The Golden Compass, Retail & Rental

The makers of 'The Golden Compass' have taken the 'Supermarket Sweep' approach to adapting Philip Pullman's fantasy novel, in that they charge through it, grabbing as many of the key scenes as they can, without pausing to consider whether those scenes fit together to make a coherent film.

It look as bright and shiny as you'd expect from a big-budget, effects-heavy, star-studded blockbuster, but as the young heroine (Dakota Blue Richards) goes on her random travels, and encounters random witches and daemons, it's a compass pointing in no particular direction.

[Trailer subject to copyright]