culturelux
golden compass is totally, totally golden
on saturday night, i finally experienced something i’ve been anticipating for a long, long, loooooooong time.
i got to see “the golden compass”!!!!!!
first of all, if you haven’t read the “his dark materials” trilogy by philip pullman, you really should. i mean, really really. i am not kidding around. i first heard about the books in the summer of 2000, when i was ordering YA books for the houston public library system. about two years later (i guess? seth e., do you remember?), i finally bought the first book (“the golden compass,” also known as “northern lights”) and after the first chapter, i was completely sold.
it’s like if the chronicles of narnia had a baby with harry potter and that baby got sent to old school, ivy-covered oxford and developed a darkly rebellious streak.
i.e. it is awesome.
there’s something miraculous and magical about a book that allows you to sit in yr favorite comfy chair and dive into a completely new and incredible world, full of fascinating people and politics and countries and creatures. it’s like believing in santa claus again, except without the disappointing ending and all of the materialism.
since i love the books SO MUCH, i was both excited about the movie and also a little nervous. what if hollywood totally butchered it? what if the little girl who plays lyra is, like, the next hannah montana? what if they totally changed the story into a super happy fairy land and people never understood the social commentary behind pullman’s writing?
WHAT IF IT WAS TERRIBLE?!! i could not handle that.
well, in case you were worried (about the movie… or me), please breathe a big, so-loud-it’s-almost-rude sigh of relief. cos the movie is fantastic. it really is. i ate up every second like it was a cupcake going out of style (yeah, like THAT would ever happen). from the start to the finish, i sat, enthralled and enchanted, on the edge of my seat.
here are some reasons why i adore this film.
the biggest reason (besides the fact that it’s based on a book i love) is the casting. honestly, i cannot think of a way they could have POSSIBLY cast ANYONE better in any of the roles. ok, well, they could have created a bit part for christian bale, maybe as a shirtless gyptian, but besides that, it was PERFECT.
since the movie centers on a young girl, lyra, as the major heroine, it was imperative that they find someone who could act without overacting, who could be strong and brave without being a brat. dakota blue richards is just that type of little actress:
ok, but what’s up with the dakota names, people? if anyone out there is thinking of naming their future child “dakota,” please call me so i can yell directly into yr ear at top volume. thank you.
anyway, dakota blue was absolutely wonderful and believable and smart and funny. and look at her in that precious dress!!!! that’s the second reason why i loved this movie– the costumes and art direction were absolutely exquisite. nicole kidman’s outfits could feed the entire population of a style-starved country for a full year:
not to mention that her hair was AMAAAAZING. sigh.
nicole was MEANT to play marisa coulter, the deliciously conflicted villain of the film. and i mean that. pullman’s had her in mind for the last ten years, and after she initially rejected the role, pullman wrote her a *personal letter* asking her to reconsider. how awesome is that? he was right, though. she’s gorgeous and seductive and brilliant and sorta kinda evil, and i can never decide if i love her or hate her (unlike another ms. coulter i know).
oh, you want MORE reasons to see this film a billion times? SAM ELLIOT IS IN IT!!!!!!!
oh sam elliot, i heart you. i wish you were my cowboy uncle, so we could sit by the campfire and you could tell me crazy stories in yr thick drawl and maybe we could even share a tin or two of whiskey.
he plays lee scoresby, who is tied with iorek byrnison as my favorite character in the book. iorek happens to be a polar bear:
i swear to god, my eyes welled up with tears the first time lyra even threw an arm around this bear. I LOVE HIM SO MUCH. he is incredibly noble and rough and beneath all of that armor, he has the sweetest, truest heart. every time i hear “i have a contract with the child,” i feel a little shiver down my spine. like even just typing that, i was all oooOOOOhhh! plus ian mckellan does his voice (what did i say about perfect casting?!!!!!).
and of course, we have hottie mchottington, daniel craig:
why helloooo there! i mean, just look at that vest! those shoulders! that jawline! GAH!
i love that the film (like the books) features a victorian flair (is that the right time period? i’m guessing, based on the victorian family paper dolls i had when i was ten), not just in the fashion but also in the vehicles and instruments people use. everything is shiny and made of brass and way more elaborate than it has to be.
anyway, please go see this movie. i KNOW you’ll love it. plus they won’t make the other two movies unless this one does well, and I HAVE TO SEE THE OTHER TWO MOVIES. THEY HAVE TO EXIST.
obvs, i give “the golden compass” four out of four pants, with MULTIPLE PLUS SIGNS!
++++++
LINKS
over the weekend, we had an internet-watching party and discovered that there are more horrifying canadian PSAs from where that kitchen horrorfest came from, like this one (CAUTION. THIS WILL FREAK THE SHIZZ OUT OF YOU):
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Haa4QImf40 325 260]
we also watched this video, which might be old, but really really really made me laugh. especially when i pictured jessica watching it (sorry, jessica!!!!).
Discussion
7 comments for “golden compass is totally, totally golden”
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I bought the book yesterday and will read it before this weekend. I love Daniel Craig- he’s so amazingly beautiful. My romance novels come to life (since they’re usually set in the Victorian era).
You didn’t mention Eva Green. Did you not like her?
apparently, they chopped off the final part of the book’s ending. I can’t wait to see it!
s/e
I will never ever ever see this movie.
Because I just can’t deal with Nicole Kidman anymore. I know most famous film actors can’t act, but I wish she’d TRY. It’s gone, it’s out of bounds now.
I don’t think you saw the same movie I did. They cut too much out and I’m not just talking about the last 3 chapters. If you weren’t familiar with the books, you’d be completely lost. I went with some folks who hadn’t read the books and they weren’t sure what they saw. It moved to fast and it was freaking loud. Very disappointed in it. And you really don’t see that much of Daniel Craig or Nicole Kidman. Kidman’s in it for maybe a total 30 minutes tops.
They cut out the last 3 chapters? Does that include that rather major plot development at the end of the book, without which a second movie in the series makes no sense??
Maybe Nicole is botoxed to the point of self-entombment, but as soon as I saw they’d cast her as Mrs. Coulter, I knew I had to see the movie. She’s perfect for that role.
As for era, I think “steam punk” might be safe. Or like whatever the era was in “Sleepy Hollow” (the Johnny Depp version).
Plot cuts or not, I’ll be seeing this movie.
they actually ended the movie at an earlier point than the book, and the second movie will supposedly begin with the “cut” ending chapters. i think it actually makes more sense in film form to do this, and i read an interview with philip pullman where he agreed.
obvs you guys will have yr own opinion about it (as some of you already do!), but i thought the cuts were fine. just like harry potter, some stuff just wouldn’t fit in. henri hadn’t read the book and seemed to understand the plot of the movie, so i actually don’t think it’s difficult to understand, even if you’re not familiar with the books.
as for nicole kidman, john, you are really missing out. i know she isn’t always a good fit for certain roles, but she is really, really amazing in this film. coulter begins as an extremely subtle villain, and nicole hits just the right balance.
I got to see it last night and loved it. I haven’t read the books but my husband has and he was bothered by the ending as well as the order of certain scenes. Since I haven’t read the books yet I did have a lot of questions but that didn’t stop me from liking the movie. I also loved Lyra. She is my hero! I think Nicole Kidman did an excellent job in this movie because she scared the bejesus out of me. More Daniel Craig would have been nice but we’ll probably see more of him in the later films. Great movie all around.