Move Over Lord of the Rings

So I have to admit I have been saving this blog for some time now because of all the excitement I have inside of me for this movie. I remember in high school when I first read The Golden Compass and was enthralled by the world Phillip Pullman created. It seems New Line Cinema has bought the rights to this film and are planning on releasing the first installment, The Golden Compass, this December. The film actually has some big name actors including Nicole Kidman as Mrs. Coutler and Daniel Craig as Lord Asriel. I am just hoping this movie leaves a lot better taste in my mouth than the last book-to-film movie I watched, Eragon.

It seems New Line is definitely selling out quite the pretty penny for this film. The studio is spending $150 million dollars on the first installment , which is more than half of what is cost the studio to produce all of the LOTR films . Showing of the trailer began six months prior to its release during the summer at Pirates of the Carribean: At Worlds End, and has showed no signs of stopping yet.

Since you can expect not to any brand tie ins since the movie takes place in an entirely different world, New Line has used their web site as their biggest marketing tool. The site allows you to customize it among sixteen different languages showing the broad range of audiences it hopes to attract opening day. The site begins by allowing you to explore Lyra's world as well as the people and their daemons that populate it. The site also explains to users what the movie is about just in case someone enticed by the trailer hasn't actually read any of the books.

The coolest part about the web site however adheres to coolest part about the books. In Lyra's world, each person is accompanied by a daemon (pretty much your soul that lives on the outside of your body). As a child, you daemon can shape shift from animal to animal depending on how you are feeling, but settles into a phase as you get older. The web site allows people to figure out what their daemon would eventually settle into if they lived in Lyra's world and what this means about their personality.

New Line has also tied in an agreement to show the trailer at the Rockefeller Center are the opening of the ice rink on October 9th. This promotion will eventually end in November which will result in one lucky fan to win a trip to England.

New Line has actually went as far as debuting and extended five minute long preview at the Comic Con held back in February. This clip gives viewers a much deeper look into the movie and a better glimpse at what is to come. Check it out below!