A tale of bravery and friendship

The Golden Compass

A fantasy movie that champions free will and friendship, The Golden Compass - despite not doing very well at the US box office - is surprisingly entertaining and inspiring.

Adapted from Northern Lights, the first novel in Philip Pullman's acclaimed fantasy trilogy His Dark Materials, the film features a magical world of witches, talking bears (which fight like sumo wrestlers in one breathtaking action scene) and a parallel world where human souls are manifested in the form of animals.

Don't write this movie off as another Narnia. The Golden Compass, directed by Chris Weitz (American Pie), is not escapist entertainment for children. The plot is apparently straightforward: a feisty heroine, Lyra (played by newcomer Dakota Blue Richards), sets off on a dangerous journey to save a friend kidnapped by Gobblers, a band of mysterious children-snatchers.

Accompanying the girl is an armoured bear (voiced by Ian McKellen), a beautiful witch, Serafina (Eva Green), an old pilot Lee Scoresby (Sam Elliott) and a device - given to Lyra by her uncle Lord Asriel (Daniel Craig) - known as the Golden Compass, which predicts the future and tells the truth.

The villains are Mrs Coulter (Nicole Kidman) and the officers who work in a dictatorial organisation known as the Magisterium, which represents organised religion.