Briar Rose Fantasy

I saw Golden Compass this weekend.  To start the cinematography was amazing.  It was a visually stunning film.  However, if I hadn’t read the book, I would be lost as to what was going on.  I know that in order to adapt a book into a film, the screenwriter needs to make decisions as to what to cut to fit in the time alloted.  I get that.  However, when huge chunks of the plot are cut out, some kind of transition is really needed.  My husband, who has not read the book, felt the missing elements more so.  I found myself feeding him information to fill in the gaps.  However, the plot gaps are almost forgivable compared to the final incision made in the film.  The film ends just short of the book.  For those who have read The Golden Compass, they know how dramatic the ending in the book was.  The movie does a disservice to the book in cutting out the last chapter.  I will not spoil it here for those who have not either read the book or seen the movie.

On the plus side, Lyra is not an annoying character in either the book or the movie, something generally difficult to accomplish when dealing with children protagonists.  Secondly, the book was certainly more dramatic and much darker than the movie.  I felt after reading the book that this series should not have been marketed to children.  It is much darker than even the later Harry Potter books and filled with adult themes.  I would recommend that parents screen the book before allowing their child to read it.  Know your child, if they are mature enough for a book of this nature.  The movie is quite safe.  It downplays all the horrible things that happen to Lyra on her way to the North to rescue Roger and then later her father.

All in all, a pretty film with major plot gaps, an interesting none-annoying child protagonist, and an ending that leaves you hanging.  I have been told but do know with any certainty that the chances of a sequel are pretty slim.  One never knows in Hollywood.  Perhaps later movies will correct the major faux pas at the end of the first installment of The Golden Compass.