Does this scenario sound familiar? Movie studio bets the house on a beloved epic fantasy trilogy, filling fans of the novels with as much breathless anticipation as dread.
The studio is the same: New Line Cinema. But adapting "The Golden Compass" -- the first in Philip Pullman's complex and heady series "His Dark Materials" -- is far trickier a gamble than "The Lord of the Rings." This time around, New Line's grappling with a story that many perceive as anti-religious, written by an outspoken atheist who merges fairy tale characters with Christian theology, quantum physics and Nietzschean pondering. And it has entrusted the $180-million, special effects-heavy production to Chris Weitz, a director best known for his romantic comedies.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Tuesday, October 30, 2007 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 42 words Type of Material: Correction
'The Golden Compass': An article in Sunday's Calendar section about "The Golden Compass" said Kyle Good was a producer of the film. Good is the vice president of corporate communication for Scholastic Publishing. The film's producers are Deborah Forte and Bill Carraro.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Sunday, November 04, 2007 Home Edition Sunday Calendar Part E Page 2 Calendar Desk 1 inches; 44 words Type of Material: Correction
"The Golden Compass": An article last Sunday about "The Golden Compass" incorrectly identified Kyle Good as a producer of the film. Good is the vice president of corporate communications and media relations for Scholastic Corp. The film's producers are Deborah Forte and Bill Carraro.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Sunday, November 04, 2007 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 44 words Type of Material: Correction
'The Golden Compass': An article in the Oct. 28 Calendar section about "The Golden Compass" said Kyle Good was a producer of the film. Good is the vice president of corporate communication for Scholastic Publishing. The film's producers are Deborah Forte and Bill Carraro.
All this leaves New Line in a precarious spot, trying to please fans who relish Pullman's philosophical and theological puzzles without alienating the very bankable Christian masses.
Predictably, the film, opening Dec. 7, already has raised the ire of one outspoken conservative, Catholic League President William Donahue. Earlier this month, he called on Christians to boycott the movie because it will "seduce" parents into buying Pullman's "pro-atheist" book. Thus far, Donahue's blanket mailing to media and other religious groups of his exhaustive 30-page brochure titled "The Golden Compass: Agenda Unmasked" seems to have done little more than help promote the film.
Of course, all that hubbub about Harry Potter promoting witchcraft to kids didn't stop that franchise from becoming the highest-grossing film series of all time. But Donahue's protest got the attention of James Dobson's evangelical Christian behemoth Focus on the Family, the moral activists who review films and books for an audience of 5 million -- though even that group's protests of Fox Searchlight's 2004 film on pioneering sex researcher "Kinsey" and the TV cartoon "SpongeBob Squarepants" didn't significantly affect viewership of either. That group expects to take a stand on the film and the trilogy next month.
Pullman fans, meanwhile, seem to be conflicted about Hollywood's take on the series. Around the same time that Donahue piped up this month, Weitz prompted anguished cries from fans with his announcement that the script (which he is adapting) would not include the book's last three cliffhanger chapters. Instead, those will be pushed into the sequel "The Subtle Knife," a film the studio has yet to confirm. One despairing fan vowed not to see the film and declared on fansite HisDarkMaterials.org that the change marked "the death of Golden Compass (the movie)."
