1.5/4  The Golden Compass
Within 10 minutes ofwatching this movie, I had no idea what was going on whatsoever. And worse, i didn't care at all. So for the next hour and a half i tried to go on visuals and moments, and even they were dull. This is a terribly dire 'f... (read full)

3/4  Fun movie
The movie was overall pretty good. I loved all the animals in it (except for the monkey, it kinda creeped me out). The plot was a little hard to follow, but once you understood it the movie was actually pretty good. You can't wait to see w... (read full)

2/4  The Rusty Compass
The CGI and effects save this movie, without a doubt. The plot is shaky and not very convincing to the point where you sometimes barely know what the hell is going on, combined with a child doing a very, very awful cockney accent; a small ... (read full)

4/4  Why is everyone hating on this movie? It's great!
I don't understand all the negative reviews. I waited over a year to see this since the reviews were bad so it just kept falling off of my list of movies to watch. When I finally did watch it I was startled at how good the story was.

T... (read full)

2.5/4  Wasted chance
I feel kind of bad for this movie because I think it could have been great. At times it feels like it was once a 3 hour movie that was quickly cut down to two hours. Most of the religious allegory has been dropped for fear of controversy... (read full)

3/4  As a Fan of the Books, This is a Good Introduction
It's good enough as an adaptation of the book. Sure, there were quite a handful of choppy moments which made me wonder why they showed certain scenes in the first place but one can't deny the imagination and effort that came with this film... (read full)

2.5/4  The Golden Compass Quick Review
It was much better than some of the reviews I've seen on it. But, it's still not all that great.

3/4  The Golden Compass Quick Review
This is an Oscar winner compared to any of the Narnia Flicks. Hell, I might even call it as good as return of the King given the Kings 5 or 6 continual endings. A great surprise for fantasy lovers. Quite good actually.

1.5/4  The Golden Compass Quick Review
I like the whiskey drinking bear but the rest of this movie is convoluted, hard to follow and overly bizarre…

4/5 Good But Feels A Little Uneven
  by D. Reed (Elkton, MD USA)
Before I start this review, I would like to comment on the "religious" factors of this film. I am a Catholic and loved this! There was nothing atheist about it. The way I viewed the Magisterium was a Communist government. Even if it was a jab at the church, it was probably referencing back to old times when the people of the church did want to control everything (Uber-Christians should really learn their history). And, judging by how some people reacted to these "atheist" tones, they must be working for the Magisterium, trying to say what's best for others when they should just mind their own business and let people decide for themselves.

Now to the movie. Dakota Blue Richards is a very good actress and one of the very few child actors who aren't annoying. She seems undaunted for her first film and I really hope they film the next two installments as I would like to see her improve and hone her talent. Daniel Craig, Eva Green (reuniting from Casino Royale but have no scenes together), Sam Elliot and Nicole Kidman (can't believe I'm saying something good about her) are all excellent in their supporting roles. Though I will admit that Craig floats in and out of the picture like that Prudence character from Across the Universe (though not as much as her, at least Craig's character is important to the plot) and Kidman's revelation that she is Richards' mother seems a little out of left field though Mrs. Coulter could be lying. Christopher Lee has very good billing in the end credits for having one line of dialog in a very small scene. I wish the explanation of dust had gone into a little more detail instead of the Magesterium just talking about it like its a drug or whatever. Action scenes are spectacular, especially the final battle in the north. Music is also very good and, if they ever film the next two, I certainly hope they use the same composer. A fine film that I hope to be the next successful book-to-film translation like Lord of the Rings/Harry Potter/James Bond.

1/5 NOT a family movie
  by J. Cangas (st louis)
I bought this since it was listed in the kids and family section. Its clearly not for young kids.

3/5 I didn't get it
  by G. Jennings (Outside)
I assume there's more to this story, but I'm confused. However, I loved the acting, the voices and the production set. And wat was all the controversy about?

5/5 Golden Compass--truly golden
  by Arthur Ide (Iowa)
The Golden Compass is a must see. Talented acting, extraordinary special effects, superior direction, and a story-line that is startling, poignant, and exceptional, makes this a movie that anyone can watch repeatedly, and from each viewing learn more. It is fiction, but by reading between the lines of the plot one can find a very real account of modern day absurdities, attempts at mind control, distortion of facts in favor of fantasies--even in the sacred halls of academe where a few outsiders attempt to dissuade and adulterate true research. It is difficult to wait for the sequel, but until then we do have the books which are classics that will most likely outsell C. S. Lewis and his novels.

4/5 The other side of the coin!
  by D. Roberts (Battle Creek, Michigan United States)
The film that this movie is most likely / most frequently going to be compared to is The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Full Screen Edition). This makes sense as both have talking animals and take place in a sort of fairy-tale land of imagination. Both involve children who either are British or have British accents.

However, if one watches both closely, the parallels soon come to a quick halt. C.S. Lewis' story is a transparent allegory of Jesus and it tacitly exalts Christianity & Christian virtues. COMPASS, on the other hand, pokes fun at religion in general and has obvious allusions to the Spainish Inquisition & various other nefarious abuses-of-power by religious groups.

This, of course, is huge reason why COMPASS didn't do nearly so well at the box office as NARNIA did. A lot of people may have mistakenly thought that they were going to get a variation on NARNIA and storyling that espouses religious doctrine. Am sure they must have been shocked to find out that this wasn't a Christian-friendly film!

For myself, I found this to be a unique and entertaining story. I've always been a fan of Nicole Kidman, and I applaud her for not being afraid of the Catholic societies who would condemn her for being a part of the film (which, in fact, they did). The incorporation of the legendary Derek Jacoby brings credibility to the cast. Dakota Blue Richards is an outstanding child actress who performed brilliantly in a difficult role.

So, if you're not afraid of being accused of heresy and you're looking for a compelling story, then what you just might need to do is grab a golden compass. It will point you in the right direction!