The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones
3/4
Starring: Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell-Bower, Robert Sheehan, Jemima West, Kevin Zegers, Jared Harris, Lena Heady, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers
Rated PG-13 for Intense Sequences of Fantasy Violence and Action, and Some Suggestive Content
Before "Harry Potter" became a worldwide phenomenon, fantasy movies were regarded, at best, silly, and at worst, the ugly stepchild of science fiction. Then with the one-two punch of "Harry Potter" and "The Lord of the Rings," magic and wizards became something that people hungered for. Unfortunately, it returned to its old rut (at least creatively) after "Twilight" came out. Instead of grand adventure, we're left with teen angst, photogenic but acting-challenged teen models, and lots of cheese. Fortunately, like "Beautiful Creatures" earlier this year, "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones" manages to buck the trend, at least somewhat. It doesn't ascend to the level of "Harry Potter" and certainly nowhere near Peter Jackson's masterpiece, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't entertaining.
Clary (Collins) is a young girl living in New York City. She's relatively normal; her best friend Simon (Sheehan) loves her but her feelings for him are strictly platonic. She's been drawing and seeing a weird symbol everywhere, but things get weird when she sees a young man kill someone in a goth dance club. That man, whose name is Jace (Campbell-Bower) is completely surprised that she saw him, since he is a Shadowhunter, someone who hunts and kills demons. When Clary's mother Jocelyn (Heady) is attacked and kidnapped, Clary (with Simon tagging along) is forced to follow Jace to find her mother and prevent a powerful object from falling into the hands of Valentine (Rhys-Meyers), a fallen Shadowhunter.
Frankly, the film is so troubled that it's closer to being a failure than a success. The biggest reason is the plot. It's so overstuffed that it'll lose anyone who isn't paying attention or isn't a fan of Cassandra Clare's books. Half of the film is used to set up the plot and explain how everything works. And even then the film doesn't always make a lot of sense.
Unlike "Twilight," and to a lesser extent the "Harry Potter" movies, the performances are solid. The three leads, Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell-Bower, and Robert Sheehan are effective. Lily Collins, who was stiff in last year's first Snow White tale, "Mirror Mirror," is more relaxed here. It doesn't take long for us to get behind her. Jamie Campbell-Bower, who got a big break by being cast in Tim Burton's "Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street," is the best of the three. The romantic subplot between Clary and Jace is awkward. On the one hand, the two actors give fine performances and have chemistry. On the other, Campbell-Bower is so androgynous looking that it feels awkward. Robert Sheehan, who was good in "Season of the Witch," is also effective as the lovelorn and supportive Simon. The rest of the cast is good, although it's cool to see Jared Harris in a fight scene and watch Jonathan Rhys-Meyers overact to the point where he is foaming at the mouth.
Harald Zwart, the director, does not have a resume that gives me much confidence. Reportedly, most of his movies were crap (although I haven't seen any of them). He was behind both "Agent Cody Banks" movies and "The Pink Panther 2" with Steve Martin. But the man does a solid job. The special effects are convincing (there's not much CGI overload) and the action scenes are nicely choreographed (although I could have done without the shaking of the camera). For so much plot and explanation, I was able to follow the film about 90% of the time, which is acceptable.
I'm not sure if anyone who isn't a fan of the books would be interested in seeing this movie, but for what it is, I had a good time.
Starring: Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell-Bower, Robert Sheehan, Jemima West, Kevin Zegers, Jared Harris, Lena Heady, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers
Rated PG-13 for Intense Sequences of Fantasy Violence and Action, and Some Suggestive Content
Before "Harry Potter" became a worldwide phenomenon, fantasy movies were regarded, at best, silly, and at worst, the ugly stepchild of science fiction. Then with the one-two punch of "Harry Potter" and "The Lord of the Rings," magic and wizards became something that people hungered for. Unfortunately, it returned to its old rut (at least creatively) after "Twilight" came out. Instead of grand adventure, we're left with teen angst, photogenic but acting-challenged teen models, and lots of cheese. Fortunately, like "Beautiful Creatures" earlier this year, "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones" manages to buck the trend, at least somewhat. It doesn't ascend to the level of "Harry Potter" and certainly nowhere near Peter Jackson's masterpiece, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't entertaining.
Clary (Collins) is a young girl living in New York City. She's relatively normal; her best friend Simon (Sheehan) loves her but her feelings for him are strictly platonic. She's been drawing and seeing a weird symbol everywhere, but things get weird when she sees a young man kill someone in a goth dance club. That man, whose name is Jace (Campbell-Bower) is completely surprised that she saw him, since he is a Shadowhunter, someone who hunts and kills demons. When Clary's mother Jocelyn (Heady) is attacked and kidnapped, Clary (with Simon tagging along) is forced to follow Jace to find her mother and prevent a powerful object from falling into the hands of Valentine (Rhys-Meyers), a fallen Shadowhunter.
Frankly, the film is so troubled that it's closer to being a failure than a success. The biggest reason is the plot. It's so overstuffed that it'll lose anyone who isn't paying attention or isn't a fan of Cassandra Clare's books. Half of the film is used to set up the plot and explain how everything works. And even then the film doesn't always make a lot of sense.
Unlike "Twilight," and to a lesser extent the "Harry Potter" movies, the performances are solid. The three leads, Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell-Bower, and Robert Sheehan are effective. Lily Collins, who was stiff in last year's first Snow White tale, "Mirror Mirror," is more relaxed here. It doesn't take long for us to get behind her. Jamie Campbell-Bower, who got a big break by being cast in Tim Burton's "Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street," is the best of the three. The romantic subplot between Clary and Jace is awkward. On the one hand, the two actors give fine performances and have chemistry. On the other, Campbell-Bower is so androgynous looking that it feels awkward. Robert Sheehan, who was good in "Season of the Witch," is also effective as the lovelorn and supportive Simon. The rest of the cast is good, although it's cool to see Jared Harris in a fight scene and watch Jonathan Rhys-Meyers overact to the point where he is foaming at the mouth.
Harald Zwart, the director, does not have a resume that gives me much confidence. Reportedly, most of his movies were crap (although I haven't seen any of them). He was behind both "Agent Cody Banks" movies and "The Pink Panther 2" with Steve Martin. But the man does a solid job. The special effects are convincing (there's not much CGI overload) and the action scenes are nicely choreographed (although I could have done without the shaking of the camera). For so much plot and explanation, I was able to follow the film about 90% of the time, which is acceptable.
I'm not sure if anyone who isn't a fan of the books would be interested in seeing this movie, but for what it is, I had a good time.
Comments
Post a Comment