So, I know this is an older discussion, but it intrigued me and I wanted to add a couple of things.
Quote:My wife said that if she didn't know the author's background, she would have come out of the film thinking that it was a spiritual film. There were several elements which had Mormon echoes within it, especially dealing with the battle for free will and the necessity of a Fall. Interesting stuff.
Mahonri, I felt the same way when I started reading the series. The "mormon echoes" only become stronger as it progresses. I haven't caught up on the film yet - limited time and all that. It's interesting to hear that the film has a happy ending. That seems to shoot a lot of Pullman's story in the foot, especially if no sequels are made. The impression I got from the trailers and other online stuff was that the film sees itself as a sort of other-worldly cross between cowboys and indians and
Around the World in Eighty Days. It struck me as more pretentious than substantive, which is one reason I haven't seen it yet. As much as I dislike the message of the books, I have to admit being disappointed by that impression. In a way, I'm glad to hear that it has some sort of message, which brings me to my next point.
Quote:however people want to spin it, this film is subtle, secular propaganda.
I haven't checked to see if there's a discussion on the novels over on the literature forum, but I think you pegged Pullman's genius with this sentence. The object from which the second book,
The Subtle Knife, draws its title is in my mind a pretty good metaphor for the whole series. In the parphrased words of one of the characters (Iorek, the armored bear), it has a point so fine that even the one who wields it doesn't know what it's really doing. I knew nothing about Phillip Pullman when I read the series, and even halfway through the last book, I found myself thinking that, dependent on which way the ending went, this series was either one of the greatest Christian allegories ever written, or one of the most masterful and seductive literary tools yet conceived for getting the elect to stray ever so slightly - but crucially - from the straight and narrow path. Having said that, I think there is a lot of value in the context that the books and movie provide for considering various points of doctrine and practice.
Incidentally, Mahonri, I think you know my brother, Jake Figueira
