chibifiedeyes

Whilst the movie didn't really hold suspense or recapture the book to its full potential, I thought they did a fair job. To my great relief, the script writers didn't change the story into something quite different (poor Harry Potter) but stuck close to the original plot line although some events were left out. I presume this is because the movie was already lengthy.

One of the biggest point scorers here was that the movie actually made sense. Much of the vital information was recounted at the beginning of the film. Whilst this removes some suspense and development, the movie can be viewed by all, not only people who have read the book (although that would be recommended anyway) I was surprised how well the casting actually fit into their characters. Nicole Kidman's performance was amazing and she really went into character. Eva Green was also an excellent choice. Her appearance and voice give a more exotic feel. Dark hair, pale skin and big eyes really helped her to fit into the role of the witch queen.

Dakota Blue Richards did a fair job. I didn't feel she really brought the character of Lyra to life but she did have some good moments too. Daniel Craig as Lord Asriel does not seem like the right fit to me, not exactly giving off the feel of intellect. However he seems to hold some of the commanding feel of Lord Asriel, which helped.

For those who are worried about religious undertones, never fear! It is only hinted at several times, very subtly. For those who have never read the book, those undertones will probably slip by without notice.

Definitely a recommended watch for lovers of fantasy!

This is a movie that follows a typical happy romantic comedy.. starts off happy, goes down.. back up.. and it hits the top and stays there. But then again, 200 pounds beauty is SO much more! On the surface it is already a great movie. The fat girl protagonist Hanna is very cute and kind, later she turns into beautiful and thin but still kind and innocent Jenny. So there's a bit of eyecandy, both cute and sexy throughout the whole movie. But then there's the funny bits, the movie has hilarious little kicks throughout the whole movie, making you laugh at all the right movies.

But then there's a deeper side. This movie talks about themes such as the superficial view of the world, how beauty becomes an obsession, how the most beautiful heart can hide inside a bigger girl, how people will give everything to a girl with beautiful face-- superficiality yet again.

The sad parts that touched deep to the heart of the film are very well scripted and acted.. I cried so many times watching it to see an 'ugly' girl turned beautiful, but having to give so much up and yet not quite happy with the shallow joys that this new body and face have given her.

A small disappointment however was that the story's villain did not do much and disappeared for the majority of the movie and out of the viewer's mind, rendering the character pretty useless and taking away a little something more the movie could have had.

Overall, a feel-good movie that is a definite must watch! It goes above all my initial expectations and is guaranteed to make you laugh, cry, love and think!

I first saw this movie when I was a preteen and I absolutely loved it. Years later I rewatched it and realised, it was a quite poor movie.

The storyline itself is quite good but the script and acting felt fake. It was as if the script writers were trying very hard to emulate a teen society and at many points the characters were too exaggerated in the attempt to be a 'real teen'.

All right, it wasn't all that bad but with all the unnecessary swearing and the main character falling for the love interest based on nothing but a few smirks and flirty exchanges overall destroyed the entire movie.

The majority of this movie felt bland and fake. The only part that was REALLY worth watching were the cheerleading performances at the end of the movie. But the rest? Bleurgh. Don't waste your money on watching this movie, watch Bring it On 3 instead.