The root themes of Philip Pullman’s classic tale are the struggle between good and evil, the abuse of power and the rejection of organized religion. The film adaptation of “The Golden Compass,” written and directed by Chris Weitz, brings to life the young Lyra’s journey and fight against evil, against stunning Northern Lights and chilling territory.
The cast includes Nicole Kidman as the film’s villain, Marisa Coulter; Dakota Blue Richards as the young protagonist Lyra Belacqua; Daniel Craig as Lyra’s uncle, Lord Asriel; and Eva Green as the queen of witches.

In the parallel universe within “The Golden Compass,” peoples’ souls live outside their bodies in the form of an animal, called a daemon, that changes shape throughout childhood until settling into a solid articulation of the self. The spirit animals will mirror the child’s characteristics and potential, and each human relies heavily on the connection with the external extensions of the self. These animal souls are connected to their person for their entire lives, and offer some guidance and protection. The two are so inextricably linked that if one dies, so does the other immediately.
The golden compass, or the alethiometer, is not a physical direction-telling device, but a truth-teller. Lyra is presented with the challenge of reading the alethiometer and using that truth to save her best friend and other kidnaped children and to put an end to the devastating experiments that the kids and their daemons are being subjected to.
Before setting out to take on the seemingly impossible feat of breaking her friends away from the powerful and mysterious organization, Lyra receives a crucial tool.
“It’s an alethiometer. It tells the truth. You are meant to have it. You keep the alethiometer to yourself; it’s of the utmost importance to yourself, to all of us, and perhaps to all creation,” the Master of Jordan instructs Lyra.
The release of “The Golden Compass” is creating a stir. The 2005 holiday release of “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” garnered attention because of the overtly religious themes, originally found in the C.S. Lewis book the movie is adapted from. “The Golden Compass” is generating controversy because Pullman’s trilogy, beginning with “The Golden Compass,” has decidedly anti-religious themes as major factors in the plot. The series is titled “His Dark Materials,” and has plot lines involving Lyra’s quest to eliminate a god-like figure.
The Catholic League and several other religious organizations have called for a boycott of the film. Warnings to parents are circulating online that if children are exposed to the film, they will want to read the trilogy, where they will be exposed to “dangerous” atheist ideas.
In response to the outcries, and to not spoil the possibilities of high box office incomes, the director and the production company New Line Cinemas have toned down any anti-religious subjects. The script has been rewritten so that religious themes, and God specifically, will not be openly referred to.
Despite any possible censorship, the story line and visual effects suggest that “The Golden Compass” will be not just another tedious, kids-only holiday movie. For those worried about spoiling the novel by watching the movie first, there are still eight days to catch up before its nationwide release on Dec. 7.
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