Christian groups slam new Kidman children's movie

[pedroh 21]

Christian Groups are up in arms here over a new children's film starring Nicole Kidman and based on an award-winning novel by British author Philip Pullman, accusing it of being anti-religious.

"The Golden Compass" which opens here Friday is the film version of "The Northern Lights," the first book in Pullman's "Dark Materials" fantasy trilogy aimed at teenage readers.

The books by confirmed agnostic Pullman trace the fate of a young girl, Lyra, as she becomes drawn into an apocalyptic battle of good against evil, meeting a host of strange characters along the way including a polar bear, voiced in the film by Ian McKellan.

Evil in Pullman's books is represented by the church, called the Magisterium, whose acolytes kidnap orphans across England to subject them to horrible experiments in the frozen northern wastelands.

"The Northern Lights" won Pullman the 1995 Carnegie Medal for children's fiction in Britain, and the final volume in his trilogy, "The Amber Spyglass" was the first ever children's novel to be awarded the prestigious British Whitbread Book of the Year award in 2002.

With its 180-million-dollar big budget movie, New Line studios is hoping to repeat the box-office success of its "Lord of the Rings" series.

And it aims to tap into the young audiences of cinema-goers who flocked to the five "Harry Potter" films making them big earners for Warner Bros.

But already "The Golden Compass" is whipping up the same controversy which saw the "Harry Potter" series based on the novels by British author J. K Rowling, accused by some on the religious right of promoting witchcraft.

The author's attack on organized religion has been toned down for the film, in a bid to attract as wide as audience as possible, something director Chris Weitz has acknowledged.

"In the books the Magisterium is a version of the Catholic Church gone wildly astray from its roots," Weitz wrote in the British Daily Telegraph.

But "if that's what you want in the film, you'll be disappointed," he warned.

However, the sanitized version of Pullman's book has failed to appease the Catholic League, which gathers some 350,000 members, and which has already been sending out leaflets denouncing the film.

"The Catholic League wants Christians to stay away from this movie precisely because it knows that the film is bait for the books," said president William Donohue.

"Unsuspecting parents who take their children to see the movie may be impelled to buy the three books as a Christmas present. And no parent who wants to bring their children up in the faith will want any part of these books," he added.

The League already took on the movie world in 2006 to denounce the blockbuster "The Da Vinci Code" and its central tenant that Jesus Christ had a child by Mary Magdalene whose descendants still survive today.

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops however has been more nuanced in its approach warning in a review of "The Golden Compass" of its "anti-clerical subtext, standard genre occult elements, character born out of wedlock, a whiskey-guzzling bear."

But it adds that "taken purely on its own cinematic terms, (it) can be viewed as an exciting adventure story with a traditional struggle between good and evil, and a generalized rejection of authoritarianism."

"The Golden Compass" will be released in some 3,000 cinemas and only 60 have so far refused to screen it, according to the industry daily Variety.

"It's this undisguised anti-religious theme that has numerous groups in a lather, but perhaps more of an issue for some ... will be the film's lack of exciting uplift and the almost unrelievedly nasty treatment of the young characters by a host of aggressively unpleasant elders," Variety added.

--------------------------

and that movie looks awesome, and my wife told me the books are very good

[Mags 112]

Ironically enough, the Archbishop of Canterbury (C of E) has praised the books and thinks they are wonderful. He has even suggested they should be used in Religious Education in the UK.

An interesting read.

Edited December 6, 2007 by Mags

[pedroh 21]

Ironically enough, the Archbishop of Canterbury (C of E) has praised the books and thinks they are wonderful. He has even suggested they should be used in Religious Education in the UK.

An interesting read.

yea but thats in Uk.. these stupid protests are in America, where kids can become atheists thanks to a book

[Mags 112]

Ironically enough, the Archbishop of Canterbury (C of E) has praised the books and thinks they are wonderful. He has even suggested they should be used in Religious Education in the UK.

An interesting read.

yea but thats in Uk.. these stupid protests are in America, where kids can become atheists thanks to a book

Oh I know, I just thought it was an interesting comparison to the way the Catholic Church has reacted - which is in an entirely oppositional manner. The thing is, all this will do is send more people to see the film, which can only be a good thing in my eyes, cause the books are fabulous.

[StillThePrettiest 3]

*sigh*

I get so sick of Christians sometimes... and I am one, so that's a bit problematic

[maryandatif 0]

We went to a sneek preview of it last Saturday---Great movie.

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

*sigh*

I get so sick of Christians sometimes... and I am one, so that's a bit problematic

Let 'em protest. When they start suicide bombing movie theaters or beheading people give me a call.

[peejay 327]

LOL.. ####### is wrong with these people

Where was the outrage when the Muslims wanted to beat (and some wanted to execute) the woman for naming the Teddy Bear "Mohammed"?

Geez! In a democracy people are allowed to peacefully protest anything they want...including Christians. What is the harm in that? It isn't as if they are calling for Kidman to be jailed, beaten, or killed.

However, back on topic. My take on it is if they don't like the film...don't go see it.

[pedroh 21]

LOL.. ####### is wrong with these people

Where was the outrage when the Muslims wanted to beat (and some wanted to execute) the woman for naming the Teddy Bear "Mohammed"?

Geez! In a democracy people are allowed to peacefully protest anything they want...including Christians. What is the harm in that? It isn't as if they are calling for Kidman to be jailed, beaten, or killed.

However, back on topic. My take on it is if they don't like the film...don't go see it.

well, that teddy bear thingie was in a weird ####### country with a crazy govt.. not in America..

but, I don't have a problem with the protest itself.. but rather the reasons to it.. just plain ridiculous.. any reason to make kids stop reading good books is ridiculous, is not that kids are reading too much nowadays

[Otto 83]

Well gee...nothing like Church-driven-publicity to fill the theater seats...

[Emancipation 2]

Well gee...nothing like Church-driven-publicity to fill the theater seats...

Exactly what happened with The Da Vinci Code

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

*sigh*

I get so sick of Christians sometimes... and I am one, so that's a bit problematic

Some branches of the Christian religion, specifically in the United States, owe more to Old Testament Judaism than New Testament Christianity. In my experience the folks who make a big deal about things like this are Christians in name only - but that's about it.

[peejay 327]

.. any reason to make kids stop reading good books is ridiculous, is not that kids are reading too much nowadays.

I agree with you there. I have city and county library cards and have used both for many, many years. It's the key to a free education...even for those that cannot afford to get a university degree.

[pedroh 21]

.. any reason to make kids stop reading good books is ridiculous, is not that kids are reading too much nowadays.

I agree with you there. I have city and county library cards and have used both for many, many years. It's the key to a free education...even for those that cannot afford to get a university degree.

they just try to find excuses to stop kids from reading.. omg harry potter is satanic (he's emo though, that's a good reason to stop reading it.. emo /wrist!!) omg this book is homosexual, omg this and that.. let them read!! knowledge is power

[Ban Hammer 13,346]

*sigh*

I get so sick of Christians sometimes... and I am one, so that's a bit problematic

Let 'em protest. When they start suicide bombing movie theaters or beheading people give me a call.

ditto