The Golden Compass ~ Lost in Adaptation

The book that enraged christians and the film that disappointed fans. A look at how the 2007 film adaptation of The Golden Compass differed from the novel it's based on by Philip Pullman.
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[@shinyagumon7015]

Not so Fun Fact: This movies cliffhanger comes so infuriatingly out of nowhere that when we watched this in class circa 2006 my teacher through that the DVD was defective and that it was missing the conclusion.

[@doubleflores8350]

“Class circa 2006” that’s odd cause this movie didn’t come out until 2007.

[@shinyagumon7015]

@@doubleflores8350 I'm old, the early 2000s just cluster together for me

[@mad0813]

@@shinyagumon7015 I understand I'm the same. I could have swore I seen this around 2004.

[@Rotten_Prince]

@@mad0813 I thought it was from 2005

[@mary34channel]

This is supposed to be a not so fun fact and yet I burst out laughing

[@johanna7254]

The ending of this film was like that scene in ATLA where Zuko is like, "That can't be it. Where's the rest of it?!" LOL

[@mbncd]

That was my exact reaction to it when Mum and I saw it in the cinema. Everyone usually gets up as soon as the credits start but for that one, most folks just sat there, waiting for another scene or something and someone even went to tell a staff member that there was something wrong with the movie. It wasn't a bad movie but it took me a while to warm up to it and I finally felt like I was actually getting into it when it suddenly just stopped. Not ended, just stopped. It was weird...

[@johanna7254]

@@EuleMiyu yes! HDM is my fave book series actually ☺️ which is why I was so upset at the end of the golden compass film haha

[@johanna7254]

@@EuleMiyu the one on hbo you mean? I’m really enjoying it myself. It’s definitely not perfect, but it’s much better than the film 🙏

[@undeadknight01]

@@EuleMiyu The HBO/BBC series is amazing. I own the first series on Blu-ray and it's definitely better than the film adaptation. The series also introduces the character Will from our world and shows the bad guy Lord Boreal slipping between worlds via a portal.

[@teucer915]

I watched it with three friends when it came out. The two of us who had read the book nodded to each other sagely as it sets up the climax and Lyra mentions the interpretation about bringing Asriel "exactly what he needs", and then suddenly the credits roll and the other two were like "that was pretty good" while we're like "what the fuck the climax is just not there can we have the rest of the movie please"

[@mhussey9841]

I was called into the principal’s office once when I was in middle school (around the time the movie came out) for reading the series. It was a catholic school and the principal was a nun… they kept asking how I felt about the books portrayal of god and I’m 12 in the middle of book 1 like what the hell are you talking about it’s fantasy

[@DizzyBusy]

I went to an Islamic school, and for all the slack Muslims have been getting for their conservatism, no one gave a flying fuck what books the students were reading

[@PittsburghSportsFan43]

I was in a Christian school around the time Harry Potter was coming out and extremely popular. I was reading all the books and watching the movies but I didn't dare admit it to anyone in school.

[@weberman173]

@@PittsburghSportsFan43 i think my favorit "lol" moments about HP and christian was the protest one of the churches recieved they used to film the interior of hogwards for at least some of the movies.... some fundamental christian groups made a whole protest about "how can a proud christian institution like (insert church name here) allow this glorification of witchcraft and paganism to be filmed here".. the church response can basicaly be boiled down to "but we find the books good, they teach good values(like friendship etc) also we get money for this, which we can use to maintain the church building, fuck you" like often time its not the actual church/christianity itself who are nuts about shit, but some fringe groups who are all christians, but arent really associated with the actual church(funnily enough, the Norther light did split the opinion there, some found it to be Negativly aboutorganised church and religion in general, while others, and under those notably a (now)Former ARCHBISHOP of canterbury found that his work should be INCLUDED in religious education courses... like you know shit isf unky when a archbishop says your book isnt problematic and that disagrees with some people)

[@ishubetterthanyou1582]

I didn't know Christianity was this horrible in the west. I went to a Catholic Missionary school in a region in Himalayas called Kashmir. And there was nothing like that. Your schools sound like some nightmare tbh. I feel sorry for children who have to go through such horrific schools and teachers.

[@silvercandra4275]

The catholic high school I went to actually encouraged us to read different stuff and was generally very open, but I do remember my neighbour shouting at 4 year old me over having watched the first Harry Potter movie, saying that god condemns magic and I need to find back to Jesus. That scared the hell out of me... But not for long. Guess who ended up becoming a pagan anyways.

[@mellyq92]

The end of the movie: made me think that once she joined up with her father they would take down the bad guys The end of the book: the dad was a bad guy

[@Cooleepable]

Well, one of them. Pretty much every adult in the book is a drawstring shitbag.

[@witzitzilin]

@@Cooleepable Not every adult, it seems to me just the magisterium and Lyra's parents, the gyptian the witches and Lee were good people

[@elecrom_9757]

@@witzitzilin It's been a while since I read the books but I remember that the witches (even Seraphina's faction) were vwery reluctant to helping at first and needed to be convinced at some kind of meeting.

[@witzitzilin]

@@elecrom_9757 yeah I think that's when they go to meet the witche's consul, that's true. I also forgot that it was mostly Seraphina's clan that was willing to help and there were other clans who were helping the magisterium and others who simply didn't get involved at all. But again it wasn't that clear of a cut of adults evil and kids good, it's more like people are really complex and we're all capable of doing terrible things but that's explored more in the other 2 books.

[@chrissonofpear1384]

Coulter and Asriel represent polar opposite extremists, shaped by each other, and their obsessions. The synthesis comes with Lyra and Will - even if the third book loses a lot of the nuance. And gives Asriel a fairly free pass, for some of his worser crimes.

[@TLSoulDude]

Favorite comment ever about this movie: "How do you remove the anti-religious elements and end up making this MORE controversial?"

[@BrokensoulRider]

What pissed me off with the movie, as a Christian, is that it wasn't allowed to speak out against what we know in our belief. I love the trilogy and have read it several times over now. It makes me stop and kind of wonder about everything.

[@SecureInMyHead]

Well it’s not hard, all you have to do is indirectly preach that Sin has no consequence.

[@blingsing5383]

Sin in itself doesn't necessarily have consequence alot of our most noble features are shaped by sin

[@SecureInMyHead]

@@blingsing5383 name one…

[@MakeSureYouCleanUp]

@@SecureInMyHead The original person may be speaking of something else, but I'm gonna say Pride. Pride is considered a sin, the one that Lucifer got thrown out of heaven for, but we as people call Pride as something noble and something everyone should have. Of course there is a limit but even then, people end up respecting others for being prideful, even when they are over doing it. Side note, I'm not religious but I do like religions.

[@DarthFennec]

"Iorek is victorious when he tears his opponent's jaw right off his face. I'm legit surprised they stuck to that." I mean they didn't go as far as the book did. You know, where he cuts Iofur open afterward and eats his heart.

[@KeithFraser82]

And then the bears give a starving Lyra the raw kidneys of a seal to eat, if I remember correctly.

[@capibaradeluxe9193]

@@KeithFraser82 Well I hope you dont

[@esobelisk3110]

@@StormgemThunder well it certainly is a *graphic* novel

[@rafaelasabchucalovato9439]

They stuck to what they put of the book at least 😂

[@ticijevish]

Or when he eats... (Heavy spoiler below) Lees Scoresby's mortal remains as a way of honoring his fallen friend and carrying on his strength.

[@blindbeholder9713]

"Mano a mano" literally means "Hand to hand". If you want a bear version that would be "Pata a pata" (paw to paw) or "Garra a garra" (claw to claw).

[@BiratesoftheCaribbean]

'Paw to paw combat' sounds too adorable

[@RosheenQuynh]

Thanks for that correction!

[@gaukaiser]

Pata a pata sounds a bit like a starter in Spanish cuisine.....“yes, please, i would like the pata a pata but could I get I without the bread, cutting down on the carbohydrates“

[@lukeh2556]

Garra Agarra, now there's a name begging to be used in a fantasy story

[@JackhammerJesus]

"Pata Pata" is the name of a dance we do down Johannesburg way. And everybody starts to move as soon as "Pata Pata" starts to play.

[@TonksMoriarty]

Narnia: "Jesus has a fursona." HDM: "Everyone has a fursona!"

[@AnadynTheCursed]

What the fuck is a fursona?

[@vaclav_fejt]

@@AnadynTheCursed "furry persona". And don't google it, just watch Zootopia...and stay at that. Unless, of course, it intrigues you. But leave your safe search on.

[@AnadynTheCursed]

@@vaclav_fejt Dammit I knew that the reference to the "Spy's Fursona" meme would not land properly, but alas

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

@@vaclav_fejt Aslan? Fursonas look nothing like that. Most of them are humanoid, like Zootopia or something, thats a more accurate description. Unchanged animal fursonas are uncommon, and even when they exist, its more closer to something from the "Warriors" Cat books.

[@faizahmohammedaruwa]

HDM? 🤔😅

[@DarkMasterofCupcakes]

Honestly, Billy's mother reassuring him that they'd get his Daemon back could have worked nicely, if they still kept him dying. It could have either been her desperately trying to keep him alive with the hope that he could get that connection back, or even just her wanting to make it so her son's last moments would be even just the slightest bit hopeful, instead of him just dying scared and broken.

[@frankm.2850]

I think it’s probably a bit of both, mixed with the trauma of a parent watching their young child dying and understandably not wanting it to be true.

[@annaw7384]

i love how the show did this moment honestly. imo it was handled much better than in the book, much more impactful and makes the viewer really hate the Magisterium

[@angeljaceherondale]

They also didn't show that Lyra's father was physically and emotionally abusive to her, as well as neglectful. They really scrubbed him off clean in the movie.

