The Golden Compass and Joan Rivers
So I saw the Golden Compass last night. Here are my thoughts:
It's been a while since I've read the book, but from what I recall, they managed to make a pretty solid adaptation. The anti-church stuff was not very downplayed at ALL, which surprised me a lot. Any adult watching the movie would understand EXACTLY what message was being conveyed. Kids, probably not so much. The language used was still fairly subtle. I think the plot was simplified (necessarily) a bit. The explanation of dust was very short and went by quickly (although it was concise and done well) and the whole cliffhanger ending was cut and replaced by a "Wait, what? It's over?" ending. All the Svalbard stuff was condensed, but taken care of within the plot pretty well. The bear fight scene was done wonderfully, and was nothing short of kickass. Kinda hated the fact that Iorek was played by Gandalf -- poor casting there. Liked the guy who played Scoresby, and Coulter and Lyra were perfect casting jobs. Really, overall, I think it was very well-done, and I was pleasantly surprised.
Also, apparently, Joan Rivers is on stage before we are at the Cutting Room the 19th. How hilarious is that?
It's been a while since I've read the book, but from what I recall, they managed to make a pretty solid adaptation. The anti-church stuff was not very downplayed at ALL, which surprised me a lot. Any adult watching the movie would understand EXACTLY what message was being conveyed. Kids, probably not so much. The language used was still fairly subtle. I think the plot was simplified (necessarily) a bit. The explanation of dust was very short and went by quickly (although it was concise and done well) and the whole cliffhanger ending was cut and replaced by a "Wait, what? It's over?" ending. All the Svalbard stuff was condensed, but taken care of within the plot pretty well. The bear fight scene was done wonderfully, and was nothing short of kickass. Kinda hated the fact that Iorek was played by Gandalf -- poor casting there. Liked the guy who played Scoresby, and Coulter and Lyra were perfect casting jobs. Really, overall, I think it was very well-done, and I was pleasantly surprised.
Also, apparently, Joan Rivers is on stage before we are at the Cutting Room the 19th. How hilarious is that?