10 Bad Movies That Wasted Great CGI
2. The Golden Compass
In the 2000s, there were countless fantasy film series attempting to get off the ground to cash in on being the next Harry Potter. One of the most infamous examples of which was The Golden Compass in 2007.
An adaptation of Phillip Pullman's best-selling and award-winning novel The Northern Lights - the first entry in the beloved His Dark Materials trilogy - the film sees youngster Lyra Belacqua (Dakota Blue Richards) embark on a perilous journey to the arctic in hopes of saving her friend and uncle from a menacing and oppressive organisation known as the Magisterium.
Winning a BAFTA and an Academy Award for its special effects which did a phenomenal job of visualising Pullman's fantastical world for the big screen (never have armoured polar bears looked so good), the film nonetheless faced plenty of criticism before its release from religious organisations who objected to the source material's anti-religious themes. Consequently, New Line Cinema made significant cuts during post-production that resulted in a bland fantasy outing without the substance of the novels.
Returning $25 million from an estimated budget of $180 million, all hopes of this film trilogy were squashed. Thankfully, fans have BBC's His Dark Materials series to watch now.