[@MissCaraMint]

I sure remember that. Both he and Coulter were not great.

[@morganyoung3557]

Honestly both Lord Asriel and Mrs Coulter are equally toxic and I like that the books don’t shy away from the fact that even though he is fighting against the villains, Lord Asriel is a genuinely awful person.

[@kinagrill]

If they'd done something akin to a POV of Lyra's... well, POV, it'd have worked better. She never saw it abusively, or such events were repressed, etc. etc. Kind of like with couples where one side of abusive but it's always forgiven 'become deep down that person loves them, etc.' And then the hero worship stuff on top of that would have made it a lot more interesting to have it all actually shown and revealed in full at the end.

[@princeOpalite3650]

@@kinagrill you are ware tgat since it was a movie tge audiencr would still interprate it as abusive if tgey. Left it in so tge pov wouldnt change much

[@dustyrose192]

@@princeOpalite3650 and are you aware that your G button has replaced your H button

[@c.w.r.794]

Golden Compass: The movie adaption that nobody remembers because it came out the same weekend as a Harry Potter movie.

[@disneyfanlover905]

Or the fact that it came out months after the Order of the Phoenix.

[@averageanimefan519]

Oof that's bad timing

[@TF2Fan101]

And it somehow won the Oscar for Best Special Effects over Transformers, a much more successful movie. Yes, I *am* still bitter about that.

[@disneyfanlover905]

@@TF2Fan101 At least the director of Golden Compass didn't make too many explosions.

[@jakey14344]

@@disneyfanlover905 or bad comedy, sexual innuendos, Shia LaDoof acting like he's having tourettes and his idiot parents, and Megan Fox.

[@Midorikonokami]

The loveliest fact is that Svalbard is a real Island that exists in our world, and was the inspiration for Berk in the How to Train your Dragon films.

[@Lord_Skeptic]

Svalbard is an archipelago of islands

[@Midorikonokami]

@@Lord_Skeptic it is also the name of the main island. Like Malta is usually used to mean the whole archipelago, Svalbard is used to mean the island itself but also Nordaustlander, Edge Island and Berents island. As well as Storoya and the other tiny ones

[@Lord_Skeptic]

The main island is called Spitsbergen

[@verisimuli]

@@Lord_Skeptic And America is called the United States

[@Lord_Skeptic]

We are not talking about America we are talking about Svalbard

[@narutorasbat]

"The film still didn't do poorly by any stretch but it didn't pull the kind of money that New Line wanted" The truth is actually stupider than that, they actually LOST money with the film because New Line Cinema bafflingly sold the film international rights to fund the movie, meaning they didn't saw a single cent of the over 300 million it earned overseas, only the 70 million it earned in the US in a budget of 180 million. It was such a stupid decision that it lead to Warner Media merging New Line with Warner Bros Pictures because they didn't have any faith in them to act independently anymore.

[@groofay]

Good lord, that is *impressively* stupid. Darwin Awards-level stupid.

“Selling the rights in all countries but one” you’re right. That doesn’t sound smart.

[@bewilderbeastie8899]

So it's because of this incompetency that they made those godawful Hobbit movies?! dammit.

[@someonerandom8552]

Wow. I don’t know whether to be highly amused or highly embarrassed at such a self own. That’s just. Wow

[@SSWakaOkamiInu]

Ironically, I only learned about this movie/book because of all the churches and such complaining about it. My dad, who was the youth pastor for our church at the time, went to go see it as he wanted evidence before weighing in on the discussion instead of taking everything on the word of the mob. I was in high school at the time so he brought me along for a teenager's perspective, and probably so it didn't look weird for a grown man to go alone to a theater full of kids. I'd never heard of this series of books before then and found the movie to be alright entertainment-wise but nothing special. IIRC he even bought me the books a little while later. If you're wondering, he reported back to our church that he couldn't find anything subversive. And then he pointed out that even if it had been "anti-Christian" all the fuss was more likely to cause the same rebellious kids they were worried might watch it to only want to see it more so either way the best course of action was to take no stance and let the parents decide what was best for their kids.

[@zicyzacbonanza]

More or less the situation that happened to me. I went to a small Christian school and our principal told the whole high school during one assembly that we shouldn't watch it because of its anti-God and anti-Christian message. Probably the only reason a bunch of my class went to see it.

[@staceyann1180]

Yay for your dad! Sounds like he's one of the good ones!

[@simonoleary9264]

Reminds me of the fuss around Monty Python's Life of Brian. Many of the same arguments. My mum was a devote Catholic most of her life and all the "rage" made her want to see it just to see if the fuss was justified (which of course it wasn't).

[@dracocrusher]

"B-but daemons!" "Yeah, it's a cute little ferret thing, what's the problem?"

[@AramatiPaz]

Your dad is a great pastor

[@brodericksiz625]

Book Lyra is my favourite female lead of all times. She's full of personality, smart, resourceful, but also immature, as a child character should be, even bratty at times, and often finds herself to be way in over her head. She then has a magnificent character arc throughout the trilogy, in which she matures and develops quite believably. I especially love how, in the first novel, her ability to conjure up lies is what saves her time and time again, but as soon as she finds herself in Will's world, she finds out that this wonderous tool she had been relying upon throughout her adventures starts becoming more and more inadequate, landing her in trouble more than once and making some situations even worse, rather than solving her problems, only to then have the final payoff to that sub-plot at the entrance of the land of the dead in book 3.

[@Arionthelady]

And then The Secret Commonwealth destroyed her character for me 😩 Everything I loved about her GONE.

[@Jackleber]

That one doesn't exist.... Couldn't even finish it​@@Arionthelady

[@aria5614]

LOTR: is successful largely due to being close to the books. Studios: take potentially great films and make them more like LOTR but with bad lighting and worse writing. Film fails. Studio: shocked pikachu

[@Fonzzz002]

It's also largely that Peter Jackson is a visionary who was very passionate about brining that world to live. Here, it sounded more like an idea by the studio with the main goal to make money off a popular name, rather than the creators themselves were all that excited about it.

[@geoffreyrichards6079]

Just replace the LotR trilogy with the MCU and you got what’s currently going on in the Hollywood machine gears.

[@francesconicoletti2547]

@@Fonzzz002 there was a two movie version of LOTR at one point, from memory they left out the mines of Moria altogether and mashed together helms deep and Minas Tirith. Then New Line said, could we make another movie ? And this time it wasn’t a mistake.

[@andrew_ray]

@@francesconicoletti2547 Because turning 3 books into 3 movies is not an obviously stupid idea, whereas turning 1 book into 3 movies...

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

Speaking of which, I remembered hearing about a new adaptation of The Golden Compass called "His Dark Materials" on HBO, is it any good?

[@EtrianDinoval]

This movie shaped my life! I was in a private Catholic grade school (age 9) and - like every other kid - was elated about the upcoming Scholastic Bookfair (an event where a temporary Scholastic-brand bookshop is set up inside the school). All the students were given a flyer from Scholastic every month, but the Bookfair experience was something special. I was an avid reader with a reading comprehension level way above my classmates, so I was especially thrilled. And then The Golden Compass movie came out. This sparked the principle - a Catholic nun - to "research" the book series. And by "research," I mean she heard that it was anti-God and suggested everyone should pact with demons. She instantly declared that - since Scholastic published the series - the entire school would no longer associate with the obviously satanic Scholastic. At all. Entirely. No more flyers. *No more Bookfairs*. So, yeah, screw encouraging kids to read. Screw the money from commissions, which the school desperately needed (there was no climate control of any kind until almost a decade later when they installed *ceiling fans* in *some* of the rooms, and there are still roaches everywhere in the grade school wing fourteen years later). Eventually enough parents were throwing enough of a fit that she allowed very limited Bookfairs, but only with books she personally read first. I did get a splinter of revenge when I watched the movie at a friend's house two days after she declared it Satan incarnate. Yes I was 9 and it was PG-13, and yes I had nightmares, but darn I have never regretted it.

[@JoshtheOverlander]

There's gotta be a way to fire someone from their job so hard they go on an Ancient Greece-level journey of trials and tasks to learn the error of their unbelievably brain-dead ways

[@ClaudiaKoltsTheDarkBunny]

I also went to a private catholic school when I was little and found the first book, that had been donated in the school library. I began reading it just as the controversy broke out and unfortunately my school removed that book from our library for being against the church. Luckily, my public library supplied The Golden compass and it's sequels to me who was now super invested in a "forbidden" book. It left a large impression on me.

[@seanmcloughlin5983]

I had a similar experience at my Catholic school because I was CONSTANTLY reading the Harry Potter books I brought from home, one of the teachers saw me and said “those kinds of material,” weren’t allowed and so my copy of HP and the Order of the Phoenix got confiscated. It wasent a total loss tho because one of the cooler teachers got the principal to give it back to me and I’m pretty sure he was a fan too because the rest of the year he’d say “ten points to Gryffindor” if I got a question right. Made me much less sour on the church then I probably would’ve been, which I’m guessing isn’t what they were going for when they made stupid rules like that.

[@MadameChristie]

I had the exact opposite experience weirdly enough. Granted I went to a public Catholic school (they're a thing in parts of Canada, long story) but I distinctly remember the librarian grabbing me (or maybe she summoned me, it's a bit vague XP) and taking me over to her desk where she pulled out a shiny new copy of The Golden Compass that she had just put into the library system. so yeah, I was the first kid ever to read my school's copy of the book XD

[@albatross1688]

@@seanmcloughlin5983 The funny thing is, the Harry Potter books actually contain some slight Christian imagery, and I don't recall there ever being any anti-religious sentiment in them.

