Cinema Hype

I don’t think it’s going out on a limb to say that 99.999% of the time, any story is better told in print than on film. It’s a tough dichotomy for the screenwriters and art directors to handle: as a culture, we’re eager to see our favorite books played out on the big screen, but someone else’s views of those books hardly ever equal what we come up with in our own minds—the people never look quite right, the scenery is all off, and don’t even get me started on action sequences.

I suspect, however, that the upcoming adaptation of Philip Pullman’s incredibly popular novel The Golden Compass–the first in the His Dark Materials trilogy–is going to be one of those exceptional movies that proves the rule. There, I said it. I think I’m going to like the movie better than the novel. Please don’t throw garbage at me.

I should start by admitting that I’m setting the bar pretty low, here: I wasn’t fond of the book in the first place. I finished it, I thought the story was fine, but I’m perfectly happy to leave The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass alone. However, nearly all of my problems with The Golden Compass stemmed from Pullman’s prose—namely, the fact that he needs a fearless editor, or possibly a ninth-grade English teacher—and not the plot, or even the characters. Therefore, having the same story told in someone else’s voice sounds like a pretty good deal to me. Plus: armored polar bears. Who doesn’t like a good armored polar bear?

Regarding actors, while I’m a little skeptical of the willy-nilly casting of Nicole Kidman in every movie, I think she’s an excellent choice to play Mrs. Coulter—she may be just a wee bit old for the role, but nobody will notice (Did I just say that about fantasy fans? These words will be delicious later, I can tell.), and there just aren’t that many women in Hollywood who can be so effortlessly evil. If the cosmic They had asked me–they’ll learn someday, but until then they’ll have to just live with their mistakes–I might have suggested Amy Acker as an alternative. But Kidman’s everywhere for a reason. She’ll be great and terrifying, and will also probably scar an entire generation for life.

I’m excited, and I’ll be even more excited when the preview comes out (possibly in time for the 2006 Christmas rush, since the movie comes out during the 2007 Christmas rush). Bring on the polar bears!