If Peter Jackson's got an m.o., it's to get lost in the details of visual effects while ignoring the larger story they're meant to support. His dominating aesthetic is one of pleasant ignorance, dating back to his slapstick gore days with Bad Taste and continuing through his schlocky The Frighteners. Viewed within the context of his body of work, his sprawling adaptation of The Lord of the Rings is just a triptych meditation on the joy of being able to color in thousands of digital warriors and have them whale on each other like a video game come to life. He's capable of crafting some tightly paced scenes, but when asked to place them in the framework of a convincing narrative, Jackson becomes as confused as you'd expect from someone who once made a feature-length film starring horny puppets involved in every sexual and scatological set-up you can imagine.
- 1/18/2010
- by Daniel Carlson
Deep inside every piece of rock, inside every slab of wood, lies a masterpiece waiting to be whittled out and uncovered. Sometimes, more often than many realize, a film maker doesn’t quite know when they have either cut off too much or not chiseled away at that piece of rock until their work has been polished to perfection. Such is the case for Peter Jackson and The Lovely Bones, an incredible and moving story of a family’s loss and the aftermath that is mired by tedious and lackluster moments of unnecessary computer imagery.
At the center of The Lovely Bones is the Salmon family, father Jack, played by Mark Wahlberg; mother Abigail, played by Rachel Weisz; two daughters, Lindsey, played by Rose McIver, and Susie, played by Saoirse Ronan; and a son, Buckley, played by Christian Thomas Ashdale. Susan Sarandon steps in once in awhile as Grandmother Lynn,...
At the center of The Lovely Bones is the Salmon family, father Jack, played by Mark Wahlberg; mother Abigail, played by Rachel Weisz; two daughters, Lindsey, played by Rose McIver, and Susie, played by Saoirse Ronan; and a son, Buckley, played by Christian Thomas Ashdale. Susan Sarandon steps in once in awhile as Grandmother Lynn,...
- 1/15/2010
- by Kirk
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The Lovely Bones is a good, not great, book written by Alice Sebold. And The Lovely Bones is also a good, but not great, film co-written, produced and directed by Peter (Lord Of The Rings) Jackson. The movie is mostly faithful to the 2002 novel, and while both have powerful moments and emotional potency, both also have their shortcomings.
Set in 1970s suburban Pennsylvania, the story centers on Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan, an Oscar nominee for Atonement and seen—or rather, Not seen—in 2008’s City Of Ember), a 14-year-old girl on the cusp of adolescence and womanhood who is raped and murdered by a neighbor, George Harvey (Stanley Tucci). That isn’t giving anything away. Susie is killed early on, and the movie isn’t a mystery about the identity of her killer.
Susie narrates the film from heaven (or a place that Susie thinks is heaven)—a CG-imagined afterlife...
Set in 1970s suburban Pennsylvania, the story centers on Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan, an Oscar nominee for Atonement and seen—or rather, Not seen—in 2008’s City Of Ember), a 14-year-old girl on the cusp of adolescence and womanhood who is raped and murdered by a neighbor, George Harvey (Stanley Tucci). That isn’t giving anything away. Susie is killed early on, and the movie isn’t a mystery about the identity of her killer.
Susie narrates the film from heaven (or a place that Susie thinks is heaven)—a CG-imagined afterlife...
- 12/11/2009
- by no-reply@starlog.com (Allan Dart)
- Starlog
Saoirse Ronan as "Susie" Courtesy of Paramount Pictures.
The Lovely Bones is an adapted movie based on the 2002 novel written by Alice Sebold. Director Peter Jackson, bought the rights to make the movie a few years back and promised to stay true to the intended tone and emotional feel that the novel had. By sticking to his word, this movie will provide audiences with a stunning combination of a fantastical world and realistic theme, which one can't take their eyes off.
Although the 135 minute feature is very detailed, our story is pretty straight forward. Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) is your typical 14 year-old girl. She has a wonderful family and her hobby is photography. The setting is 1973 in Pennsylvania. Her father, Jack Salmon (Mark Wahlberg) is a caring father and husband. Susie's mother, Abigail (Rachel Weisz) is your typical homemaker for the time period and makes sure that Susie and her...
The Lovely Bones is an adapted movie based on the 2002 novel written by Alice Sebold. Director Peter Jackson, bought the rights to make the movie a few years back and promised to stay true to the intended tone and emotional feel that the novel had. By sticking to his word, this movie will provide audiences with a stunning combination of a fantastical world and realistic theme, which one can't take their eyes off.
Although the 135 minute feature is very detailed, our story is pretty straight forward. Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) is your typical 14 year-old girl. She has a wonderful family and her hobby is photography. The setting is 1973 in Pennsylvania. Her father, Jack Salmon (Mark Wahlberg) is a caring father and husband. Susie's mother, Abigail (Rachel Weisz) is your typical homemaker for the time period and makes sure that Susie and her...
- 12/11/2009
- Tampa Film Examiner
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