THE GOLDEN COMPASS -- The Movie

[Vampyre]

Well it is their space and the forum was crawling along at a snail's pace so it was a justifiable removal.

They do the samething with their 'featured authors' forums. The guest authors are given a forum for a month. It usually stays up 2 and is then recycled for the next one.

[dianaprince]

The author forums are replaced once a month??? I'm going to hope that an actually INTERESTING author is featured next month... like JKR(She-Who-Must-Not-be-Named) or DWJ (Diana Wynne Jones) or Libba Bray(her latest book comes out Dec. 26) or Linda Buckley-Archer (her new book comes out Dec. 26 also) or P.B. Kerr (his new book comes out Jan. 1)... the list goes on and on and on...

Message Edited by dianaprince on 11-23-2007 05:09 PM

[Vampyre]

They just did four excellent authors this month. Kim Harrison, Vicki Pettersson, Lynsay Sands and Marjorie M. Liu, and their Holidays Are Hell anthology.

Message Edited by Vampyre on 11-24-2007 02:49 PM

[Jessica]

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Nadine wrote: I hope they keep this forum open for awhile longer. There may be a renewed interest in the books once the movie is out. And I haven't really started talking about the Amber Spyglass yet or even finished with my comments on the Subtle Knife, especially the end.

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Hi everyone,

Just to clarify, for as long as there is conversation here, this board will be available.

And nope, we don't delete boards. Once a board has been dead for a while though (i.e. receiving no posts for weeks on end), we'll simply move it into Recent Discussions.

I don't know about everyone else, but I can't wait to see the movie! And did anyone else go to goldencompassmovie.com and find out what their daemon is? (Mine is a Chimpanzee.)

[dianaprince]

YES!!!!!!!!! Thank you, Jessica!!! I had almost lost hope!!!!! Now all I have to do to save my favorite boards from destruction is to keep posting on them!!! (not that I will post pointlessly just to save a board )

[ConnieAnnKirk]

Hi, Diana--I'm not sure, but you can certainly IM an editor or administrator and ask about that. My sense was that if the boards go inactive, they are not highlighted on the main page, but that they are still available under "Recent Discussions," or something like that. Ask an ed. or admin. if you have further questions about it, though.

~ConnieK

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dianaprince wrote:
WHAT?!?! You mean that Barnes and Noble... DELETES BOARDS?!?! EEK!!! I can't deal with losing a board!!! NO!!! Please, please, PLEASE tell me that I'm wrong!!!

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[ConnieAnnKirk]

Oh, I see now that Jess has answered in this thread, and I was right about lesser active boards going to "Recent Discussions." Thanks, Jess!

~ConnieK

[tigerlilly]

I found out my daemon is a crow

[dianaprince]

A crow??? That is very unusual. It probably means that you are an Edgar Allan Poe fan or very unlucky... oops, I think that's a raven... kidding.
That daemon is actually very cool. The best I could get was a ladybug or a baboon, niether of which I really liked.
By the way, I thought that I would mention the Golden Compass items which I found at a Barnes and Noble bookstore:
http://gifts.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.asp?WRD=the+golden+compass&z=y&TYP=T

Message Edited by dianaprince on 11-30-2007 08:18 PM

[BarbaraN]

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dianaprince wrote:
A crow??? That is very unusual. It probably means that you are an Edgar Allan Poe fan or very unlucky... oops, I think that's a raven... kidding.
That daemon is actually very cool. The best I could get was a ladybug or a baboon, niether of which I really liked.
By the way, I thought that I would mention the Golden Compass items which I found at a Barnes and Noble bookstore:
http://gifts.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.asp?WRD=the+golden+compass&z=y&TYP=T

Message Edited by dianaprince on 11-30-2007 08:18 PM

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I kind of like that Alethiometer game--for the Alethiometer.

[dianaprince]

Vampyre: You may have already found this, but...
http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com/bn/board?board.id=StephenKing

[ConnieAnnKirk]

American readers--Did anyone see any of the advance screenings of the film this weekend? Apparently, there were a few scattered about the U.S. in advance of the wide release on the 7th.

