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| ![The Golden Compass [2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51%2BkTzME3xL._SL500_.jpg)
| Director: Chris Weitz
Actors: Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Dakota Blue Richards, Ben Walker, Freddie Highmore
Studio: Entertainment in Video
Category: DVD
List Price: £19.99
Buy New: £6.98
You Save: £13.01 (65%)
New (17) Used (7) Collectible (1) from £5.10
Rating:  91 reviews
Sales Rank: 57
Format: Pal
Languages: English (Unknown), English (Subtitled), English (Original Language)
Rating: Parental Guidance
Region: 2
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 109 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 5017239195600
ASIN: B0010X8FLM
Theatrical Release Date: 2007
Release Date: April 28, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 6 to 10 days
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 91
 Better than expected October 15, 2008
Mrs. Jan Falconer (Scotlland)
I was expecting something along the lines of a childrens story however this movie exceeded expectations. A cast of excellent adult and children gave convincing performances. The pace and excitement was excellent. I was satisfied with the experience and now wait with bated breath for the next installment.
Gobblers Golden Gobbledegook September 18, 2008
Dominic Swayne (London)
Shape-shifting demons, abducted chidren, a disappearing uncle who is in fact Lyra's father, an evil society woman,'Egyptians', polar bears, beautiful witches and Cossacks bursting into flames when slain...It can't be entirely the film-makers' fault, surely? Pullman's oeuvre seems to have a great following, but that means nothing nowadays when crowds go mad about the most idiotic books. The film is a cauldron of complete confusion, the plot and ideas are utterly preposterous. YET, perversely, the whole surreal spectacle is oddly compelling to watch -- as something dreamt up by an opium-eater or a psychiatric patient. Hence the high rating.
It should have lived up to the hype the story is worth it! August 28, 2008
Jessica (England)
Watching this in the cinema, I was genuinely gripped until the ending, but I find the more I watch it the less I think it's worthy being connected to Pullman's His Dark Materials at all. br / br /I'll start by reviewing this single disc release, but there's not much to say! It is very sparse on extras, just a few sneak peaks, no documentaries, no commentary. I would recommend people who like the film get the two disc version. br / br /For the film itself I'm left feeling let down, it wasn't treated as I would of liked; the characters although acted rather well and nicely cast are not written appropriately, the majority are nothing like what is created in the books, Lord Asriel at one point, beseeches "can we not discuss this like gentlemen!" which is completely out of character and Iorek is portrayed as tired downtrodden and older than he should be. Lyra herself is very well cast and acted well by Dakota Blue Richards her and Eva Green as Serefina Pekkela are the only two I felt played their parts convincingly. br / br /Pullman handles Lord Asriels war with the authority without shame, I can't say the same here, it's down played and if they do make a second film I can't conceive of the changes they will make to accommodate releasing the film in America when they've made enough pointless changes here. The film is little over 1hour and 40 minuets long, it could have easily been 20 minuets of not half an hour longer and therefore been true the books narrative, which is far superior in both intelligence and depth. So much has been fiddled with, moved around and re-written (without sounding like a moaning fan) that doesn't need to be, why put the scenes at Salvbard before Lyra goes to The Station, why have it be Billy Costa that has his demon removed, why have the drama and gritty action deteriorate into light skirmishes, why completely re-write the entire second half and ruin the poignancy of the ending. br / br /My main problem was with the ending, as the ending of the book encapsulates perfectly the feeling of youthful distrust and injustice that Lyra feels towards the adults of her world and a major recurring theme of innocence sacrificed for knowledge. But the sickly and irrelevant Hollywood ending obliterates any possibility of retaining the books depth, I was left feeling confused and pulling a grimace at the idiotic end song "Lyra whose face is full of grace". I understand the reasons for ending the film this way, it was done because it was unclear at the time whether the second book would be made into a film and they didn't want to end with a cliff-hanger, which is fair enough but it only re-enforces the crux of my problem with the film: its creation, which was led by a studio and therefore it will never have the power of the Lord of the Rings as it wasn't filmed with passion for the books and a love for the stories and characters but to further a franchise. All in all this was disappointing, I feel similarly about the Narnia films, there is a lack of genuinely expressed love for the narratives that weaken film releases. br / br /But I can't completely write this off, even ignoring the books this still isn't a brilliant film but it's good enough to entertain and it got so many people reading the books, I worked in the book shop at the time of its release and it was astonishing how many people came in looking for The Golden Compass (using the American name did have me grumbling though!). br /
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