[@sammyk3024]

As a Finnish person, having an awesome northern witch character with a real Finnish last name blew my mind as a kid. She became my favourite character just because of that! The way Dom pronounces that name is also really cute.

[@Ebbagull]

As a Swedish person, the inclusion of Finnish names makes the world (very strangely) feel uncomfortably real to me - in a good way 🤷🏼‍♀️ Like, it makes it feel like these are real people that I could meet, and really enhances the feeling that this takes place in a world that is parallel to ours, not a completely different one with no connection.

[@ticijevish]

Apparently, Phillip Pullman simply opened a Finnish phone book (they still had paper ones back when he was writing the books), and picked a pair of actual names from it.

[@morganqorishchi8181]

I've heard this before and I just want to offer a correction: Romanian and Romani people are not the same thing. Roma people are not all originally from (or even majority from) Romania and are not related as an ethnic group.

[@lizzleclerc]

Came to the comments to say exactly this. Romani/Roma people are not all considered “Romanian travelers” as Dom put it. We are a diasporic group that originated in the India/Pakistan region and have settled all across the world. There are large populations of Romani throughout the US, Europe and South America-Romania doesn’t even have the largest Romani population. Also, as a Romani person myself, I felt a bit put off by Dom’s praising of the author for changing the name of said people in the book...to “Gyptians”...as if that’s any better than g*psy

[@Kayley199514]

Lizz Piskor, thank you! I was thinking to myself that the name change wasn't really that great. I guess it did avoid the controversy because he could say "well they're a clear alternate universe version, but not the same group". Except it's a bit like changing n*gger to something like nidder, and expecting people to just be like "yeah that's cool". And it's just uncreative to begin with.

[@ConniJo]

@@lizzleclerc as a child I didn't realize it was a reference to Roma and since I read the German translation I thought it was short for Egyptians because it sounds closer to that than the not-politically-correct-but-still-used-back-then word for Roma in German 🤷‍♀️😅 why my little child mind thought it was logical for Egyptians to live on boats in Oxford, I don't know 😅

[@CheshireSwift]

@@ConniJo afaik the term is derived from "Egyptian" (due to probably incorrect historical beliefs that Roma originated in Egypt).

[@Object-Impermanence-Official]

@@ConniJo yeah, I thought the same thing when I was a kid!

[@cheezemonkeyeater]

Oh, shit, I didn't know Christopher Lee was in this. And now I'm thinking about how much I miss Christopher Lee again. :C

[@Dominic-Noble]

Wish he'd had a bigger part.

[@Cheesusful]

@@Dominic-Noble so does his wife. (sorry, couldn't help myself, I blame Sir Pterry)

[@cheezemonkeyeater]

@@Dominic-Noble Ah, it was small. I guess that's why I didn't hear about it. I guess they'd intended him to play a bigger part in the sequels that never happened. Such a shame.

[@walterlopez5054]

Lee was taken from us too soon. Yes I know the man was in his 90s. Still, too soon.

[@KeyBladeMaster-Dan]

@@walterlopez5054 Even if he was over 100 it would still be too soon 😭😭😭😭

[@SallySueSaywhatagain]

That scene where Pan is nearly cut from Lyra is one of the most terrifying scene I've ever read. This book is incredible, frankly!

[@AthenatheNightWing]

That scene was when 9 year old me discovered what stress was lol

[@Alejandroigarabide]

Actually, "mano a mano" doesn't mean "man to man" but "hand to hand" in spanish. So the bear equivalent wouldn't be "bearano to bearano" but "garra a garra" ("claw to claw"). But it would be a very hard joke to understand, so it's understandable.

[@GrandArchPriestOfTheAlgorithm]

"garra a garra" sounds badass.

[@Alejandroigarabide]

@@GrandArchPriestOfTheAlgorithm Well thank you. I didn't think about it, but it kinda does indeed.

[@PlatinumAltaria]

You're telling me that you can't translate from English to Spanish or Italian by adding "-o" to the end of every wordo?

[@Alejandroigarabide]

@@PlatinumAltaria Yeaho, basicallyo.

[@NafNav32]

"Garra a garra" sounds like something that would go on a werewolf's coat of arms...

[@phantomkrieger2744]

My catholic elementary had us read the first two chapters before the teacher found out the author was atheist and as a result we had to stop and then write a report about how atheism was bad. Lol so glad I went to normal middle school.

[@PlatinumAltaria]

How does a person not know that HDM isn't a pro-religious book. The whole story is about telling god to get stuffed.

[@PlatinumAltaria]

@Austin Rollins If you like the books you probably shouldn't like the catholic church all that much.

[@krankarvolund7771]

@@PlatinumAltaria You can enjoy books that are apologetic of a belief you don't share, I love Narnia even though I'm a ravid atheist ^^

[@PlatinumAltaria]

@@krankarvolund7771 There's no symmetry though; there's no atheist church whose actions you can criticise. The Magisterium is a one-for-one representative of the Catholic Church, so it'd be like being a fan of star wars whilst also being a fascist. Or enjoying "why burgers are the devil" while eating a hamburger.

[@krankarvolund7771]

@@PlatinumAltaria That's right ^^

[@deathbower]

The impression I got while reading this trilogy is that "His Dark Materials" is basically "Good Omens" but if entirely serious and not written by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett.

[@DizzyBusy]

And yet Good Omens touched me in the feels way more than His Dark Materials did. I understood the pathos of Lyra, Will, and later Mary, but they never got to me as much as Adam Young rearranging the world so that Mr Young became his real father, the only one allowed to scold him.

[@Topdoggie7]

So American Gods.

[@karaltar7914]

It’s not a trilogy

[@SingingSealRiana]

not the point@@karaltar7914

[@timothymclean]

So..."Good Omens" without any of the things that made "Good Omens" enjoyable? That is not an appealing summary.

[@hallamshire]

Honestly, my biggest gripe with the movie was that it just ASSUMED you would care for the characters instead of trying to earn our interest in them. It wasn't horrible, just dull.

[@harrisonpeterson3733]

Yeah. I don't remember liking this film much, until I watched this. Lots of super cool ideas brought down by stupid execs, awfully dull acting, and a lack of care for the book

[@JamesTullos]

Fun fact: Chris Weitz also wrote a trilogy of young adult novels called *The Young World*. The man really does do everything.

[@frostfire6579]

Congrats on 100k!

[@RFEM520]

One day I want to see you, Dom, and Dan do a review together

[@JamesTullos]

@@RFEM520 I think that would neat too.

[@Sityu1991]

oh hey, great seeing you here, notice me senpai

[@idontknowanymore9966]

im terrified of how much he did i guess “jack-of-all-trades, master of none”

[@Jambara]

This might be an unpopular opinion but taking all 3 novels names into account "The Golden Compass" actually fits better thematically. "the golden compass" "The Subtle Knife" and "The Amber Spyglass" are all objects used by the heroes of the story.

[@SeaBeast4Life]

I feel the same, until watching this video I thought that's why the name was changed, to fit with the sequels.

[@Burnhardt1985]

Except by that reasoning the title should have been 'The Alethiometer'. It was only likened to a golden compass a two or three times in the series, and generally by people who have no idea know what it is.

[@Jambara]

@@Burnhardt1985 No, my reasoning does not mean it should have been The Alethiometer, I thought that through. By your reasoning the second novel would be call "Æsahættr", all titles use the unofficial/lazy name of the object not it's true name. Though I guess we don't know if Dr Malone ever gave her spyglass an official name.

[@glenmartin7978]

The first book is called The Northern Lights

[@alexinitalics188]

I don't like either name really because I've always felt Golden Compass fits the trilogy better (The adjective noun, appears on the cover of the book, at least the versions I've seen) but calling the Aleithiometer a compass is incorrect and might confuse the audience. So yeah, maybe if they'd called it 'the Northern Lights' but that's till not a physical object... idk

[@vanessar.6085]

"Shut up, printer." Ah, a normal day at the office, I see.

[@Star-Commander-Vong]

"Sam Elliot seems to be genuinely having a good time." I mean, doesn't he always?

[@ConniJo]

Also, if I see Sam Elliot in a movie(or trailer) I know that I will most probably enjoy watching that movie. Or at least the scenes he's in xD

[@morganyoung3557]

I am not too fond of the movie, but I love Sam Elliot and I think that it was perfect casting.

[@ConniJo]

@@morganyoung3557 I didn't like the movie too much either, it's not dumpster fire bad IMO but just... fine. I read the books first and was expecting so much more from the adaptation but ... Well... Hence the specification of "or at least the scenes that he's in" xD

[@Lucklaran]

@@ConniJo I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I've come to the conclusion that it's better to watch the movie first, then read the book. That way, rather than "taking away" from the story, the book fills in and explains the gaps in the movie. I've found it much easier to enjoy a movie that way. Knowing how much they are getting wrong/leaving out/adding to the movie just kills any chance of enjoying it fully(provided the movie is any good).

[@princessscarlet2219]

@@ConniJo Did you watch the series? It's pretty good and much more faithful to the books.

[@Nexils]

Random fun fact: a 'polar bear' is actually called an 'ice bear' in Dutch, German (and probably some other Germanic languages).

[@Carewolf]

and in Danish, Swedish and Norwegian. So probably all Germanic languages except English.

[@ainoakileia]

Same in Finnish! Polar bear is called ”jääkarhu” in Finnish, which literally means ice bear

[@veronikamajerova4564]

In the czech too. :-D We use "polar bear" too, but "ice bear" is more widespread and used.

[@Topdoggie7]

We Bare Bears really nailed that.

[@jelaabasova8383]

The same in Slovak :)

[@SamAronow]

This movie contains my all-time favorite example of gaming MPAA ratings. One polar bear graphically rips another's jaw off? Just make sure there's no blood and it'll still be PG-13!

