10,000 BC

This movie was better than I was expecting. It was really epic, of course, and quite good, actually. The CGI was awesome - those mammoths! The story was very touching and uplifting in the end. Not bad portrayals of hunter-gatherer and herding societies. Of course, I'm sure it's not historically accurate in the least. But it's about the people, really. A man who will do anything to get his love back to him, and also to free his people. Very positive.

Grade: B

The Golden Compass (movie)

This is probably the best book-to-film adaptation I've seen in a while. My friends who hadn't read the book said it was confusing, though. Which I guess I can understand: it seemed they rushed it by cutting out details while still including most of the plot points of the book. There were a few key changes, one of which was just to make it less violent, which I suppose I'm okay with, though, I hope they don't censor anything in the ones to come (if those are made). I know the religious overtones are pretty controversial (it was banned in Canada!) but if they change them that would destroy the basic premise. Anyway, my biggest issue was with the ending. I wish they had kept the original one, though I guess since they didn't know if they were making another, this one was better for that. Altogether, I was fairly pleased. The attention to details from the book was often superb, and that's always cool.

Grade: A-