I had the chance to watch "The Golden Compass" and find out for myself: 1. If it was any good as a fantasy flick, and 2. What all the controversy is about. If you haven't read the books, you're in good company. I haven't either. Not because of any desire to avoid a book that may reflect philosophy counter to my own, but because I generally do not enjoy stories where children are the main characters and are empowered to the point of making all adults look like idiots. It was cool, of course, when I was a kid, but it doesn't do anything for me now. I should first say that my review is based only on the theatrical film. I have not read any of the books in the series, so I will not be reviewing this based on how it compares to Philip Pullman's book or where the story is going after this film. (My understanding is that the controversy increases in the second and third books of this trilogy.) I'll wait and judge each of those films on their own me