[@GamesNTech]

I think non human violence also plays a huge role. I'm pretty sure a human tearing another living humans lower jaw off is going to send you right to R town.

[@ADTillion]

@@GamesNTech Yep! But let’s not forget Peter Jackson’s King Kong! Had a few more gruesome human deaths, but still PG-13!!!😆

[@Zach2003]

To make the burn a bit more... Burny: His dark Marterials aired its second season already, and Pullman published two new books to the series :D

[@qwellen7521]

3rd season is also happening!

[@jboj8430]

La belle sauvage was alright. The secret commonwealth was awful though :S

[@Zach2003]

@@jboj8430I'm not through La belle Sauvage yet. But I started it and for now I kind of like it. It made me pause and reread the whole series, and that way I realized how much this book hit differently from the first time I read it when I was 10

[@Zach2003]

@@qwellen7521 and I'm really looking forward to it!

[@CM-ss5pe]

@@jboj8430 I gave up on it a little past halfway. It got good story elements but the plot was all over the place and I didn't find myself enjoying it.

[@morganyoung3557]

I am a Christian and I absolutely love the His Dark Materials Trilogy. The books are really good especially with making a very interesting world and I honestly think that Lyra is a rather charming and precocious protagonist. The problem with the movie is that they took a very interesting story and made it bland, also didn’t help that they ended the movie abruptly probably because they were afraid to show the darker ending the book had even though it really hurt the story because they didn’t give the movie an actual conclusion. I honestly list His Dark Materials as some of my absolutely favorite books to read because they are that good.

[@rafaelasabchucalovato9439]

Me too. I am Christian too, and I love fantasy stories. They toned the movie down, cut parts, added some parts, left us a big cliffhanger, did not expand the intricate universe the author imagined. If you cannot respect this precious piece of the mind of the author, nevermind adapting a movie. Edit: my favorite book is The Amber Spyglass, the part where Lyra talks about love with Dr. Malone 😂 (open doors segment)

[@laurencefraser]

Interestingly, while I had no problem with and quite enjoyed the first book, by the end of the series the way religion/christianity had been handled had throughly put me off. Because, to my recollection, it rather quickly devolved from 'these individuals within the church in this story are corrupt/evil/whatever' into something that was coming perioulously close to 'religious people in the real world are inherently evil for believing in God'... or something along those lines, I'll admit to forgetting the specifics as I last read it a VERY long time ago. The main reason that stuck with me is because I usually have no problem with fantasy, or criticisms of religious institutions, etc, but something about how this series handled things was just REALLY offputting.

[@michaeljohnangel6359]

@@laurencefraser You really must understand how so many of us have trouble taking people seriously who believe in invisible bearded entities who live in the sky.

[@MargaritaOnTheRox]

​@@michaeljohnangel6359 I guess it must be hard when you just think of Him as a "invisible bearded entity that lives in the sky." That's not really what God is, but I'm sure it helps you feel superior to reduce Him to that.

[@michaeljohnangel6359]

@@MargaritaOnTheRox I don't feel superior at all, m'dear. It rather seems to me that the shoe's on the other foot ("Judge not, lest thee be judged").

[@modbz]

I still prefer "The Golden Compass" as a title because it keeps the theming consistent with "The Subtle Knife" and "The Amber Spyglass".

[@Dominic-Noble]

Fun fact: Pullman said the "three books are named after items" thing was PURE coincidence XD

[@BlackwingHecate]

I mean, 'The Northern Lights' would have also worked, but... Yeah.

[@geoffreyrichards6079]

Imagine if they decided to call it “The Alethiometer”. What would peoples’ reactions be?

[@guillemettevuillemin939]

In french, the only title that is kept as it is and just translated is the third one . The first is called "the northern kingdoms" (in french) and the second "the tower of angels". The series itself is called "at the crossing of the world". All of this explains why it took me a while to understand that the show was an adaptation of the books I'd loved when I saw it being talked about.

[@robingoodfellow9171]

The German translation is also "Der Goldene Kompass", meaning the golden compass

[@daniellado2523]

This is an instance where the filmmakers didn't get the intention of the book and just started changing things for the worse. If you are going to adapt something with an intended purpose, don't try to create a new direction if it takes away what the original book was trying to convey.

[@qwellen7521]

Fundamentally; I think any adaption needs to understands the thematic core of the work it is adapting - it can refute it, but needs understand the core it’s based off.

[@vilmublues752]

I think they did, they just censored themes.

[@jackrichardson7020]

The filmmakers wrote and shot a script that was very true to the book. It was the studio who forced them to rearrange the ending and cut scenes about the religious subtext. The shooting script, which the director wrote , was nearly three hours long but the studio gutted it bc of religious pressure, and the belief a kids film couldn't be over two hours or end in child murder

[@alanpennie8013]

@@jackrichardson7020 I can see why this would be tough to adapt. It's ending really is incredibly bleak for the age group the film would be pitched at.

[@ADTillion]

@@alanpennie8013 The irony though is most of us read the book while in that age group XD They were more worried about backlash of a film being more easily consumed than a book. And if you think about it, right after this film, most things aimed at this demographic basically had a similar scene of a beam of light hitting the sky. It was a missed opportunity to not have that scene of Lyra stepping into that light in epic fashion. The TV show luckily nailed it but too late, cos everyone has seen a similar scene a dozen times by now. That’s the hopeful part you take away from the story. It doesn’t end with her wallowing in grief over Roger. Instead she says her farewell to everything she once knew and entered an all-new world. That’s very empowering stuff for kids. Definitely inspired me.

[@StaringCompetition]

Strangely, though it was disappointing even then, the lead actress looked almost exactly like my imagined Lyra, though cleaner and not as feral. The new series’ actress looks nothing like I imagined (b/c not blonde) but is far more convincing and earthy.

[@stevenhoutzager6434]

The new TV adaptation His Dark Materials is so, so much better, and seems to have solved most of the problems the movie ended up with. The acting is stellar (Lyra has so much personality in the show, her actress did a fantastic job) and it doesn't shy away from the dark themes of the book. Also it really does take its time with the world building without much exposition.

[@Nicamon]

I'm sorry,I'm too much in love with the movie's cast(EXPECIALLY Lyra!!!)to give a shot to the TV show!>^

[@RomanvonUngernSternbergnrmfvus]

I understand the child in this have a wooden performance but to be fair and idk what folk haven’t figured this out yet in the film industry but children plus cgi centric stuff is never the ideal combo. Adults with decades of practice struggle with it let alone children. Idk what’s worse actual child actors and the horror they deal with in noncewood or having to pretend middle age people are children in movies and tv.

[@tompraeger]

Eragon and this, now we only need „Inkheart“ with Branden Fraser and we‘ll have to 2000s bad fantasy adaptation trifecta. I would have included Percy Jackson, but it came out 2010 and in my opinion is the best FILM out of these.

[@tovekauppi1616]

Inkheart was one of my absolute favourite book growing up. I was so disappointed when I watched the movie

[@Pantalaymo]

I still wish for an adaptation of the "Bartimaeus"-series by Jonathan Stroud...

[@heavenlyderpfowl1180]

@@Pantalaymo as nice as that would be to see, I think it would work better as a game where you collect bartimaeus' notes and can read them freely and have the lenses be actively controlled by you

[@shinyagumon7015]

"Inkheart", that one hurt especially as a German. Such a great concept needs more recognition!

[@ggrarl]

I would definitely add Guardians of Ga'Hoole, although that was 2010

[@ellisandkyriathe4518]

my favourite thing to come out of seeing this movie was counting how many times Iorek's armour just... vanishes and reappears as he's running around, like he's magically summoning and dismissing it. which probably says something about how I felt about the rest of this film.

[@EmeeStacy]

This was actually the way I got into the His Dark Materials books. I saw the trailer and was fascinated by the idea of a human soul in the form of an animal companion, I was like 6, and my religious father banned the film from our house. Then I saw part of it in a dentist’s waiting room a few years later. I didn’t see the full thing until I started High School, and enjoyed it enough that I went and got the books from the library and read them. Admittedly I kind of skimmed the last 2, so I completely missed the whole “killing a false god” thing, but then HBO came out with the HDM show that promised to be more accurate to the books, I learned more about Pullman AND about the whole “killing a false god” thing, and now it’s one of my favorite stories! So this film will always be SOMETHING to me, even if it’s not great

[@realglutenfree]

I watched the movie as a kid cause my christian parents didnt care much about what some church is saying. I liked the movie and I read the books later.