British readers--Has anyone seen the film yet? Please post when/if you do!

~ConnieK

[luciadelabyss]

I saw an advance preview of the movie tonight!!! I will try not to tell too much, unless someone asks an exact question. One question I saw listed was the worry that they would look too much like Coca Cola bears. Rest your worries! The bears are very large, and they have VERY long and sharp fangs! the CGI is wonderful; you can see the muscles move under the skin when IB runs, and during the challenge fight. The roaring of the bears echoes in the auditorium! IMHO, the voice for IB is perfect. As for the editing of the story, it is fairly good. I didn't feel that any really important parts were left out. It is streamlined; things happen a little faster but the continuity isn't damaged. Good casting for Mrs Coulter, Lord Azrael, and Lee Scoresby! Nicole Kidman is one of my favorites, so I guess I might be biased there. I didn't like Daniel Craig as Bond, but here he seems to fit into the part better. Sam Elliot ...I have a button with Sam Elliot on it! I love his voice. Kathy Bates is the voice of Hester, his bunny daemon! I didn't catch the name of the man who plays Lord Faa, but he fits the part nicely also. I can't describe the coolness of the daemons...you just have to see it for yourself! This movie also did something that made some people mad at Fellowship of the Ring; it ends before the the actual end of the book. However, the ending makes sense...it is a pause in a natural place. There are always little things that bug people in an adaptation, but I would rather see what others thought before I got too detailed.

[BarbaraN]

I haven't seen the movie yet but the reviews I have seen look good. However, one thing that has been mentioned often by reviewers is that they avoided the religious issue. I don't happen to think it is that much of an issue in the Golden Compass but I would have to see the movie or read more about it comment on it. Some of the speculation seems to be the controversy with the Catholic Church and their attitude toward the books.

I was wondering about other people's opinions. Should a movie like The Golden Compass back away from offending the leaders of a religious group and actually has it?

A review of the movie:

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Movies/12/06/review.compass/

A short video on the religious aspects of the movie:
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Movies/12/06/review.compass/#cnnSTCVideo

[Sweetfightgirl]

I'm in the middle of the book and hated to go before I read it but also did not want to see it with a bunch of kids...I saw a preview last week and it was very well done. Obviously they can not include everything from the book but it was creative, different than the rest of the crap and copycats out there and an enjoyable experience.

As far as the bears, they were good in the fight scenes - non-coke bears and without armor they do appear as such. I hate the fact they clearly call the Daemons - Demons...umm, can we say they are automatically setting up the critics for bashing. They also kept the name of Magisterium. Nicole Kidman was perfect in her role though the order of Lyra finding out about her parents screwed it up a bit for me. Nicole's Daemon was perfect and nasty. Lyra has small breasts in the movie as a budding girl does and I think it sets her up for the love thing at the end of the other book.

I did miss some of the materials form the book, the details we all love our books for but overall I thought it was well done and I look forward to the next movie...oh, and apparently they stop the movie at a different place than the book. i also got the game, i am home on disability for my third year now and am exploring various ways to keep myself busy...writing classes, adult or mystery solving games for the Nintendo DS and of course reading since my grandmother was a librarian for 70 years...I love the smell of books even as they age they seem to keep their own scents so I absolutely buy as many as I can on my limited budget. I suffer from a number of rare diseases which started at 29 and I will 34 on Tuesday so I am always looking for things to do. Luckily B&N is only a half mile down the road!

Do go see the movie though, I don't think you will hate it and it does the book justice so far as I have read (about half or more through). It is nice to get something different in our theaters when there are so many killing and similar movies out at the same times. I didn't like the Harry Potter movies since I wanted them to be animated in part...which is why I like this one so much, part real and part animated made the fantasy feel more real to me. Ok, I am done babbling now!

[BarbaraN]

Most of the reviews I have been reading remark about how watered down the movie is as far as its deeper controversial issues. They apparently even cut the ending. So it looks like the movie might be best for light entertainment but if you really want to know about the story and delve into its deeper political and philosophical issues you are going to have to read the book. Too bad, many movies, even children's movies, have not tried to hid their controversial aspects or message, especially if they had a pro-religious message. By the time they get to The Amber Spyglass there will not be anything very recognizable they will be able to put on the screen. It will probably be a film about life among the mulefa and huge special effects battle with an undefined powerful enemy bent on destroying the world!

