The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones Review
By: April Spice
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones review from a readers perspective. She kept it short and sweet. I liked it, a lot. Go see it!
And now onto her full review of the film. Make sure to follow April on Twitter and check out her site HERE:
WARNING: THIS REST OF THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!!!! I TRIED TO WRITE IT WITHOUT THEM, BUT JUST COULDN'T EXPRESS MY TRUE FEELINGS WITHOUT REVEALING CERTAIN... PLOT POINTS! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED! ALSO MOST OF MY FEELINGS WON'T MAKE SENSE IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK!
So I have a confession to make, Before last night, I was not a TMI fan. I read the first book a couple years ago, it was okay. I really really loved the sexual tension between the protagonist, Clary Fray and Jace Wayland. Then I got to the end of the book and the big sibling bomb was dropped. I. Was. Mad. Terribly mad. So much so, that I did not continue reading the series. After complaining about it to a friend, she finally told me that Clary and Jace AREN'T really brother/sister. THANK GOD. However, it still didn't mend my hurt feelings over it enough to make me continue reading the series.
When word broke about the movie, I paid little attention until set pictures started emerging. I was pretty impressed with how they made Lily Collins and Jamie Campbell Bower pull off the look of 'Clary' and 'Jace'. Maybe I would finally stop calling her "eyebrows" and not singing "Johanna" (Sweeney Todd for those who don't know) when I see JCB. As clips and trailers started coming out I actually started getting pretty excited because it looked to me like the movie was going to be better than the book.
Last week I started a re read of the first book to refresh my memory and found myself enjoying it a little more than the first time I read it. I didn't make it all the way through before the screening last night but it refreshed my memory enough!
I REALLY liked the movie. I think/HOPE that fans of the book's will be happy. YES, they changed some things... but they weren't bad choices in my honest opinion. The order of some of the happenings is a little mixed up. Clary and Simon go to the poetry reading BEFORE Pandemonium, the demon in the club is not killed in the storage room, but in the middle of the club. I liked this change because it solidified the fact that no one except Clary could see them. Simon does not turn into a Rat... which I think would have probably been really cheesy and was also a good choice on their part. It felt more desperate having him in human form. There are a good amount of little things changed... but in the BIG picture I think it was done for movie continuity and people won't be upset.
Things I didn't like: Idris is not mentioned ONCE. I'm not sure how this will affect future movies but I'm pretty sure they go there in the next books, so that was odd to me. When Jace takes Clary to the greenhouse, it has the beautiful greenery but it's never mentioned that most of it grows in Idris. Church the cat is not in it. I was sad because I really liked Church. I wasn't a HUGE fan of Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Valentine. I felt like his hair was terrible and he wasn't as believable as the other characters. Which disappointed me.
Things I liked: SO MANY THINGS! Where do I start? I Loved getting to see what happens to Jocelyn back at their house. I'm sure I'm not the only one that wanted to know what went down! She kicks some shadow hunter ass and it's pretty awesome. Simon- He was just adorable. Robert Sheenan was perfect! Lily Collins- Most def my favorite role of hers to date. Jamie Campbell Bower- HOLY JACE. Wow. The three of them had great chemistry. The scene when Simon tells Clary he is in love with her- Perfect. Lily captured the emotion of the moment perfectly. The sarcasm and snark that JCB embodied as Jace was awesome. He really personified Jace in my opinion! I know there has been some controversy about him, but I can't picture anyone else in the role now! I love Isabelle's whip. Alec (Kevin Zegers) was absolutely Alec. The confrontation with Clary and Alec was really good. Magnus Bane, EXACTLY like I pictured him. The silent brothers and City of Bones were AWESOME in my opinion. JUST like I imagined in my head! I loved seeing the Runes and how they worked, It felt like they were explained better in the movie than the book. The werewolves were good. Different enough from other franchises whom shall not be named! Fight Scenes- Awesome. Particularly against the Vampires, and between Jace/Valentine. The demons I felt looked really cool. They were almost smoldering/burning and I really liked how they portrayed them. I think what I enjoyed the most was that pretty much everything was exactly how I pictured it. From the brownstone to the Institute, to the Infirmary to the library and greenhouse. I felt like the book was coming to life!
FINALLY the big bomb of Clary/Jace being siblings. I REALLY hoped that they would somehow let the audience in on the fact that they aren't REALLY in order to prevent people from being turned off and grossed out like I was with the book... and they do. Its subtle and if you aren't paying attention you might miss it. Essentially they keep with the theme though because Clary and Jace THINK they are which is all that really matters when it comes down to it!
Oh and how could I forget- The Greenhouse/Kissing scene was spectacular. I know some people weren't thrilled with the choice of the Demi Lovato song during that scene but it really honestly didn't make me feel one way or the other. It certainly didn't bother me because I was focused on Jamie pulling Lily close to him for that spectacular kiss! All the Feels!
Bottom line- I would definitely recommend seeing it if you are a fan of the series or a general fan girl at heart like I am. The Mortal Instruments opens August 21st in theaters nationwide and IMAX!
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