We saw the Golden Compass tonight - cougarguard.com — unofficial BYU Cougars / LDS sports, football, basketball forum and message board

creekster · 12-08-2007, 04:18 AM

After viewing it my 10 year old vowed never to recite the pledge of allegiance again and has run away to join a Godless Marxist commune.

It was a pretty good film. Visually it was very well done. The plot moves a little too quickly if you have read the book and you miss a lot of the development and background from the book, but it still makes sense and is relatively easy to follow.

The acting was very good and I thought the girl that played Lyra was excellent. IN fact, I really liked all the actors except Nicole Kidman, whom I have never liked in anything except The Others, so take that criticism with a grain of salt.

It is rated PG-13 but I am not sure why. I had no problem with my relatively protected 10 year old being there and I would think this would be fine for all but the much younger children.

I give it 4 stars. Joe Bob says Check it out.

Btw, the people that tell you to avoid it because it will lead you to atheism are nuts, or else they have not seen the movie. In fact, at least this movie makes the point about religion (or more accurately about institutions that hypocritically rob you of free will and independence) in an easy-to-see -coming way. I find the much more dangerous attacks on my family's values to be found in media sources like the Disney Channel with its assaults on a normal nuclear family, and I am not kidding about this (I have said this before, and I believe it is true). Nothing in this movie is a threat to anyone in any religion.

TripletDaddy · 12-08-2007, 04:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by creekster

After viewing it my 10 year old vowed never to recite the pledge of allegiance again and has run away to join a Godless Marxist commune.

It was a pretty good film. Visually it was very well done. The plot moves a little too quickly if you have read the book and you miss a lot of the development and background from the book, but it still makes sense and is relatively easy to follow.

The acting was very good and I thought the girl that played Lyra was excellent. IN fact, I really liked all the actors except Nicole Kidman, whom I have never liked in anything except The Others, so take that criticism with a grain of salt.

It is rated PG-13 but I am not sure why. I had no problem with my relatively protected 10 year old being there and I would think this would be fine for all but the much younger children.

I give it 4 stars. Joe Bob says Check it out.

Btw, the people that tell you to avoid it because it will lead you to atheism are nuts, or else they have not seen the movie. In fact, at least this movie makes the point about religion (or more accurately about institutions that hypocritically rob you of free will and independence) in an easy-to-see -coming way. I find the much more dangerous attacks on my family's values to be found in media sources like the Disney Channel with its assaults on a normal nuclear family, and I am not kidding about this (I have said this before, and I believe it is true). Nothing in this movie is a threat to anyone in any religion.

I am actually anxious to see it. Appreciate the objective review.

My guess is that everyone involved with the movie has just sat back all month laughing at all the free pub this flick has enjoyed at the hands of the extremists.

Nicole Kidman has been box office anathema lately. People would be better off protesting her than the movie.

RockyBalboa · 12-08-2007, 04:24 AM

The movie looks dull and boring.

Meh, I'll pass.

JohnnyLingo · 12-08-2007, 04:26 AM

Obviously the people sending e-mails about how this movie promotes atheist values were basing that on the books.

They didn't realize the movie would have a lot of the religious stuff removed.

Yes, they were wrong, but not maliciously so.

RC Vikings · 12-08-2007, 04:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by creekster

the Disney Channel with its assaults on a normal nuclear family, and I am not kidding about this (I have said this before, and I believe it is true). Nothing in this movie is a threat to anyone in any religion.

I never noticed that but thinking back on the Disney movies by kids use to watch I can't think I one where it had a Dad, Mom and children as the main characters.

TripletDaddy · 12-08-2007, 05:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RC Vikings

I never noticed that but thinking back on the Disney movies by kids use to watch I can't think I one where it had a Dad, Mom and children as the main characters.

One of my favorite Disney moments is in Sleeping Beauty. My kids have that DVD and watch it often. There is this one part where the main witch casts this spell and she says "AND ALL THE POWERS OF HELL!"

I always find it funny that you can say something in a Disney cartoon that you cannot say on Cougarboard.

