The Golden Compass is an Academy Award-winning fantasy film based upon Northern Lights (also known as The Golden Compass), the first novel in Philip Pullman's trilogy His Dark Materials, and was released on December 5 2007 by New Line Cinema. The project was announced in February 2002, following the success of recent adaptations of other fantasy epics, but troubles over the script and the selection of a director caused significant delays. At $180 million, it was one of New Line's most expensive projects ever, and its middling success in the US contributed to New Line's February 2008 restructuring.
The story concerns Lyra, an orphan living in a fantastical parallel universe in which a dogmatic theocracy called the Magisterium threatens to dominate the world. When Lyra's friend is kidnapped, she travels to the far North in an attempt to rescue him and rejoin her uncle.
Before its release, the film received criticism from secular organizations and fans of His Dark Materials for the dilution of the religious elements from the novels, as well as from some religious organizations for the source material's perceived anti-Christian and atheistic themes. The film was met with mixed reviews, and failed to meet expectations at the U.S. box office, but its international performance more than tripled the U.S. figures, surpassing $250 million for a total of $335 million worldwide to date. No announcement has yet been made as to whether sequels will be produced, although producer Deborah Forte said she intends to make them.
