The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

Starring: Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower, Kevin Zegers, Robert Sheehan, Jemima West, Kevin Durand, Lena Headey, Jared Harris, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, CCH Pounder
Directed by: Harald Zwart
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama
2013

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A girl (Lily Collins) is shocked when her mother disappears. Her search leads her to discover she comes from a long line of warriors in a battle against supernatural forces.

Review:

Tim: The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones is the next in a long line of films trying to be the "next big thing" in the Young Adult world. First there was Harry Potter, which passed the torch to Twilight, which passed the torch to The Hunger Games. Who is coming next? Well, it certainly won't be this potential franchise. I'm not counting out a sequel, although the box office doesn't support one. This film doesn't do nearly enough right. It'll soon be a forgotten, failed attempt to be the next big thing.

Everything about this movie suggests a lackluster effort, which resulted in a lackluster movie. Director Harald Zwart has some experience, but he hasn't directed anything great. The cast was pretty disappointing and lacked any real star power. The story was fairly weak. Nearly everything about this movie needed to be better.

The characters were far too one-dimensional and forgettable. I never read the books, but none of them really came to life on the screen. We weren't given a compelling reason to care about any of them. I know the main character was played by Lily Collins, but I remember absolutely nothing about her. What made her unique or special (nothing). Collins does an okay job, but I'm not convinced she will make it big. She's not Emma Watson, Kristen Stewart, or Jennifer Lawrence, no matter how much people want us to believe she is. She's not at their level of talent. Jamie Campbell Bower seems to lack any kind of charisma at all. He was hired for his looks, not for his acting ability. That's a shame, because his bland performance sinks the movie. There was absolutely no chemistry between Bower and Collins. We are supposed to believe there is a love triangle between them and another character, but I never bought it for a second. The central relationships in this film feel unlikely, so it's no surprise that everything else crumbles around them.

The supporting cast has some good names, but they aren't very good. I always like seeing Kevin Durand, but he was wasted here. I really like Lena Headey from "Game of Thrones", but I think she has some severe limitations as an actress and they show here. She's so good as Cersei Lannister because she is cold and removed from the audience. She can't make any kind of connection with viewers, which is not what was needed here. Jared Harris does a good job in a small supporting role- he was one of the best supporting players. Jonathan Rhys Meyers plays his part way too over-the-top and he just looked silly throughout the film. I have to believe he regretted taking this role.

The story seemed far too complicated. Too much was going on to squeeze it into a 130 minute film (and it was too long as is). That means most of the film feels rushed, as our characters move from scene to scene and we learn a lot about the mythology very, very quickly. With everything rushed, nothing really sticks. I admit I felt confused about certain aspects of the mythology because we just weren't given enough time with any one piece. There's werewolves and vampires and all these other elements, but there was no clear connection between them all. Fault Twilight all you want, but the mythology there was firmly established in the first film. This movie throws everything at the audience, hoping much will stick. Not surprisingly, very little does.

Preteens without discerning taste may enjoy this movie, but most viewers will see it as it is- a rushed, lackluster effort. It's a film that feels like it was created solely to capture the Young Adult reader dollars. It's not surprising that money grabs rarely pan out- there has to be something more to the film than wanted to make money. There seems to be nothing of the sort in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, so there's no surprise that this movie is a failure.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Harry Potter, Twilight, The Host, Mirror Mirror