The Catholic Church Denounces Dissent...What's New?
So I guess it's time for me to say my piece about The Golden Compass. I have not seen the movie but I have read all three of Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials. I am not surprised at the outcry and subsequent boycott from the Catholic Church. Honestly, did anyone expect anything less? Really.
As usual they've most likely only drawn more attention to the thing and sparked more interest among youth.
There has been such hubbub over The Golden Compass' "opinions" on Christianity, and Catholicism in particular. There's everything from speculation about Nicole Kidman's absence at the NYC premier (an ardent Catholic herself) to the accusation that the film promotes matricide. Come on! It's all made me start to wonder- Will it be possible to see the stories for what they are? Stories. Fantasy. Fiction. There is so much more to see than just the controversy over religious doctrine. As a child, I read C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia, and I was completely oblivious to the religious overtones. Totally missed them. Allegory and metaphor were way too big for me. They completely went over my head. What I got, was the depth of the characters, the icy-coldness of Narnia, the amazing warmth of Aslan, the brilliance of the plot, and of course, the impending stand-off between good and evil. It was marvelous. I loved it. Then I re-read the books as an adult, and while I was certainly able to understand some of the deeper political and religious messages, it was the story itself that stayed with me.
I am probably being naive about The Golden Compass in this regard. The power behind the message is just too intense. Not all viewers will get all of the nuances, but in general the grand theme, is hard to miss. There are other elements of this rich, epic, tale on which to focus though. And I feel like they're being overlooked in all of the coverage of what the Church thinks. Bleh. If you're like me, you've been waiting for this film forever and will be first in line on Friday. I say boycott the coverage of the boycott. Ban reading and writing about the ban. Just go see the movie, and love the totally amazing and imaginative world Philip Pullman has created for us.
Here's some more on the subject:
And pomomusings (Thanks Andrew)
Posted by alli
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