Allow me to get on my liberal high horse, but I think we need more films like “The Golden Compass.” Though writer-director Weitz was pressured by many executives to tone down the heavy anti-religious subtext from the books, I think we need more films that can allow our children to think outside the box and re-examine the religious beliefs they were given, had enforced on them, and were conditioned to subscribe to. There should be more material available to children offering them options that could help them question, instead of mediocre films like “The Chronicles of Narnia” with permissible heavy religious overtones. “The Golden Compass” is sadly a film with the right idea, but a pretty sub-par end result. I think even with an incredible movie, Weitz’s efforts would have gone unsuccessful.

Liberal bullshit. Commentaries on the corruption of organized religion. Demonic praising! And the fun doesn’t stop there you Christian, folkels. “The Golden Compass” is a lot like “The Chronicles of Narnia.” It’s pandering. It’s blatant. And it’s effects heavy, thinly drawn fantasy. As someone always up for an allegory about the ill effects of Religion, “The Golden Compass” is trimmed to enough effect to completely avoid the commentary, and yet it’s still pretty much a noticeable undercoating with some interesting theories about reality. So what went wrong? Firstly, it’s pretty nonsensical. I couldn’t understand most of it, personally, maybe I’m just channeling an ol’ fashioned Christian feller, but I didn’t know what was happening in the first fifteen minutes, for corn sake. Weitz presents so much unexplained plot elements and devices before the first twenty minutes, leaving the audience to feel incredibly out of the loop, almost as if we’re walking in to the middle of the story.

“The Golden Compass” has an unnecessarily convoluted plot about an alternate reality of Europe run by an organization called the Magesterium. Their best scientist is about to prove that there are in fact called other worlds. The Magisterium wants to stop him and fails to do so through violent methods. But to avoid “free thinking” and “heretics,” they want to stop this link to other worlds from undermining their teachings and gospel. I love the heavy subtext, but sadly the film lacks any sort of focus or courage in its message. While “The Chronicles of Narnia” carried the heavy story of Jesus Christ, and his resurrection through symbolism, “The Golden Compass” makes it much harder to explore these themes of religious ignorance and the proverbial mission to keep followers ignorant and all loyal. While religious adults will scoff off the message, writer Weitz allow them to completely scoff the message off for their children who will be more interested in watching polar bears battle, rather than being aware of the undertones.

I was very conflicted with “The Golden Compass.” While I loved its willingness to confront organized religion in all of its ugliness, I disliked it for not doing enough of it, I enjoyed the visuals, but the convoluted and broad story left me looking from the outside in. While not a masterpiece, it’s definitely a film worth analyzing and experiencing.