[@Samaru163]

A few more scenes/details that they cut from this movie 1), The movie had a random Magesterium agent try to kill Asriel, rather than the college headmaster like in the book. This was one of their ways of toning down the complexity of the book: rather than a good man trying to commit murder to protect his college and everyone within it from the wrath of the Magesterium for funding research that goes against their beliefs, they have the poisoner be a bad man working for the big evil guys. 2), there's an awesome scene in the book where Lyra discovers crypts below the college where the headmasters are buried, with coins placed inside their skulls with the names of their daemons written on them. Lyra swapped some coins for a laugh, then has a horrible dream where she's haunted by headless ghosts, so she fixes it the next day. This comes back into play when she meets the boy Tony, because she carves the name of his daemon onto a coin and places it in his mouth before he is burned. 3), Seraphina actually doesn't show up until the end of the book. Any scene where Lyra spoke with her in this movie, she instead spoke with her goose familiar, Kaisa. He actually helps Lyra when, at Bolvangar, she discovers the daemons who had been separated from their children. Kaisa helps her free the daemons and then coaxes them into flying forms so he can try and help them find their humans. Of course, they can never be whole again, but it's better than being kept apart. 4), Ma Costa was given a much more expanded role in this movie. It was her eldest son Tony Costa who accompanied the Gypsien raiding party in the book. My assumption for why this was done was because this movie wanted to have its own version of Molly Weasley to compete with Harry Potter. 5), Mrs. Coulter was black haired in the book, not blond. But Pullman himself has said that he prefers her as a blond. 6), Lyra learned about Mrs. Coulters involvement with the Gobblers at a dinner party rather than by snooping through her things. The guests were the upper class type who love to gossip, and since Lyra was Coulter's assistant at the time, they saw no reason to hide info from her. 7), Lyra needed a lot of practice to use the Alethiomiter in the book, and initially wasn't allowed to come on the raid. This was changed when she used the Alethiomiter to successfully inform Jon Faa about an attack on a Gypsien spy. ~~8), in the book, Ioric's fence was impassible, so to talk to him, Lyra and Pann had to do a very rare and risky maneuver where a daemon moves just far enough away from their human that the human gets snapped back to them, phasing through solid matter in the process.~~ 9), when Lyra adopts her Lizzy Brooks persona at Bolvangar in the book, she actually acts like a different person to make it convincing. The best part for me was how she clung to a doll that the staff gave to her like it was a lifeline. 10), Cliff Ghasts (this version of harpies) attacked Lee's air balloon on their way to Svalbard, hence how Lyra was captured by the bears. The Ghasts actually play an important role in later books. 11), Iofur's palace was so lame compared to the book. He didn't just want a daemon, he wanted to be human. He was in love with human culture and so tried to emulate it and integrate it with the bear's culture, adding tapestries and fine silks and exotic animals and forcing his bears to dress as humans. Of course, this created a massive contrasts due to the bear's more rugged lifestyle dirtying all these fine things. Edit: Since I missremembered point 8, here is another thing cut from the movie: Stanislaus Grumman, an explorer who went missing in the arctic. He ends up playing a role in later books, particularly in relation to the characters of Will and Lee Scorsby.

[@tuures.5167]

It's been a while since I read the book but I'm pretty sure scene number 8 on your list is almost totally made up. I assume that you are referring to the scene where Lyra and Pantalaimon first go to speak with Iorek. My memory of the scene is that the fence is not impassable, in fact there is a rather easily accessible gate in it. However, Lyra and Pantalaimon regard Iorek to be potentially so dangerous that they decide just Pantalaimon should approach him first, because it's easier for him to flee if necessary. However, as Iorek is a considerable distance away from the fence, Pan tries to pull as far from Lyra as possible, going so far as to dig his claws into the ground to forcefully drag himself away from her. This process is very painful for both of them, and eventually the pain overwhelms Lyra and she rushes through the gate to Pantalaimon's side, vowing him to never try something like that ever again. Note that from Lyra's perspective this meant putting herself in mortal danger. We of course then learn that Iorek bears little interest in harming her, but it should be noted that Lyra found death preferable over the agony caused by Pan pulling away from her. This is significant because it is later revealed that before the invention of the 'guillotine' device this was basically the process that the researchers at Bolvangar actually used to rip dæmons away from children but the pain and trauma drove the test subjects insane on the spot.

[@Samaru163]

@@tuures.5167 It's been a while since I last read the book as well, but factchecking my copy confirms that you are correct. Thanks for the catch!

[@john-vl3mm]

@@tuures.5167 It's also significant because forcefully separating self and daemon as the other part of your soul begs you not to is what Lyra does to Pan in the third book in the world of the dead, and is the terribly painful betrayal she commits prophesied by the Master of Jordan College.

[@KitsuneXIIIKitsu]

@@john-vl3mm Huh, it's been years since I read the books but I was always under the impression that the terrible betrayal was the leading of Roger to Asriel.

[@john-vl3mm]

@@KitsuneXIIIKitsu It certainly fits, and I assumed so myself, but the narration specifically points out that this was the Master's prophecy come to pass when Lyra and Will were on the boat pulling away from the shore.

[@HolyApplebutter]

"Despites being a fantasy book and very popular with young readers, this book really earned the dark part." First Animorphs, now this. I wonder how many other dark children's novels I missed out on?

[@catfoy8888]

Warrior cats lots of violence guardians of ga'hoole child soldiers child abuse and literal owl nazis

[@TytoT-pj9lz]

@@catfoy8888 I swear, Dominic would have an aneurysm if he watched the adaptation of Guardians of Ga'Hoole... so obviously I want to see him cover it!

[@Topdoggie7]

I adore Animorphs for being trans, LGBT etc friendly but also opening on five kids hearing the dying screams of someone echo in their heads and going "we would never forget that sound". No chill and there's way more books like that. Warrior Cats is all about incest, pedophilia, cults, and murder/serial killing. Oh, and racism.

[@berengustav7714]

@@Topdoggie7 Jesus,I didn't remember Warriors being that dark.

[@Topdoggie7]

@@berengustav7714 Lmao, Firepaw/Rusty is confirmed to be thirteen years old when forty years old Spotted starts creeping on him. Ashfur is Squirrelflight's Uncle and wants to have sex with her and have her so badly he tries to kill her dad and her three kids. Pinestar I believe his name is, is a pedophile after I believe it's Leopardkit. Oh and Ashfur possesses Squirrelflight's lover to have sex aka rape her and have his way with people. Each book has things like teen pregnancy or gory birth descriptions.

[@spacejasontodd]

I absolutely live for the fact that this series came to life solely because Pullman was so frustrated with the story of Narnia and decided you know what, in MY story the characters have to grow up to achieve their goals! And I agree, evenas a kid I found it awful that Susan and Peter could no longer enter Narnia solely because of their older age.

[@kimberlychester4358]

It wasn't solely because of their older age. It was because of their loss of the ability to believe in Narnia; i.e., their loss of faith. By losing their ability to believe in Narnia (Heaven) and Aslan (Christ), they were unable to re-enter the Kingdom of Heaven when they died.

[@ameliadouglas6938]

His dark materials is the only series where every book has managed to emotionally destroy me. Phillip Pullman did not have to do an ending like that

[@mariadocarmosobreira8323]

Look, I"m as atheist and anti-religion as it gets, but I think Pullman is just mean-spirited. His "criticism" of religion comes across, for me, as rather childish, like a teenager rebelling against his parents.

[@essneyallen6777]

I hate that ending with a passion. Even when JKR was worth looking up to I always found Pullman a greater influence on my writing and worldbuilding, but I hate him so much. You do not spend and entire chapter meticulously explaining away any chance your characters have at happiness together, you cruel person you!

[@alanpennie8013]

@@essneyallen6777 I rather wish he'd avoided the love story all together. It gave me serious cringe. Frodo and Sam it isn't.

[@Dominic-Noble]

The emotional toll of the first book alone exhausted me.

[@atlantefou566]

I personally respects an author that wants a dark ending, or a good one. I mostly want an ending that answers most questions and closes mots plots, if not all. Phillip OPullman does just that in his trilogy (haven(t read the now books yet). then again, It is indeed very dark, I wept at least once per book, and I would not recommend them to everyone.

[@kinyutaka]

I mean, we can forgive the "golden compass" thing, since it is a circular device that points the way, made of gold.

[@Caernath]

Thanks to Il Neige, I’m now seriously considering writing a His Dark Materials fanfic where the Armoured Bears are replaced by the Gummi Bears.

[@chantalalexander]

Lol! me too!

[@becauseimafan]

😂 I love it!!

[@oomflem]

I'm just waiting for the gritty CW reboot of that one where Gummy Juice is slang for some sort of drug, bouncing is slang for getting high, the whole thing is about addiction and overdoses and there's a sad acapella cover of the themesong.

[@CalliopePony]

And they bounce around the glaciers!

[@kronemerj]

@@oomflem I mean they were referenced in the ducktales reboot so anything is possible.

[@shoshanahaltman-shafer2971]

It would be really cool to see a lost in adaptation for Stardust. Both the movie and book are really good, so it would be interesting to hear Dom's take on it

[@MadisonHartinWeather]

Thank you! It seems like no one knows about that book or movie and it’s a shame because they are both delightful!

[@philadelphiawhovian5641]

agree! changes were made to the film in many ways, but damn do i love both

[@hadesoneiroi]

Yes, please

[@adorabell4253]

@@philadelphiawhovian5641 I found this to be an example of where changes made for the movie worked very well for the medium of film and enhanced the story for the movie audience.

[@philadelphiawhovian5641]

@@adorabell4253 exactly! it was changes that were done in the right sort of way, where it was still loyal to the book but augmented the narrative in a way that looked and sounded good for film. and the cast knew exactly what to do with the story.

[@eduardapimentel1692]

Story time: I was in catholic school when I was 11, had to go to sunday school and mass, and I hated it. My dad, wanting to encourage (bribe) me into going to church, promised to buy me a book if I got through a whole month of attending sunday mass. I did it and my dad bought me The Northern Lights. He had no idea what it was about, he probably just saw a girl the same age ad me and a bear on the cover and presumed it was cute and fun. I read it in catholic school. Still haven't finished the trilogy yet, sadly, but I loved the first two books, and they totally made me question religion as a whole and ta-dah I'm now an atheist. Moral of the story: don't bribe your kids into going to church with a book that opposes religion! Maybe it was some ironic divine punishement lols

[@ellietischler]

That’s some great irony!

[@grumpyotter]

"Sam Elliott looked like he was having fun." I think you could say that about any role he plays!

[@Beacuzz]

Not Buffy!

[@jeebuschristos8423]

Even when he was playing the hippy Ron on Parks and Rec... What a step down with the casting of Lin-Manuel Miranda with the TV series...

