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'Golden Compass' movie review |
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Written by Roger Moore, MCT
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Tuesday, 04 December 2007 |
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THE GOLDEN COMPASS
4 stars (out of 5)
Cast: Dakota Blue Richards, Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Derek Jacobi, Eva Green, Sam Elliott
Director: Chris Weitz
Running time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Industry rating: PG-13 for sequences of fantasy violence
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"Free will" and "reason" go to war with "dogma" and "blind obedience" in "The Golden Compass," the cryptic and striking new film based on the fantasy novels of Philip Pullman.
It's an entertaining but downbeat flight of fancy set in a recognizable but deliciously strange and alien universe, a rococo world of brass and glass where people walk in step with their own personal "daemons," talking animals that are spirit companions, Jiminy Crickets who serve as guide, guardian angel and conscience.
A sassy, motherless urchin named Lyra (Dakota Blue Richards) has been living under the care of Jordan College, thanks to her outspoken and curious uncle (Daniel Craig). When she overhears plots against the uncle, and then the uncle's plan to get to the bottom of a mystery concerning a connection between alternate universes, Lyra becomes the Girl who Knew Too Much.
Fortunately, there's the lovely and icy schemer Mrs. Coulter (Nicole Kidman) ready to take Lyra under her wing, fetch her to The North and maybe relieve her of her new toy — a "golden compass."
What's it do?
"It enables you to see what others wish to hide," Lyra is told. "It tells the truth."
Lyra, a clever girl, will need the gadget to figure out Mrs. Coulter and escape the overlord of something called "The Magisterium" (Derek Jacobi). Lyra and her plucky, shape-shifting daemon Pan must journey north to rescue her missing friend, the orphan Roger (Ben Walker). Somebody is kidnapping children, and she means to find out whom, and why.
Good thing for her that she runs into an old cowboy (Sam Elliott, simply perfect). And he has a suggestion for a second helper, a tough guy capable of combat and cold-weather warfare. He has the voice of Sir Ian McKellen.
"I am an armored bear," the polar bear thunders, as only Sir Ian can. "War is the sea I swim in!"
Witch-archers and sea people called "Gyptians" rally to Lyra, as "Tartars" and "Skraelings" (Greenlandish versions of Star Wars "Sand People") try to stop her.
It is, as little Roger complains, "an awful lot to sort out." This first film in a possible series from Pullman's trilogy is loaded with back-story, exotic proper names and fantastical creatures, places and hardware. As textured, tactile fantasies go, this is pretty deep, more complex than "Harry Potter" but not as dense as "The Lord of the Rings."
Of course, the film most easily invites comparisons to "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe." The C.S. Lewis book and the film based on it have some of the same situations and themes _ a sneaky, icy villainess; violence against children; a coming war between darkness and light _ but in the guise of Christian propaganda. "Compass," as any Catholic League member or church chain-emailer can tell you, is "anti-Church," based on the books of a self-described atheist.
Are these boycotters right? The forces of reason _ college teachers and outcasts — are questioning "The Authority," and that's not going down well with "The Magisterium," a ruthless oligarchy of cassock-wearing poisoners and child-stealers. The Magisterium fears nothing so much as knowledge and is ready to brand as "heresy" anything that undercuts established dogma. The film never actually labels this power structure the Catholic Church.
But "Golden Compass" is just as symbolically propagandistic as "Narnia," if more subtle, and less laughable. It's simply a better movie. An A-list British cast, including Jacobi, Christopher Lee, Tom Courtenay and many others, gives this a theatrical panache that rivals the all-star cast of the "Harry Potter" movies. And any time you dare to wrestle with ideas such as free will in a teen-friendly fantasy, that's saying something.
"The Golden Compass" is lovely to look at, if a bit demanding to follow. To his credit, director Chris Weitz ("About a Boy") doesn't over-explain the plot, the history or the stakes.
But being less "laughable" also means it's a rather humorless affair. There's spectacle and visual whimsy aplenty in this world of 19th century buildings and magical gadgetry. It's a pity the whimsy doesn't extend to characters or dialogue. Like Kidman's Mrs. Coulter, there's nothing warm, fuzzy and embraceable about it.
If you're going to riff on villains who want to dictate adherence to their "true faith," to play around with cuddly critters (and not-so-cuddly ones for the villains) as our alter egos, it stands to reason you'd try to have more fun doing it. Maybe they'll find a lighter, warmer touch in the second film in the trilogy, if there is one. | Only registered users can write comments.
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