|
Flowers
Chocolates & Gifts
Vases & Plants
|
|
|
|
| 
 enlarge | Category: Movie
This item is no longer available
Avg. Customer Rating:  255 reviews
Sales Rank: 4699
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: Video On Demand
Running Time: 114
ASIN: B001AG52AG
Theatrical Release Date: December 7, 2007
Release Date: December 1, 2008
|
| Customer Reviews:
Jaw droppingly average December 9, 2007
2 out of 9 found this review helpful
.....I have not read the books so I am not sure as to how well the transition went. However as a movie the jist I got was that its about an orphan girl in an alternate universe, wear peoples souls are on display outside their bodies in the form of an animal they call a daemon. The State is controlled by The Authority that is apparently a semi religious order, children are disappearing, no one is to talk of "dust", there is a race of warrior polar bears who talk, gyptians which are a cross between gypsies/pirates and witches. The girl has been raised at a college where her uncle does research and when he goes away to the north for futher research into the dust the girl is kidnapped, he is hunted and the chase is on from there.
.....I gotta admit that this is a a rollercoaster ride of a film and it looks technologically nifty but there are some rough patches in the editing when someone is taken and then others are hot on her heels to save her but you don't know how they figured out where to go. In addition a large world is built for you but you never see the real people and therefore are not sure how they would really react to the Authorities grand plan considering it would be orchestrated on their children in the end and would steal from them something that every parent has spent their entire lives tied to. It just feels like a few pieces of the puzzle are missing and unintentionally so. While rarely a proponent for longer films it really dis seem like the Studio cut 10-15 minutes of transitional scenes, explanation and character development. If not the studios then the director, who has no prior experience on big budget, speciall effects films, simply wasn't up to the task.
.....Still it is a fun film though pretty violent and scary for little kids. When the bear appears to get his jaw knocked off I was pretty surprised. Kid torture, animial torture, etc. don't take the under 10 crowd unless they have been desensitized.
.....As to the whole anti religion thing, I see hints of it in the film but then again I am looking for it and am fairly well read but otherwise it seems harmless enough that organized religion should give it a rest.
 Fans of the book....Watch out! December 9, 2007
15 out of 32 found this review helpful
The casting for this movie was fantastic; the acting was great, and everyone did a really good job. The special effects were even good...But if you're a huge fan of the book (like me) then I'm afraid you'll find this movie to be a disappointment...I was so sad after watching it; I had waited forever for it to come out, and then it hardly follows the plotline for the book at all. The ending was cliche as anything (kids all running out of Bolvanger while the facility blows up...what?!?!?!), and it wasn't supposed to end where it did. The movie rushed into everything and left out so much that was in the book.
I would have expected a lot better of New Line, especially with their good adaptation of The Lord of the Rings.
Pretty to look at, but not very exciting. December 9, 2007
14 out of 19 found this review helpful
I have never read any of the books, so I entered the film with very little in the way of an expectation of what the plot would be. Obviously I had seen the movie trailers, so I knew this was probably something in the NARNIA, ERAGON, perhaps even LORD OF THE RINGS vein.
First of all, it is absolutely ridiculous to suggest that this movie is in same category as LOTR. Those films dared to take their time to tell a story, stretching to epic length. They developed characters we truly cared about. And much of the films actually took place in real landscapes. Think of all the breathtaking New Zealand locations that were used.
GOLDEN COMPASS is almost totally located in a CGI world. Not for one second does it feel solid or tangible. It's all very pretty to look at, but honestly it just feels a bit cold. NARNIA was the same way...it needed some sets that were REAL.
In addition, COMPASS zooms through its story, taking virtually no time to establish characters beyond simple archetypes. For instance, think of the character Sam Elliott plays. He's an "aeronaut," basically a pilot for hire (except he flies a motorized hot-air balloon concoction). Basically, his character is that same guy that Sam Elliott always plays...twinkly eyes, big mustache, grizzled look. That's it. We like him, because we always like Sam Elliott.
Anyway, I haven't touched on the plot, which is what has gotten so many people in an uproar, apparently. The story takes place in a "parallel" world, where people's souls live on the outside of them, are called "daemons" and take the shape of an animal of some sort. This is a neat idea...and allows for some of the more fanciful special effects, as we get to see each animal that is attached to a person. (For children, their "daemons" aren't settled yet, so the animal form will change.) In this world, things seem to be run primarily by The Magesterium...a powerful group of what seems like semi-fascist folks who are against "free will."
It's my understanding that in the books, this Magesterium is clearly a reference to the catholic church. That may be, but in the movie, it feels like a generic "big brother" type of organization. Their goal seems to be to figure out how to separate children from their "daemons" so that they are left "soulless" or at least without the gumption to resist the Magesterium. There seems to be any little real logic to any of this...we just have to accept it.
The young girl Lyra is entrusted with The Golden Compass, a device that "sees what is hidden." Naturally, the Magesterium are eager to get this from her, and to thwart her, they send Nicolle Kidman as a charismatic, glamorous woman of means to entice the girl to serve as her assistant. Lyra learns fairly soon not to trust this woman, and suddenly she sets out on a quest to free the children who've been kidnapped so that their souls can be stolen.
I'm guessing my plot summary is a bit confusing...and frankly, trying to sort all the tangents, politics, allegiances, etc. is tricky, and ultimately not very interesting. Mostly you just end up watching the movie in order to see all the spectacular scenes. Are there are some. The Ice Bears are impressive creations, and the big duel between a couple of them is a highpoint. Daniel Craig, as Lyra's uncle, has a brief but exciting chase scene out on the frozen tundra.
