Lyra versus the monkey
We went to the cinema to see The Golden Compass today, I enjoyed it but feel that it could have been a bit better than it was. It felt a bit rushed to me, but that could be because I've just been reading the books and am used to their slower pacing and slightly more complex unfolding of events. I do think some things needed to be made clearer in the film - the distance limit between human and daemon for one, which is an important feature of the books but was very obscure in the movie. Also Salcilia is frequently a sparrow in the book but seemed to spend most of her time as a dog in this version.
And the ending is not the same as in the book, it stops earlier on, meaning that they have to make the sequel or you'll never find out what happens.