Based on the book “Northern Lights” (marketed as “The Golden Compass” in the US) by Philip Pullman, The Golden Compass features a star-studded supporting cast and newcomer Dakota Blue Richards as the crafty main character, Lyra. Pullman’s books are some of my favorites, and the Golden Compass stands out in the His Dark Materials trilogy as the most whimsical and adventure-driven. The movie captures some of this tone while borrowing stylistic elements from popular fantasy movies that came before it. The story should be enough to elevate Golden Compass beyond its stunning graphics, but becomes somewhat lost in the spectacle. Golden Compass fails to make a distinguishing mark on the ever-growing list of CGI-driven fantasy for children.

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Directed by: Chris Weitz

Starring: Dakota Blue Richards, Daniel Craig, Nicole Kidman, Freddie Highmore

Written by: Chris Weitz, from the book “Northern Lights” by Philip Pullman

The movie takes place in an alternate world where peoples’ souls reside outside of their bodies in animal forms called daemons. Lyra is an orphan sent to live with her uncle Asriel (Daniel Craig). Asriel works closely with a society of scholars, and the college sees to Lyra’s care and education. Asriel uncovers the mystery of Dust - a substance that has some unknown connection to a person’s soul. Against the efforts of the Magisterium - a faceless theocratic government - Asriel travels north to learn more about Dust. He leaves without Lyra, but she still gets to travel north. An unknown woman with influence - Ms. Coulter (Nicole Kidman) - convinces the college to release Lyra into her care for a journey into the north. Before Lyra leaves, the president of the college gives her an alethiometer, a one-of-a-kind artifact that can tell the truth of any question asked. These story elements are all initially disconnected, but start entangling very quickly as Lyra becomes an important figure in a power struggle between the scholars and the government in the search for answers about Dust.

As a trilogy of books, His Dark Materials is highly symbolic and anti-religion. The Golden Compass should not pose a problem for parents who are concerned about the portrayal of religion - this movie (and the first book, for that matter) don’t get very deep into anti-establishment attitudes. The mystery of Dust is hyped, but explained only briefly by Ms. Coulter as evidence of human defiance of The Authroity. The Magisterium is vilified, but it’s not entirely clear in the movie that it’s a metaphor for the Church. It will be interesting to see how these attitudes will develop through the next two movies, when the conflicts are laid clear and heavenly entities enter the fray.

The main problem with The Golden Compass lies in execution. We’ve all seen the CGI-fantasy movies, and it takes more than fantastical creatures to make a memorable movie now. The style of The Golden Compass is very familiar, with everything washed in gold and backlights, a violin-heavy score, a giant CGI predator, and a bevy of minor adult characters that lend their names to the posters and their aid to the heroic efforts of children. Narnia, anyone? The Golden Compass being marketed as a RING turning into a compass doesn’t help much, as this is not really even the same sort of story or audience as Lord of the Rings.

We like watching most fantasy movies as adults, because they’re typically made to suit a happy medium. The Golden Compass may have been made intentionally for children, as the story is very lightly handled. The story’s editing is nowhere near as smooth and detailed as an adult audience will expect. Each scene is short and action-packed, but little continuity exists between them. Like many movies that were made from much longer books, the creators must have really struggled to keep everything from the book in the movie. There were still some things missing, but the general effect is that too much is going on, and none of it seems to be connected. This works for movies like Harry Potter, where all of the audience has read the book, but I’m not sure The Golden Compass can assume as much.

The experience is entertaining, but often confusing. Pullman’s alternate world is intriguing, there’s never a dull moment, and everyone loves a movie where the protagonist is a cheeky little girl. But The Golden Compass will fail to meet the expectations of many. Fans of the book will be disappointed at the loose treatment of the story. Moviegoers expecting a cohesive plot may have to read the book.