[dianaprince]

I went to The Golden Compass yesterday with a few people and the movie was so fascinating that even my friend who sleeps through most movies stayed awake through the entire film.
The movie version only made a few minor changes to the storyline, most of which were for the benefit of younger audiences (for example, two characters who originally died were spared and the bloodshed was altered into an artful explosion of Dust). All of the religious themes were kept in the plotline, including the true meaning of Dust (free will)(actually, it is fairly hard to tell what Dust is from the small hints given by the producers/directors/whatever). The visual effects are amazing and overall, the story was easier to understand than the book itself.

Message Edited by dianaprince on 12-08-2007 11:31 AM

[BarbaraN]

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dianaprince wrote:
I went to The Golden Compass yesterday with a few people and the movie was so fascinating that even my friend who sleeps through most movies stayed awake through the entire film.
The movie version only made a few minor changes to the storyline, most of which were for the benefit of younger audiences (for example, two characters who originally died were spared and the bloodshed was altered into an artful explosion of Dust). All of the religious themes were kept in the plotline, including the true meaning of Dust (free will)(actually, it is fairly hard to tell what Dust is from the small hints given by the producers/directors/whatever). The visual effects are amazing and overall, the story was easier to understand than the book itself.

Message Edited by dianaprince on 12-08-2007 11:31 AM

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That is good to hear especially the fact that they kept true to the story. The Golden Compass actually doesn't get into religious themes that much and we really have no idea what dust is at this point in the series. It is so easy to forget after you have read the series that Pullman builds his story and ideas fairly gradually. It maybe that the press is thinking of the series as a whole and expected something different from the first movie. After all the press would prefer a good controversial discussion over an children's adventure story, which is really what The Golden Compass is. The Catholic advocates are sending out pamphlets to ban the movie and press is making a big deal out of the religious controversy and no one is actually reading the book.

They did the same thing with Harry Potter. People who never read the books were calling for a ban on them because their minister told them it was bad, and he hadn't read any of the books either but was just passing along what he had heard, etc. Back to probably some single person who somewhere found some reference that struck them as threaten!

Yours might be the first level headed review of the movie and book that I've seen. Well, one bright thing--usually controversy like this sells books and theater tickets. Which means we might get a second movie in the series.

[BarbaraN]

--SPOILERS ON LAST BOOK---

My gosh, this morning's headlines are sure making a fuss about the movie-books! About how the movie is intended to lure kids to the books and the children in the books kill "god". I'm not quite sure if we all read the same book. In the book I read the children only free the pseudo-god from his glass prison. He gratefully dissipates on his own. They show nothing but sympathy and kindness towards him. The villain in the book I read is Metatron who is killed by Mrs. Coulter and Lord Asriel.

This article seems to explain the fuss:

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/movies/2007/12/when-ideas-are-golden.html

These books opens up possible discussions of people being controlled by religious leaders with their own political agenda. I guess that is the "threat" that is seen here.

[BarbaraN]

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BarbaraN wrote:
--SPOILERS ON LAST BOOK---

My gosh, this morning's headlines are sure making a fuss about the movie-books! About how the movie is intended to lure kids to the books and the children in the books kill "god". I'm not quite sure if we all read the same book. In the book I read the children only free the pseudo-god from his glass prison. He gratefully dissipates on his own. They show nothing but sympathy and kindness towards him. The villain in the book I read is Metatron who is killed by Mrs. Coulter and Lord Asriel.

This article seems to explain the fuss:

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/movies/2007/12/when-ideas-are-golden.html

These books opens up possible discussions of people being controlled by religious leaders with their own political agenda. I guess that is the "threat" that is seen here.

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I thought it might be revealling to quote what really happened in the book. Anyone interested can go to the bottom of this page and read the facts:

http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com/bn/board/message?board.id=pphdm&thread.id=245&view=by_date_ascen...