[@yakubduncan9019]

Not to be too pedantic but 1) It's Roma, or Romani, and it's completely unrelated to the name of Romania the country, and 2) the word 'gyptian' is actually a Middle-English predecessor to the now-controversial synonym for them, so he wasn't really sidestepping anything.

[@alanpennie8013]

Yup. I found this slight change in nomenclature a tad irritating, as if he'd called England Angland just to show it was an alt. universe.

[@yakubduncan9019]

@@alanpennie8013 What do you mean 'as if'? He called Britain 'Brytain' Korea 'Corea' and Norway 'Norroway'.

[@robertgronewold3326]

Except in the books, that tribe was called Gyptian because they were thought to have come from Egypt.

[@alanpennie8013]

@@yakubduncan9019 Yikes. I'd forgotten that How cringey! Is Russia now Muscovy or some name like that?

[@yakubduncan9019]

@@robertgronewold3326 Yeah, that's where the word 'Gypsy' actually comes from.

[@secretarit1]

I love Lee and Hester so much. The bit where he is holding her under his poncho kills me!

[@franciscopetrucci]

The ending of the book is FANTASTIC. It made me feel both the despair and sadness of what happens to Roger, and also the wonder of the promise of misterious worlds beyond the curtain of light.

[@helRAEzzzer]

"We have a title. Yes! We have a title," had me laughing longer than it should've.

[@Dominic-Noble]

That was all Kate. She's a huge MST3K fan and knows when to call on it ^^

[@Ugly_German_Truths]

Roooooooooooooooll Credits as "EWW" would say it :D

Always fun with a TITLE DROP

[@pennifold]

This book broke my heart in a beautiful, literary way when I first read it at ten. I was so overwhelmed by the theming, atmosphere, betrayal, that, although I loved it and reread it, I didn’t actually finish the series for many years. Like, it took me a decade to process it enough to move onward in what I knew would be a dense and emotional story.

[@donovan9456]

Pleeeeeease tell me you'll cover the TV show? When this film first came out, I was only 14 and loved it. But after reading the books and over time, I realised just how dirty it did this story. Which is why I love the BBC TV show so much. Also love the Iorek song!

[@i.cs.z]

I mean. The Tv show also made some, annoying changes.

[@tomdeboerio3639]

@@i.cs.z As an avid lover of the book, I will have to defend the TV show. Yes, it made some changes, but I think most of them can be understood and are useful to improve the watching experience (like showing Will in the first season to make him more relatable and explaining the link between Lord Boreal and our world)

[@i.cs.z]

@@tomdeboerio3639 As an avid lover of the book I disagree. For me the commulative effects made it unfinishable around the midfle of the second season. The changes in Lee's story was the last nail.

[@PlatinumAltaria]

@@i.cs.z The only "changes" to speak of are additions designed to fill in the gaps for what other characters were doing earlier on.

[@i.cs.z]

@@PlatinumAltaria Not really.

[@esthermcafee5293]

I’ve never seen it mentioned, but I always felt that the GOB and the experiments with severing children from their souls has a lot of parallels to the residential schools in Canada.

[@trequor]

Perhaps, but it seems a bit surfacey of a comparison. The daemons of the book arent representative of culture or family or heritage. These are the primary things that were taken by the residential schools. The mutilation for the sake of lofty scientific goals seems more in keeping with modern political movements that cut up children for political purposes. Also apt is the fact that daemons are representative of growing up, something that is denied to the victims of this modern movement.

[@jennivamp5]

I remember sitting in the cinema and being so confused when the credits rolled. I actually turned to my dad and said, "wait, where's the rest of the movie?"

[@idab9958]

This book series basically defined my childhood and it was such a relief to see it get a proper adaptation after this travesty. Dafne Keen is the perfect Lyra.

[@j3ssthealien283]

17:21 I just thought it was a mother trying to reassure her child after a devastating thing. it's like she doesn't know what to do so if she tries to comefort her child saying that we will bring it back so that may be he'll live longer with hope. but know deep down this can never happen and he'll die shortly after.

[@coykoi5128]

this book, specifically the audio book narrated by the author himself along with a full cast of voice actors for characters themselves and an ost, was a HUGE part of my childhood. The rest of the books didn't have such an impact somehow (i think i just didn't get it, i was pretty young). loved this video, thank you so much!

[@anniesearle6181]

One thing I really like about these books is that unlike certain books where subsequent books grow with the reader, the Northern Lights itself grows with you. It was a great book when I was 8, when I was 14 and when I was 20 and felt like a suitable story for me at all of those times

[@pwnorbepwned]

There is a book I adore that does the same thing. As I get older, I find a new experience with it every time I read it. The Hero and the Crown, by Robin McKinley.

[@sawanna508]

I read started reading the books in my late teens and didn't like them that much (also because I was still sort of religiose at that point) but as I grew older I started to like them more and more.

[@mhairibryce9702]

Not going to lie, I loved this movie as a kid. It was my introduction to the series, and I completely fell in love with the world. I find it odd that the PS2 tie in game was far more faithful to the book in that it kept the original order of events and ending.

[@jamesatkinsonja]

I've heard that was because of the post production changes [such as deleting the ending] when the game might have already been finished.

[@ADTillion]

Yep, the game is my preferred adaptation. It’s just unfortunate that the gameplay is outdated 😞

[@mhairibryce9702]

@@ADTillion It is definitely outdated by today's standard's, sure. But you know what for a 2007 movie tie-in it had some pretty unique gameplay elements. Like the way Pan had 4 different forms that were used for exploration. Tie-in games tend to do the bare minimum, but The Golden Compass seemed to have a bit more thought put into it.

[@ADTillion]

@@mhairibryce9702 Oh fosho. I still have fun with it. Figuring out how to use the forms for platforming and finding new symbol entries for the Alethiometer were such a nice experience. The best aspects by far are the Iorek fights though. There have been many games since then that had bear combat, but I’m still waiting for something as satisfying as YEETING a Wolf daemon right back at their own human and watching the dust explosion. Fighting witches was kinda meh, though. Needed some added mechanics for it to be a smoother experience.

[@gg1xyhh]

Funfact: "Dæmon" is the Danish word for "Demon" so in the danish versions they're called "daemons" instead

[@lilchristuten7568]

Daemon is the archaic spelling of the word demon, so it really isn't any different.

[@gg1xyhh]

@@lilchristuten7568 True, but if the translators would have kept "dæmon" in the danish version it would've given the readers another understanding of what the "animals" are, when using "daemon" instead, the readers don't necessarily think of the dæmons as being demons eventhough the word for it is basically the same. In other words, not changing the use of "dæmons" in the books would've made the danish readers of the series think of dæmons as being more evil than what english readers would've.

[@lilchristuten7568]

@@gg1xyhh I never read the book or saw the movie and I still think they are evil.

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@lilchristuten7568 so all you know is the name

[@lilchristuten7568]

@@kaitlyn__L Actually I've also seen this video and I know how real demons work.

[@ashessakura7518]

Honestly Dominic, gotta say thanks for the “If you think you might enjoy this stop here” because I genuinely stopped for my 20 minute bus ride home and ultimately decided to read the books because iirc entire parts of the films didn’t make sense which my mum said (years ago) was explained better across the books. So gonna have to put watching this vid on hold while my kindle downloads the trilogy. Still going to thumbs up the vid though

[@nunyab-]

have fun reading! edit: make sure to finish the whole trilogy first; this vid is mostly just about the first book, but it does mention a major plot point that happens towards the end of the third book.

[@mirjanbouma]

Good decision!

[@Dominic-Noble]

I think you're the first person to ever have the self control to do that ^^

[@septickajama12389]

Im sorry to be "that guy" Dom but Romanians and Roma people are not the same. Roma people, or "gypsies" as they are called have no actual connection to Romanians except that Romania,like a number of other countries, has a big population of Roma people. Plus i dont think the name is very original in the book since the word "gypsy" evolved from "egyptian" because medieval europeans thought Roma people are from egypt. So by calling them "gyptians" he just went a few steps back.

[@niauropsaka]

I was looking for this kind of comment. Thanks!

[@kaitlyn__L]

Wait, the line in the video wasn’t sarcasm?

[@septickajama12389]

@@kaitlyn__L oh shit,he might be. I just watched that part again and i cant really tell,but i might be wrong ofcourse,might have just went over my head. I dont think he meant anything wrong by it even if its not sarcastic

[@Carewolf]

Sure, most names in the book are names that were also used in our world at one point, but lost out to what we currently call it. It still bypasses the offensive term but keeps an in universe parallel mislabeling.

[@septickajama12389]

@@Carewolf hm,well look,i dont have a problem with using derogatory terms in fiction if the intention is to point to racism or sth like that. And in the books the gyptians are underprivileged and on the outskirts of society no? So by using the term it doesnt mean the author is racist but simply that his world has racism. But i dont think it bypasses the offensive term at all. To me its as if he took the N-word, but wrote it a just a little bit different. Again i dont have a problem with if the authors intention is not racist,but i think its not that far removed from gypsy to gyptian.

[@frankm.2850]

I remember interpreting Billy’s mom’s words less as a ray of hope and more as a desperate heartbroken parent watching their young child die in their arms. It really wasn’t any better than the way the boy’s death plays out in the book.

[@IsaacIsaacIsaacson]

Fun fact: Gyspy comes from Egypt, due to a mistaken belief that Romani came from Egypt. Gyptians is uh... basically the same thing.

[@hillary96renteria82]

very interesting! i didn’t know that before

[@karinhernmarck8281]

And in Kosovo one of the minorities are still called Egyptians.

[@IsaacIsaacIsaacson]

@Scom Tott Technically, the Romani are of Indian descent.