So the special effects ARE pretty special, for the most part. (Although I say again, I missed the tangibility of REAL landscapes.) But the script is trying to pack in too much in short span of time. The actors are more or less lost in the shuffle. Kidman looks the part, and she's always been good at playing cold, insincere parts. Craig has nothing to do, but his eyes look great. The young lady who plays Lyra is pretty game and well cast. But no one is going to win an Oscar for this film. Costumes and makeup do most of the acting.
Even though the film runs just under two hours, I frankly found myself bored at times. Ironically, I think that if the movie had been longer and taken the time to make us care about the character and to delineate what was at stake a bit better, I would have been more engaged. As it was, it was mostly a piece of eye candy.
DANIEL CRAIG MIA! December 9, 2007
0 out of 6 found this review helpful
The movie is fun, great to look at, and should receive recognition for the special effects, art direction and photography. The New York Times aptly described Nicole Kidman as the movie's best special effect - her cold, glacial beauty is perfect for this role. The biggest disappointment is the brevity of Daniel Craig's role. When photographed at the premiere, he looked strangely subdued and serious, and in an interview, in his usual tactful manner, mentioned that other scenes were filmed, but not used in the final cut. He reportedly has great admiration for the book, and most assuredly expected more from his role in the movie. What a waste of his fine talent, although, as always, he lights up the screen in the moments when he is allowed to appear.
 "The Golden Compass" is great! December 9, 2007
3 out of 15 found this review helpful
"The Golden Compass" is great! This is how the story goes: Based on author Philip Pullman's bestselling novel, The Golden Compass tells the first story in the "His Dark Materials" trilogy, set in an alternative world where people's souls manifest themselves as animals, talking bears fight wars, and one young girl is at the center of a dimension-crossing odyssey. Lyra is a 12-year-old girl who starts out trying to rescue a friend who's been kidnapped by a mysterious organization known as the Gobblers, but winds up on an epic quest to save not only her world, but ours as well. The cast led by Nicole Kidman (as Mrs. Coulter) and Daniel Craig (as Lord Asriel) is excellent! The directing by Chris Weitz (who also directed with his brother, Paul, the movies "About A Boy" (2002), he also co-wrote the screenplay with his brother, & "Down To Earth" (2001) is excellent! The screenplay by Weitz (who also wrote with his brother, the screenplays to "Antz" (1998), and "Nutty Professor II: The Klumps" (2000), which is based on Pullman's novel of the same title, is excellent! The music by Alexandre Desplat (who also did the music to "Lust, Caution" (2007) & "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium" (2007) is excellent! The cinematography by Henry Braham (who also did the cinematography to "Nanny McPhee" (2006) is excellent! The film editing by Anne V. Coates (who also did the film editing to "Taking Lives" (2004), Peter Honess (who also did the film editing to "Poseidon" (2006), "Troy" (2004), "Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets" (2002), "The Fast And The Furious" (2001), & "L.A. Confidential" (1997) for which he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Film Editing, Kevin Tent (who also did the film editing to "RV" (2006) is great! The casting by Lucy Bevan & Fiona Weir (who also did the casting to the upcoming "Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince" (2008), she also did the casting to "Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix" (2007), "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" (2005), & "Master And Commander: The Far Side Of The World" (2003) is excellent! The production design by Dennis Gassner (who also did the production design to the upcoming "Bond 22" (2008), he also did the production design to "Jarhead" (2005), "The Ladykillers" (2004), "Big Fish" (2003), "Road To Perdition" (2002), for which he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Art Direction - Set Design, "The Man Who Wasn't There" (2001), "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" (2000), "The Truman Show" (1998), "Waterworld" (1995), "The Hudsucker Proxy" (1994), "Bugsy" (1991), for which he won an Oscar for Best Art Direction - Set Design, "Barton Fink" (1991), for which he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Art Direction - Set Design, "The Grifters" (1990), "Miller's Crossing" (1990), "Field Of Dreams" (1989), & "The Hitcher" (1986) is excellent! The art direction by Richard L. Johnson (who also did the art direction to the upcoming "State Of Play" (2008), & "Tropic Thunder" (2008), he also did the art direction to "World Trade Center" (2006), "Big Fish", "Road To Perdition", "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence" (2001), "O Brother, Where Art Thou?", "Cookie's Fortune" (1999), "The Truman Show", "G.I. Jane" (1997), & "Born On The Fourth Of July" (1989), Chris Lowe (who also did the art direction to the upcoming "Bond 22", (supervising art director), & "The Constant Gardener" (2005), (senior art director), Andy Nicholson (who also did the art direction to the upcoming "The Wolf Man" (2009), (supervising art director), he also did the art direction to "The Bourne Ultimatum" (2007), "Charlie And The Chocolate Factory" (2005), "Dominion: Prequel To The Exorcist" (2005), "Troy", & "Sleepy Hollow" (1999) is excellent! The set decoration by Anna Pinnock (who also did the set decoration to the upcoming "Bond 22", she also did the set decoration to "The Holiday" (2006), "Sahara" (2005), "Troy" (2004), "Van Helsing" (2004), & "Gosford Park" (2001), for which she was nominated for an Oscar for Best Art Direction - Set Decoration) is excellent! The costume design by Ruth Myers (who also did the costume design to the upcoming "City Of Ember" (2008), she also did the costume design to "Monster House" (2006), "Beyond The Sea" (2004), "Deep Impact" (1998), "L.A. Confidential" (1997), "Emma" (1996), & "The Addams Family" (1991), she was nominated for an Oscar for Best Costume Design for both those movies) is excellent! The visual effects are excellent and are worthy of an Oscar nomination, for which it received and won an Oscar. This is an great start to a trilogy that is based on a trilogy of fantasy novels.
|
|
|
| |