SteelBlue · 12-08-2007, 05:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnnyLingo

Obviously the people sending e-mails about how this movie promotes atheist values were basing that on the books.

They didn't realize the movie would have a lot of the religious stuff removed.

Yeah right. Those who are railing against it in my neck of the woods haven't read the books. They're just the type of people who believe what they read in email forwards.

JohnnyLingo · 12-08-2007, 06:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteelBlue

Yeah right. Those who are railing against it in my neck of the woods haven't read the books. They're just the type of people who believe what they read in email forwards.

Well whoever wrote the first e-mail read the books.

And I read them after seeing the first preview for The Golden Compass. I'm sure a lot of other people did, too.

It was a fairly popular series even before this year.

creekster · 12-08-2007, 06:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnnyLingo

Well whoever wrote the first e-mail read the books.

And I read them after seeing the first preview for The Golden Compass. I'm sure a lot of other people did, too.

It was a fairly popular series even before this year.

Do you find that the e-mail is accurate? I know we differ in our view of these books, but I don't think the e-mail is fair or accurate and I do find that it is fear-mongering and misleading.

Lord of the Rings is godless. SO are many popular books. What about Alice in Wonderland? I don't think most kids have a hard time telling fantasy from reality if they are helped through it by parents. I also don't think they have a hard time telling fiction from sacred myth, if you will, and I think that their testimonies of divinity will be nurtured and will grow better if their intellect is encouraged and broadened (in appropriate ways) rather than stifled. I am pretty conservative with my kids, Johnny, and I find nothing whatsoever objectionable about the books or the movie.

JohnnyLingo · 12-08-2007, 06:46 AM

That's just it, Pullman's books are not godless.

They portray god as an out-of-touch old man who needs to be put out of his misery. They portray god's archangel as an evil being bent on dominating mankind and making them miserable.

If you find nothing harmless in the books, that's fine. That's your opinion.

Mine doesn't coincide, but we've gone these rounds.

12-08-2007, 04:18 AM	#1
creekster Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: the far corner of my mind Posts: 8,711	We saw the Golden Compass tonight After viewing it my 10 year old vowed never to recite the pledge of allegiance again and has run away to join a Godless Marxist commune. It was a pretty good film. Visually it was very well done. The plot moves a little too quickly if you have read the book and you miss a lot of the development and background from the book, but it still makes sense and is relatively easy to follow. The acting was very good and I thought the girl that played Lyra was excellent. IN fact, I really liked all the actors except Nicole Kidman, whom I have never liked in anything except The Others, so take that criticism with a grain of salt. It is rated PG-13 but I am not sure why. I had no problem with my relatively protected 10 year old being there and I would think this would be fine for all but the much younger children. I give it 4 stars. Joe Bob says Check it out. Btw, the people that tell you to avoid it because it will lead you to atheism are nuts, or else they have not seen the movie. In fact, at least this movie makes the point about religion (or more accurately about institutions that hypocritically rob you of free will and independence) in an easy-to-see -coming way. I find the much more dangerous attacks on my family's values to be found in media sources like the Disney Channel with its assaults on a normal nuclear family, and I am not kidding about this (I have said this before, and I believe it is true). Nothing in this movie is a threat to anyone in any religion. __________________ Sorry for th e tpyos.

12-08-2007, 04:24 AM	#3
RockyBalboa Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Salt Lake City Posts: 7,297	The movie looks dull and boring. Meh, I'll pass. __________________ Masquerading as Cougarguards very own genius dumbass since 05'.

12-08-2007, 04:26 AM	#4
JohnnyLingo Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 2,175	Obviously the people sending e-mails about how this movie promotes atheist values were basing that on the books. They didn't realize the movie would have a lot of the religious stuff removed. Yes, they were wrong, but not maliciously so.

12-08-2007, 06:46 AM	#10
JohnnyLingo Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 2,175	That's just it, Pullman's books are not godless. They portray god as an out-of-touch old man who needs to be put out of his misery. They portray god's archangel as an evil being bent on dominating mankind and making them miserable. If you find nothing harmless in the books, that's fine. That's your opinion. Mine doesn't coincide, but we've gone these rounds.