Dakota Blue Richards

The His Dark Materials fantasy books by Philip Pullman may be well-written and mesmerizing, but as a cinematic experience, the movie version of the first book doesn't really have two CGI legs to stand on. I've never read the books, in part because I wanted to critique The Golden Compass for what it is: a film. I don't think allowances should be made for the movie based on the quality of the books — they're two different mediums. And after seeing The Golden Compass, I'm not convinced this particular story should have ventured into the movie world at all.

The story follows Lyra, an orphaned girl raised by scholars who receives a golden compass allowing her to see the truth of things. She embarks on an adventure involving daemons, armored bears, cowboys and gyspsies (gyptians). Along the way, she falls in with an evil icy lady (Nicole Kidman) who's trying to "help" children by taking away their ability to think freely. She determines to rescue the children from this fate and in the meantime she makes friends and battles various other evildoers. Then the movie basically alludes to how cool the next few movies will be and the credits roll. For more of my thoughts on the film, read more

The stars of The Golden Compass took their fantasy world to the red carpet in London Tuesday night. Nicole Kidman looked flawless (and allegedly botox-free) on Keith's arm, while Hugh Grant was perfectly nonchalant with his undone buttons. Daniel Craig looked stone faced, as did his ex Bond girl Eva Green, but he sounded excited about his new movie. He said, "It's a bit of escapism... and the special effects have come such a long way that it's now possible to go to places that you wouldn't have been able to even five years ago." We could all use a bit of escape during the hectic holiday season and this fantasy adventure could be just the ticket.

Lots more pics from the premiere including Salman Rushdie, Joan Collins and Freddie Highmore so just read more