Ben Child

    UK Movies Contributor

    UK Movies Contributor

  • What went wrong with The Golden Compass?

    As ‘His Dark Materials’ author Philip Pullman announces a new trilogy set in the world of Lyra Belaqua, The Magisterium and souls that look like cuddly animals, we take a look back at the failed 2007 attempt to bring the fantasy saga to the big screen. What’s a studio to do when it has just stormed the global box office to the tune of nearly $3bn by adapting one of the most famous fantasy sagas of all time, JRR Tolkien’s sprawling ‘The Lord of the Rings’, and there is no obvious followup?

  • Five bad movies that fooled us with amazing trailers

    A good trailer can be worth its weight in gold to a studio, and it can also be more trouble than you might expect. Just ask Suicide Squad’s David Ayer, who according to industry reports was sidelined during editing of the poorly-reviewed supervillain smackdown in favour of a cut made by the company behind the film’s high-octane, Queen and The Sweet-soundtracked promos.