The Lovely Bones

I may or may not have made a mistake when I saw The Lovely Bones. I'd heard from other people that it wasn't as good as the book and so in the hopes that I wouldn't be put off, I decided not to read the book before I saw the film. I'd hoped that if I had nothing to go by, I wouldnt be expecting anything. However, when I saw the film I realised it probably would've been best if I'd read the book first as the story was just plain confusing!
The film is centred around Susie Salmon, a 14 year old girl who is murdered by a paedophile neighbour. This splits her parents up as all her mother wants to do is try to get on with life whilst her father is determined to find the killer. To be honest the film could have worked better with just that as the story, but when the in-between world, a world where Susie stays after she dies, is introduced, it messes up the whole film. Susie decides not to go to heaven just yet as she watches her father try and uncover the mystery surrounding her murder. The acting is superb, with Stanley Tucci stealing the show as Mr Harvey, Susies killer, a performance which could very well be oscar worthy. As well as this Susan Sarandon adds humour to what would otherwise be quite a depressing film.
Peter Jackson also does a good job at directing, although the scenes in the in-between world are a bit too detailed. With the Lord of the Rings trilogy certainly putting a high bar for him to surpass this doesn't even get near the excellence of Middle Earth. A good film, in all, but a bit too confusing and long-winded.
Next up is a review of The Bounty Hunter starring Jennifer Aniston and Gerard Butler.