[@SlavoidUkr]

@Scom Tott Europeans? They come from India. Idk, what are you all on

[@NWolfsson]

I've read the books back-to-back during my end of middle school years, and damn was this movie a glass of tepid water. I feel like the end is the worst offender, since it makes the first movie quite approachable for the younger, by not putting in... basically the introduction to the hardness Lyra will come to live. So if a sequel was to be made, it would either be unrecognizable to appeal to the same public, or a veeeery harsh fall for the people going for another family-friendly movie and starting with family betrayal, and pursuing with all the dark materials of the second book (Let's remember there are ghostly creatures feeding on... people's life force, did I remember it right?)

[@Labinzel]

Well there's always the TV show

[@NWolfsson]

@@Labinzel Oh yes, and I like this one far more, obviously!

[@muraalia]

It also put the sequel (that never came) in a weird spot, it would have had to begin on such a terrible and dramatic moment.

[@sawanna508]

The ghosts are actually feeding on the part of the sole that are the Daemon in Lyra's world. We can't see that because the world with the ghosts is one of those were people have invisble Daemon's like Will's world. There is a scene how ever with a Witch who is giving informations to the enemys because a ghost is attacking her Daemon. -I think the ghosts are a metaphor for mental illnesses.

[@Rimpelmans]

I am glad to hear Sam Elliot was enjoying himself in this movie. His character is my favorite in the books and I am really happy with the way he brought it alive on the screen. Although the movie certainly has it flaws, I am sad I never got to see the full story of Lee Scoresby with Sam playing the character.

[@FlagCutie]

This. I love Lin Manuel Miranda, but when he was announced as Lee for the HBO series I was so disappointed. Sam Elliott WAS Lee.

[@adamgrogory]

2:55 "There's an island called Svalbard" makes it sound like Svalbard isn't a real island. And really, there aren't many people living there irl so who can say that there really isn't a society of Armored Bears there?

[@MegaBanane9]

I mean, people there do need to carry guns when going out to protect themselves against the bears, sooooo

[@Lord_Skeptic]

Svalbard is an archipelago of islands

[@ithemba]

Svalbard had actually a greater population of polar bears than humans a few years ago (don't know if still because of climate change and such) and because of that it was legally required for any person to carry a gun whenever leaving human settlements to fence of attacks. So... Not too far off actually

[@sarahcollins2539]

4:06 Calling Aslan Jesus' fursona is honestly the hottest take I've ever heard and I don't know what to do with this information

[@1234andrewjacksmith]

I mean it is Jesus as a lion, so true statement

[@KOTEBANAROT]

Thats an arctic cold take

[@An_Inconvenience]

Striking while the iron is frozen solid on that one

[@bernebelmont1857]

His fursona is a lamb god damnit

[@HeavyMetalMouse]

​@@bernebelmont1857 You're allowed to have more than one. :)

[@dogfishrulez]

I was curious about the "girl rides a polar bear" movie and took me until my adult years to finally watch it. It was honestly everything my juvenile self would have loved and I'm sad that I wasn't exposed to it sooner. The movie is definitely flawed and the ending was a big disappointment however Sam Elliot was certainly the shining star of the film. Now I'm hooked on the miniseries and can't wait for its conclusion!

[@hamish2601]

While I do think 'His Dark Materials' does actually portray God as the bad guy. As a Catholic myself, it never really bothered me. In fact when I came to that conclusion, it blew my mind, since (unsurprisingly) the idea had never occurred to me before. I still loved the series, of course. It's one of the few that actually made me cry at the end.

[@WhiteDragonOfLight]

Though the ending always seemed Odd, they never gave a good reason why Lyra and Will couldn't stay together in either of their dimensions. Ya Will had his mother I guess but Lyra had zero attachment to her version of London, why didn't she just go with him. Likewise they make a big point of the fact they don't want to leave more then one dimensional cut open, and they want to leave the portal form hell open so the dammed souls can come back, but the multiverse up to that point had a large quantity of cuts open before that, and the specters only started to appear in worlds with many openings. You can't tell me it couldn't support 2...

[@GreenDayFanMT]

Jo, same

[@thomasfplm]

It's been a long time since I read the books, but if I'm not mistaken, kind of there were two "gods", a creator and the "Authority", the creator we don't know about his personality, the "Authority" was a kind of usurper. My take wasn't exactly that god is evil, but that authoritarianism, faith and organised religion are.

[@rdd90]

@@WhiteDragonOfLight They can't live in another world long-term - something about long exposure to another world making them sick, and they would die after about ten years, if I remember correctly. It does seem a bit contrived, though - especially the part where they're allowed to keep precisely one window open, but two would be too many! :D

[@Murky_Heron]

@@thomasfplm just finished rereading the whole series) there was the Authority who claimed to be the creator, but later delegated everything to Metatron who in turn wished to establish total control over the living. The end of the Authority was sad, tense and peaceful at the same time, also striking because the children didn't realise who that was.

[@unluckyrabbitsfoot101]

I just want to make a note, that the supposed spelling of Demon in this Dæmon, pronouned (day mon) (if I remember correctly), is actually a type of spirit from ancient Greek times, and was seen as a protector spirit in many places during that time. (It's super intresting, I totally recommend checking it out)

[@Sigart]

In Danish translations the word was changed, because dæmon is literally just the way we spell demon; it was changed to daimon.

[@yunamchill9169]

In my understanding, the Greek word daemon means guide, which is exactly what they do. But it could very well be protector as well.

[@leeshdee9269]

My copy of the Northern Lights had this "disclaimer" at the very beginning before the first chapter, explaining to the reader that you should be reading it as "day-mon".

[@8114梦见]

I also highly recommend ReligionforBreakfast’s video on the topic :)

[@TheSilverwing999]

It really annoys me because as a dane Dæmon literally means Demon. And I think pullman multiple times clarified that is pronounced as the danish Dæmon. So it annoys me to know end that an author just thought it sounded cool but had no clue what it really meant. I mean the letter Æ looks cool and all (and some might think that it's a cool ancient symbol. Like elon musk), but it's still in use today, and that fact always bothers me.

[@randallcraft4071]

Of course Sam Elliot did good, he got to play a cowboy. That's like his favourite thing!

[@lyreparadox]

+

[@Niobesnuppa]

A cowboy on a flying ship, no less.

[@eamonndeane587]

Unless it's 'The Power of The Dog'

[@cameronpearce5943]

I like the twist on the chose one narrative in that everything Lyra does is of her own accord since she can't know about the prophecy, keeping her agency in tact

[@KaritKtana]

Yes, but then for some reason Pullman subverts the idea of the prophecy when we find out that Lyra did overhear it when they were visiting the Witches' Consul. Having read all the books including the new ones, it's still pretty unclear at times what Pullman is saying there

[@johnoneil9188]

I have a rather odd history with this series. I always heard that the movie did not do the book justice but I never actually watched it and it took me until last year to find the book in our library by accident when I was looking for something new to read. I was very surprised at how dark this story gets at times and how traumatic the experience of being severed from your demon must be. I got a huge respect for writers who can make you deeply empathise with a sensation that you can´t possibly have yourself.

[@bewilderbeastie8899]

I'm still immeasurably depressed about the gay angels and it's been like 17 years since I first read the books

[@lauramcmillan9592]

Absolutely. There was a moment related to that later in the books (won’t detail it because spoilers) that caused me genuine deep grief. I want to re-read the books but I honestly think I would try to skip that part rather than experience it again.

[@Matteus2109]

Jesus Christ, If they had kept that original ending, they'd have a second instalment, no doubt about it. Bloody hell, filmmakers were pussies back then.

[@ksanbahlyngwa1998]

I'd say even now and always.

[@berengustav7714]

There are a few filmakers who have guts and there are a bunch of executives who want as much as money as possible.

[@wileybreanna]

these were my almost exact thoughts on this movie. i remember sitting in the theater going "wait no, where's the ending?!?!"

[@xQueenyBee]

RIP me who read both Narnia and Dark Materials in Elementary.

[@ameldell5180]

A balanced education xD

[@couragew6260]

@@ameldell5180 “Perfectly balanced as all things should be”

[@911nmg]

I drowned in the religious subtext of HDM, I couldn't enjoy that part, that's why the first book is my favourite

[@xQueenyBee]

@@911nmg I liked the first book best because I thought the romance between Lyra and Will was annoying. 😂

[@HarrisBanneck]

A quick question: despite the fact this was a bad/disappointing film, it won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. It beat Pirates of the Caribbean 3 and Transformers. Do you think it deserved the award?

[@Niobesnuppa]

It is a beautiful-looking movie, I definitely think it deserved that, even if the script was a bit of a mess.

[@ozybeastias8893]

Ironically, The VFX of Pirates 3 and Transformers have aged far better than the VFX in this. I don’t really know what happened there.

[@thebaccathatchews]

Sam Elliot and Sam Elliot's Mustache. They're a symbiotic entity.

[@ConniJo]

And Iike them both XD

[@davidmiles1741]

His mustache is his dæmon

[@grayreid7392]

Honestly, I did love the movie when it came out and still rather enjoy but, after reading the first two books much later, NO, they are WORLDS away from eachother. Still like them, but as different entities and definitely not a good adaptation. The hilarious thing about the "atheist propaganda" that was being thrown around made my family laugh. To the point we went to see it in theaters, watched it, and my mother (who grew up Roman Catholic and eventually because Solitary Wiccan) turns to me with an amused expression and asked "So dear, do you want to be an atheist?" Me, the agnostic at the time, must have snorted and went "Oh yes, mother, this movie has shown me the light and converted me to atheism!" It was just a big joke to us, really XD

[@RiveroftheWither]

I was 12 when I came to the realization that I didn't believe in a god or deity of any kind and became Atheist. I was 13-14 when this movie came out, I watched it out of curiosity in regards to "Atheist propaganda" and was thoroughly confused when I found none. It frankly just reminded me of my childhood and talking about god with my dad who believes in a Christian-esque god but doesn't follow any organized religion. Growing up that way didn't "turn" me Atheist but rather allowed me the freedom to think, question and come to my own conclusion about how I feel. Had my dad actually been a Christian I know for a fact I wouldn't have been allowed that freedom as God would have forcibly been shoved down my throat, which is one of the several dangers of organized religion that this series was trying to highlight. The removal free-thought and freedom through indoctrination to instill blind obedience.

