The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones - Movie Review



The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, on the surface, seems like it'll be just another average teenage movie filled with awkward love triangles and cheesy acting. Well I suppose some of that remains true in the film, but for the most part I was incredibly surprised by how everything turned out. A fair disclaimer: I have not read the books so my opinion is purely from a film standpoint.

The beginning follows the usual 'one day her life was normal, and the next her whole world is flipped around' kind of thing, which isn't bad but it isn't necessarily interesting. But once we dive into the world the author and director have created for us, it's gripping and is always entertaining. Some things are a bit too complex and aren't explained as well as they could have been, but since it is a book series I'm sure they couldn't fit everything they'd like in the film adaption. Nevertheless, you may walk out still confused about a few aspects of the film. Some scenes just felt unnecessary and shouldn't have made the final cut.

The acting, I can admit, was cheesy but for some reason it didn't bother me while I was watching it. It fit in really well and never reached the point of being bad acting. The actors all brought a different character to life, though the character development wasn't all too good.

The most impressive thing for me had to be the visual effects, the world they created, and the action sequences. At least every 10 minutes something completely unexpected happens and throws the movie into a completely different direction. As an audience member, those are the types of movies that I just always enjoy because it captures attention and really invests us in the story. Having said that, however, the finale lasted way too long. The scene could've been an incredible finale, but the pacing was just off and the intensity died down just as it should have been picking up, making the audience get dragged through the uninspired and weak conclusion.

The Mortal Instruments leaves the ending open and allows for another installment, which I can say I would be excited to see. Though it has its flaws with character development and pacing, I can honestly say I liked it and would probably watch it again. Now if only they could trim about 20 minutes off the ending, that'd be great. But for now it's something fun to watch with a group of friends, and (here's the comparison you've all been waiting for) it's leagues better than Twilight. B-