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Last Updated: Mar 18th, 2008 - 18:29:38
The Golden Compass - Review
By Nora Kirkeby
Mar 18, 2008, 18:11 PST
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In the case of The Golden Compass the review of the movie, and the review of the book, have to be linked. There has been a lot of controversy surrounding both, and for those of you who are somehow not aware, several major groups boycotted the movie. The cause? The author is an atheist and there is a perceived anti-Christian bias to both the novel and the movie. The fact that this went as far as it did leads me to the conclusion that very few of the people upset actually read the book, or at least understood it.
For while I can certainly see many people offended by this novel, I would argue that the message is not anti-Christian, but rather anti-Church. It’s a commentary on what can happen when there is an abuse of power at the establishment level. A topic that I think encourages valid introspection of society’s leaders. The difference I think is that within the constructs of their religion, the characters to do not question their faith. The questioning is more of the people who control its teaching.
In any case, the controversy surrounding the author’s feels about the Church have been very clearly played down if not completely edited out of the movie. However, there are still things, in this, as in any fantasy novel, that might offend someone who disapproves of stories involving magic or supernatural forces.
Overall though I would say the movie is perfectly appropriate. It has been edited down severely. Beyond that it’s very entertaining and expertly animated. Never once was I taken out of the story by the computer animation. This movie is as good as The Chronicles of Narnia, and has significantly more emotional depth.
As for the novel, I still think that it’s a valid piece of literature, but my suggestion would be that despite the fact it’s marketed as a children’s novel, it’s really more appropriate for young adults with the maturity to understand the complexity of the author’s message, and handle the emotionally disturbing scenes.
© Copyright 2008 by Classbrain.com
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