| The Golden Compass [Blu-ray] | ![The Golden Compass [Blu-ray]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/615U8yaGAeL._SL160_.jpg)
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| Actors: Nicole Kidman, Dakota Blue Richards, Daniel Craig
Studio: New Line Home Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $39.98
Buy New: $13.99
You Save: $25.99 (65%)
New (34) from $13.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  222 reviews
Sales Rank: 2132
Format: Dolby, Dts Surround Sound, Ntsc, Subtitled, Widescreen
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: Blu-ray
Running Time: 113 minutes
Number Of Items: 2
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: 1000038168
UPC: 794043120442
EAN: 0794043120442
ASIN: B00139XZF4
Theatrical Release Date: December 7, 2007
Release Date: April 29, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand new; still in shrink wrap!!
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| Customer Reviews:
 Great Entertainment!! August 2, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I resisted watching this movie at the cinema and didn't buy the dvd due to the poor reviews it received. I love my science fiction/fantasy and didn't want get that terrible sinking feeling when you know it could have been so much better. When I finally watched the movie on cable I was entranced, the movied is very well made, has great characters and is very well casted and acted.
At this point I should say that I haven't read the book so am viewing the story and movie with fresh eyes. I also don't really care whether the whole thing is a dig at Catholicism. Stand alone, this is a really entertaining fantasy movie and I would recommend it to anyone. In fact I am now going out to buy a copy of the movie to have in my collection.
Not being her biggest fan, I think this is Nicole Kidman's best role in years. She was another reason why I was prepared to dislike the movie, but I think her casting here is perfect. In fact I don't think they've put a foot wrong in any of the casting choices, although unfortunately Daniel Craig doesn't get to do very much.
So, if you aren't looking for a faithful translation of a favourite book but want to watch a well made entertaining movie - get The Golden Compass. Who wouldn't want a Battle Bear on their side!!!
Well, *I* liked it July 30, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I think this is another one of these situations where either you read the book and you hate the movie (because it wasn't exactly like the book) or you didn't read the book and you love the movie (because it was a good movie).
I didn't read the book.
I thought the movie was excellent.
I rented this from Amazon Unbox out of sheer lack of anything better. I was expecting a cheesy kids movie, perhaps not unlike Narnia.
What I got was a good story with fantastic special effects throughout and a whole lot more violence than I had anticipated. I'm honestly surprised that they got away with a PG-13 rating. No gore, but plenty of killings.
All of the standard fantasy genre elements are there (strangely, this is why some people rated it poorly) -- you got your drunken warrior brought out of retirement to bring down a king and generally save the day; you got your evil-witch-type person, your good-witch-type person, your evil government workers, your easily fooled scholars and your mystical device that everyone wants in the hands of a girl.
It's a winning formula and made for an enjoyable movie. I give it 5-stars on the condition that they are making the next installment. I would have to deduct at least 1 star, maybe 2 if they simply let it end with this one, which was clearly the intro to an intended series.
 Okay adaptation of Pullman's fantasy opus July 29, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This was a decent, if cursory, adaptation of "The Golden Compass," the first book in Philip Pullman's controversial "Dark Materials" trilogy. The original print version is both innovative and tendentious -- an absorbing fantasy world built as a means for the author to exercise his strong antipathy towards organized religion. The movie glosses over the anti-religious message, although not quite to the extent I'd imagined. The condensed plotline can be a bit jumpy, but on the whole this is an enjoyable action film, with the social commentary lurking just below the surface -- it's dumbed-down a little, but still basically the same as the book. Worth checking out. (Slipcue Film Reviews)
 AMAZING..... July 29, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
.....Amazing how they managed to completely miss the point of the book. They took all the action from the book, but left out the important information that supports the action. The movie briefly mentions Dust at the beginning...and never goes anywhere with that idea. Never mentions anything about the religious beliefs behind Dust and its connection to children and their Daemons. I personally dont see how they can make the 2nd film....because thats what it most deals with...(atleast as far as I have read into it so far.)
The movie as a movie was well made....as a book to movie adaptation it is horrible. Read the book first, then see the movie! The book is WAY better.
A Combination of Things July 28, 2008
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
I didn't want to be confused by learning what this movie was about by first reading other people's reviews. This movie is a combination of The Wizard of Oz; Narnia, the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; Invaders From Mars, and perhaps bits and pieces of others.
The Magisterium is a group that wants to kidnap kiddies (and presumably everyone and anyone else), so as to make them have unquestioned obedience and become one of THEM. Our heroine Lyra is perhaps the only one who can keep the Magesteriun from conquering the world. She is given a Golden Compass, but she can use it only if she is THE CHOSEN ONE. (Where have we heard that before?)
Speaking of the golden compass itself, it seems the further the movie goes along everybody-- the good guys, the bad guys, and everybody else in between-- loses interest and gets apathetic about the golden compass. Toward the end everybody knows she has the golden compass. A number of the evil adults could've just manhandled our heroine Lyra and grabbed it from her, but they treat it like it is just a mildly amusing topic of conversation-- such as, "Did you ride your bike today?" or, "Did you hug your dolly today?"
There are a bunch of witches flying about, and one of them-- a beautiful woman whose name escapes me-- occasionally lands and talks with Lyra. But nobody seems to know if these witches are from the East or from the West. At one point Dorthy-- er, I mean Lyra-- asks the big ol' bear if they are good witches or bad witches, and even the big ol' bear says he doesn't know.
Then we come to Nicole Kidman. I wish she could've dressed a little more sexy-- like a strapless & backless cocktail dress, with maybe slits up each side, but she dresses more conservatively than I would've liked.
I read reviews in the paper where it was said that Nicole Kidman was largely absent in the movie, but I think she shows up about as much and as often as any of the other adults.
At one point in the movie we get a fight to the finish between two big ol' bears for the right to be called Papa Bear of the North. There is a nice scene or two that leads up to it, such as when our just kidnapped Lyra finds herself presented to the bad ol' bear, and she engages in a verbal duel with it about how she would be more valuable to him alive than dead. It's the sort of thing James Bond would do if he were to suddenly find himself prisoner in front of his arch enemy. Okay, so the two bears have their fight, and the good one wins; and the bear army stands up on its hind legs, lift their heads up, and they all go, "Yaoooooooo...!" And then everybody seems to forget about the bear army.
One thing I really liked about the movie is the fantastic photography, and I don't just mean the special effects. Just the little scenes where people are alone in an office are masterpieces of photography. This movie was one of those rare gems where it was done a little better than it had to be in a number of places. Movies like that are always a pleasant surprise for me.
Except I didn't like the battle scene at the end of the movie, which takes place at midnight in the snow. I think it is unethical for a movie to skimp on the budget by making the battle scenes take place in the middle of the night.
All in all it wasn't such a bad movie, and the movie is a fun movie to write a review about. But, in the sequel we really need Nicole Kidman to dress a little more sexy. It may be out of character and incomprehensible for Nicole to be dressed up as if she's ready for cocktails, or as if she's ready for her next photo shoot, but the movie is already incomprehensible, and some of us bigger boys could use a little something extra to occupy our minds as we sit through The Golden Compass, II.
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