THERE ARE WORLDS BEYOND OUR OWN – THE COMPASS WILL SHOW THE WAY.

Twelve-year-old Lyra Belacqua (Dakota Blue Richards) lives at a college in Oxford; when her next of kin, an explorer (Daniel Craig), embarks on a new adventure, a mysterious woman (Nicole Kidman) arrives at the school… Anti-intellectual Catholics tried to convince people to stay away from this adaptation of the popular Philip Pullman novel because it is “anti-God”. Actually, the movie doesn’t bother much with religion at all, even though Pullman must have been inspired by C.S. Lewis. Excellent visual effects and a very good performance by Kidman… but the story is rather slight.

2007-U.S. 118 min. Color. Widescreen. Written and directed by Chris Weitz. Novel: Philip Pullman. Cast: Nicole Kidman (Marisa Coulter), Dakota Blue Richards (Lyra Belacqua), Daniel Craig (Lord Asriel), Sam Elliott, Eva Green, Christopher Lee… Tom Courtenay, Derek Jacobi. Voices of Ian McKellen, Ian McShane, Freddie Highmore, Kathy Bates, Kristin Scott Thomas.

Trivia: The original, British title of the novel is “Northern Lights”. Tom Stoppard originally adapted it, but his work was rejected by Weitz. The novel has also been adapted for the stage.

Oscar: Best Visual Effects. BAFTA: Best Special Visual Effects.

IMDb