His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass

[MrGraham]

His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass (2007)

Don't know if any of you read the three books, but I absolutely loved them and am stoked they're making a movie of it. Kidman as Coulter depresses me, but Sam Eliot as Lee Scoresby is fucking perfect.

If you haven't read the books, I highly recommend them. They're very easy/quick reading but it's very entertaining.

[Thorpe]

http://www.fohguild.org/forums/milli...n-compass.html

[Believe]

Loved the books.

Someone (a Christian) gave me the first book as a gift, and as I continued the triliogy and told them what the story was about, they were appaled. Lol.

[Ayeshala]

EXCLUSIVE TRAILER (Yahoo loves em caps) from Yahoo:

THE GOLDEN COMPASS on Yahoo! Movies

More like a long Teaser, but whatever it's looking good.

[The Noble Savage]

Started reading the books after I saw they were making a movie of the series.

So far I think the books are alright, a bit implausible at times, but the story itself is intriguing.

I think it will translate very well to film, and so far from what I've seen, the casting is exceptional.

[Zanoan]

Still waiting for Hayao Miyazaki to do his version of these.

Anyhow, can't wait for this either.

[elrich]

I am really worried how they are going to portray the storyline, well...

<Since in the story the heirarchy of heaven is horrendously corrupt and indeed the core antagonists of the story, I am really worried about how far/much they are going to change that to avoid seriously pissing a whole bunch of people off. I remain cautiously optimistic though, but I do want them to redo the ending of the last book. It was so horribly forced and quite possibly the epitome of how not to end a story ever.>

[Ronne]

I saw bear cavalry in the trailer, so I'll see it.

[tad10]

Originally Posted by Believe

Loved the books.

Someone (a Christian) gave me the first book as a gift, and as I continued the triliogy and told them what the story was about, they were appaled. Lol.

This is pretty funny. I like how we've got HDM and Narnia as tentpoles for the next few years I think that covers everybody (and yeah I'll be skipping HDM. Didn't like the books not just the atheist theme found them blah compared to Dark is Rising/Narnia and even HP).

[Believe]

Originally Posted by tad10

This is pretty funny. I like how we've got HDM and Narnia as tentpoles for the next few years I think that covers everybody (and yeah I'll be skipping HDM. Didn't like the books not just the atheist theme found them blah compared to Dark is Rising/Narnia and even HP).

I loved the Narnia Chronicles when I was younger, but I found the HDM story much more intriguing overall.

I know Phillip Pullman does not believe in God, but I really don't disagree with his sentiments about religion. I can't say for sure if God exists or not, but I do know that when people get involved with religion they twist and skew things to their own liking. I guess I'd like to believe God exists, but Christianity (as an organized religion) has really pushed me away from the idea.

Here's a quote from Phillip Pullman:

Some of the articles and talks I've written are to do with the subject of religion, which I think is a very interesting one. The religious impulse – which includes the sense of awe and mystery we feel when we look at the universe, the urge to find a meaning and a purpose in our lives, our sense of moral kinship with other human beings – is part of being human, and I value it. I'd be a damn fool not to.

But organised religion is quite another thing. The trouble is that all too often in human history, churches and priesthoods have set themselves up to rule people's lives in the name of some invisible god (and they're all invisible, because they don't exist) – and done terrible damage. In the name of their god, they have burned, hanged, tortured, maimed, robbed, violated, and enslaved millions of their fellow-creatures, and done so with the happy conviction that they were doing the will of God, and they would go to Heaven for it.

That is the religion I hate, and I'm happy to be known as its enemy.

[Believe]

Originally Posted by elrich

I am really worried how they are going to portray the storyline, well...

<Since in the story the heirarchy of heaven is horrendously corrupt and indeed the core antagonists of the story, I am really worried about how far/much they are going to change that to avoid seriously pissing a whole bunch of people off. I remain cautiously optimistic though, but I do want them to redo the ending of the last book. It was so horribly forced and quite possibly the epitome of how not to end a story ever.>

[I assume they'll just not call it Christianity, the whole story really revolves around the 'fictional' Christianity - so they really can't gut it out completely. It will still be there, just much more subtle.]

[Castigator]

Originally Posted by Believe

[I assume they'll just not call it Christianity, the whole story really revolves around the 'fictional' Christianity - so they really can't gut it out completely. It will still be there, just much more subtle.]

WTF? Just leave it as it is... voluntary, preemptive censorship has ever been and always will be the way tyranny got started the world over.

[tad10]

Originally Posted by Believe

I loved the Narnia Chronicles when I was younger, but I found the HDM story much more intriguing overall.

I know Phillip Pullman does not believe in God, but I really don't disagree with his sentiments about religion.

The athiest/religion discussion is that way -->

There are already two threads on this subject in this forum already, doesn't need a third.

I was merely posting that I didn't like the books -- one reason of course being that Pullman's attitude toward my religion is evident in the books. I read the first one, most of the second one and skimmed the third. I also didn't find the plots all that interesting as compared to the later Narnia books (Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, Horse & His Boy, Magician's Nephew), the early Harry Potter books (for fuck's sake -- I wish bloomsbury had balls and edited JKR's books they've been obscenely long since Goblet) or the Dark is Rising series.

Anyway, not going to chode up this thread anymore. I only posted the first time because I had the books recommended to me as the greates thing since sliced bread and I was underwhelmed when I read them. So wanted to present at least one dissenting opinion.

[elrich]

It's hard to properly appreciate a story when its core is so antithetical to a closely held personal belief. People, no matter how much we try to avoid it, are simply too apt to bias. And beyond that, if you disagree with the core of the story on such a base level, it will not be able to 'move' you emotionally in the ways it intends to. So, its understandable that since your religious beliefs are polar to those of Pullman's (which obviously formed the core of his story) that you would prefer, say, a story more analogous to your own views like Narnia.

That said, HDM had some flaws in the story. He started too many side plots that he didn't properly come back to or resolve. This was somewhat the case in the second book, and much more the case into the third. It's my hope that the inevitable clean up that the movies will do will take care of a lot of that.

Also, as I said before, and I will give anyone who is planning on reading this series this piece of advice: Do not read the last 50 pages of that last book. The ending was *atrocious*.

[tad10]

Originally Posted by elrich

It's hard to properly appreciate a story when its core is so antithetical to a closely held personal belief. People, no matter how much we try to avoid it, are simply too apt to bias.

Absolutely agree.