[@Thagomizer]

Almost every self-identified agnostic I have ever known has called himself or herself an atheist a few years down the road, if they didn't already use those terms interchangeably.

[@conniecarroll7222]

@@Thagomizer well I was a agnostic around 14 stopped going to our church, mostly because I didn't like their politics. I turned full atheist when I was 30 due to a personal experience and have never looked back.

[@amberpage7936]

Please do a lost in adaptation on the BBC series when the third season has come out!! I think the series is so good!

[@ThaliaVSD]

I remember being a ten year old when this movie came out and I absolutely loved it, I loved Lyra and loved how she looked like me with the wild curly hair hermione never let me see on the screen. As a kid with no understanding of cinema, the fantasy of the movie had the coolest mix of magic and technology and while I read the books, a lot of it went above my 10yo head so the movie continued being my dream. It’s so nostalgic, the flaws for me are just part of why it’s so precious to me

[@EleiyaUmei]

Same, I still hold the movie dear to my heart after having read the books, mostly because I love the aesthetic, worldbuilding and casting so much ^-^

[@CristalianaIvor]

Same and I was just like "oh I can't wait for the next movie!" :)

[@azdajajeanne]

16:27 According to the DVD's special features, they changed his name because they were concerned a casual viewer would confuse Iorek and Iofur if their names were too similar.

Yeah heard that as well, but still stupid as they only share one syllable. It’s not like they had the same family name either.

@@morinomajou Yet they only said "Aruman" vs "Saruman" about half the time, so probably just confused people even more.

[@juliakauffman3639]

I read his dark materials when I was about 12 and always wondered first why the film just ended before the end and also why they didn't make any more. so this is nice to know. Good video!

[@MelonTartVA]

From the footage you showed while talking about the ending, it looks like they were planning to make it. I honestly would've liked to have seen that ending cuz the film ended on a massive cliffhanger. More than the book did.

[@ADTillion]

The video game adaptation actually has the proper sequence of events, as well as the deleted scenes, but unfortunately stops right after Lyra crosses the bridge and sees the peak. Those would’ve been the illustrated parts. But Dom mentioned that he got that portion from a YT video, so you can try that.

[@Ugly_German_Truths]

"massive Cliffhanger" sounds like the kind of thing that gives movie studio executives a Moneyboner though... if they can turn a 3 book series into 5 movies AND hope for the audience to come back in droves as they ALL end in cliffhangers, they've hit the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow so to speak.

[@Tustin2121]

Yeah, calling it a “massive cliffhanger” is giving the movie more credit than it deserves. The book had a massive cliffhanger that pulled me into reading the next book immediately. The movie just stops. It reminds me of this one audio book I was listening to once, where bafflingly the author decided to split up the audio book into two parts when the original book was all in one. And it really soured me on the whole thing when the audio book ran out in the middle of the rising action and part 2 wasn’t even out yet. People, that’s now how stories work! You can’t just fecking cut away parts of a story!!

[@MelonTartVA]

@@ADTillion true. And I know some of the clips were from the trailers. It sucks that they clearly had the ending done and ready to go before someone on staff decided to cut it and plan to use it as the beginning of the planned sequel

[@persefoniajax]

I offer up this comment as a sacrifice to our algorithm overlords.

[@jacobvardy]

Ha! That's normally my line.

[@PrincessColumbidae]

I offer this reply

[@nicolaezenoaga9756]

''Blood for the blood god! Skulls for the skull thrown!''

[@eldorados_lost_searcher]

All hail.

[@dominictemple]

All hail the algorithmic lords on behalf of my more famous namesake.

[@PrincessLilLaraCroft]

This book series is one of my fav ever! Thank you for finally covering it. I hope you do the series on it next.

[@CalliopePony]

Even if the reason for the change was kind of stupid I really think "The Golden Compass" is a much better title than "Northern Lights". The phrase "northern lights" is so ubiquitous that a google search brings up results about astronomy, travel, and a variety of products and businesses that use it in their names. The phrase "golden compass" is much more distinctive and memorable.

[@KristofskiKabuki]

But Northern Lights has a drama and romance that The Golden Compass is lacking. If you want to find the book just google "Northern Lights book"

[@CalliopePony]

It's not a question of not being able to find it. My point was that one is generic and the other is distinctive. "Better" is very subjective, so if you like the original title more that's fine.

[@worrywirt]

Plus I think it works better with the rest of the series also named after objects (the subtle knife, the amber spyglass), thus completing the trifecta

[@leeshdee9269]

@@worrywirt I agree. The series is called "His Dark MATERIALS". The second and third books are named after things, materials, and yet you have this random one called the Northern Lights. I'm from Australia so I read "The Northern Lights", which came in a pretty box with the second and third books, and even as a kid I was confused about how that was a material.

[@KristofskiKabuki]

@@CalliopePony I don't think "northern lights" is any more generic than "the golden compass". In fact it might be less generic cos I could probably quite easily see a golden compass if I really wanted to.

[@vbph2011]

Related to books turned into TV and movies, you should absolutely do the BBC version of Chronicles of Narnia. That stuff was my childhood.

[@Lia-uf1ir]

The BBC version of His Dark Materials is so much better! Please review it as well. 🙂

[@beccag2758]

I haven’t seen the BBC Narnia series, personally I couldn’t get past how the animals look. I am under the impression the series are much more book accurate however

[@NIRDIAN1]

Muppet Lion was SO SOFT!!! :D

[@GriffinPilgrim]

Mine too. Also Dom's; I believe he mentioned it when he did the films.

[@oomflem]

The BBC Narnia hits an odd balance of being downright terrible in terms of child acting and special effects, but is still genuinely charming somehow. When I go back to it, I can't stop laughing, but I don't hate it or anything, and it has a fond place in my childhood memories. Also I prefer their version of the White Witch to Tilda Swinton's. I do think the Dawn Treader follow-up is pretty dreadful though. I'm impressed they even attempted adapting it on that budget.

[@interro_liv9185]

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! Definitely one of the main movie/book adaptations I was hoping you would do some day. This was one of my favorite series since childhood and the movie killed a large portion of my soul.

[@Katy133]

Thank you so much for this episode. I remember watching The Golden Compass when I was younger, and I think it was my first introduction to the concept of "sequel-baiting" in a film. A thing that still irks me to this day, but I'm glad to hear that HBO's His Dark Materials adaption was better-received by the books' fans.

[@kimberlyraeroley4634]

His Dark Materials is my absolute favorite book series. I read it when I took an entire class on Pullman at university...a class I only took on a whim to fulfill certain credit requirements. Mid series I tripped on mushrooms and had a spiritual connection with Iorek the armored bear. Loved polar bears ever since.

[@zaighnut]

Ha! I vaguely remember this movie being played in the background while visiting a friend when she, who had read the books as a child, suddenly stopped talking, looked at the screen and started swearing because they cut the ending. I was so intrigued by her reaction that I sought out the books and I am pretty sure I would have had the exact reaction if I had seen the movie after reading the book 😂 I do love the BBC adaptation, though, not only because the production value is fantastic but because they have been faithful to the book (and OMG, Ruth Wilson steals every single scene she's in) I loved the books

[@norahsullivan9716]

I find it very ironic that my incredibly Catholic grandmother was the one to introduce me to this series. Still don't know how she enjoyed it.

[@ADTillion]

That could mean she’s confident enough in her faith that fantasy stories criticising the Church are hardly worth getting offended over. Heck, I enjoy plenty of Judeo-Christian movies like The Ten Commandments for their own merits.

[@lovablesnowman]

Because it's not an anti Catholic book per say.

[@justmanic9673]

@@lovablesnowman Can I ask why you think mocking christianity is okay but Islam and Judaism is a no go?

[@lovablesnowman]

@@justmanic9673 have you seen the political climate? Lol

[@justmanic9673]

@@lovablesnowman Unfortunately yes

[@jackkain7141]

I would love to see you review the BBC series. Addresses a lot of your frustrations and while it does suffer from some of the limitations of being a TV series in terms of its depiction of the world, those limitations aren't as bad as in the past. Plus it allows you to go through the rest of the trilogy (or will when season 3 comes out)

[@anastasiagreen666]

highly recommend the bbc adaptation, there's only 2 seasons out so far but as an overly attached fan of the books i couldn't be happier with it, and i'm so excited to see them bring the amber spyglass to life

[@propogandalf]

As an overly attached fan I find the BBC series disappointing and actually prefer the movie

[@robertgronewold3326]

Fun fact. The second book caused me to break a light fixture and a hand in my bedroom. I was given the full Omnibus edition of the trilogy for Christmas in 2007, complete with a sticker on front saying that it was now a major motion picture, though thankfully with original artwork. When I read the Subtle Knife, I found the idea of the knife so fascinating that I sort of mimed opening a doorway between worlds with it, and in effect smashed my knuckles into a low hanging fixture, broke it and my knuckles and watched as a small explosion of sparks and shattered glass fell over my bed. I live with no regrets. hahaha