movie, and while it's performed very strongly overseas, we'll look at it early 2008 and see where we're going with a sequel."[80]

In February 2008, Weitz told The Daily Yomiuri, a Japanese newspaper, that he still hoped for the sequels' production: "at first it looked like we were down for the count because in the U.S. [the film] underperformed, but then internationally it performed [better] than expectations. So, a lot depends on Japan, frankly… I think if it does well enough here we'll be in good shape for that."[81] Although producer Deborah Forte had, in March 2008, expressed optimism that the sequels would be made,[82] by October 2008, the two planned sequels were officially placed on hold, according to New Line Cinema, because of financial concerns during the global recession.[83][84] Sam Elliott, however, stated, "The Catholic Church ... lambasted them, and I think it scared New Line off."[85]

Television reboot

In 2019, 12 years after the film’s disappointment that caused the two sequels to be scrapped, a television adaptation of His Dark Materials was made. It is produced by Bad Wolf and New Line Production and was shown on both BBC One and HBO. It received much better reception than the film adaptation.

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gollark: Okay, Esobot functionality has been restored as much as I can manage.
gollark: I don't see that as much of an issue.
gollark: This doesn't have the Esobot times database, see.
gollark: !time

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