Does "The Golden Compass" Promote Atheism?

This CNN piece argues both sides. Other reviews I've read in the mainstream media have also tried to walk the fence.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Movies/12/03/golden.compass.religion.ap/index.html

It's been a long time since I read the trilogy, but I remember interpreting these books through the lens of my father's work on Bulgakov's "The Master and Margarita." In that classic novel, the basic divide is between those who believe in the supernatural and those who don't. As much as Pullman may himself argue for atheism, the characters in his books have "souls," encounter what appear to be supernatural beings, and respond in some mystical way to the Holy Spirit (in the form of "Dust"). I therefore tended to see the books as perhaps unwittingly reinforcing basic spiritual messages, granted through the very critical lens of how Pullman sees contemporary religion explaining those spiritual messages (with his very individualistic, anti-clerical themes). In short, I'm looking forward to seeing the movies and maybe rereading the books.