Jackson's transformed a serious, unsettling story into a reductive thriller-cum-special effects display.
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12/09/09
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The Lovely Bones (2009)
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Reviews Counted:40
Fresh:20
Rotten:20
Average Rating:5.5/10
Consensus: It's stuffed full of Peter Jackson's typically dazzling imagery, but The Lovely Bones suffers from abrupt shifts between horrific violence and cloying sentimentality.
Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating]
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Dec 11, 2009 Limited
Synopsis: Oscar winner Peter Jackson directs this adaptation of Alice Sebold's beloved novel THE LOVELY BONES. After she is killed, young Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan, ATONEMENT) looks down from heaven on... [More]
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz, Susan Sarandon, Saoirse Ronan
Director: Peter Jackson
Reviews for The Lovely Bones
Your reaction is likely to hinge on how well you think he pulls off the intercutting of worlds. It works, but just barely; for many, the CGI fantasy elements may prove a deal breaker.
12/09/09
"Lovely Bones is akin to taking a shot of morphine and watching someone play the video game Myst for two hours"
12/09/09
One gets the impression that Jackson was enchanted by the idea of getting to create limbo as imagined by a 14-year-old girl (all verdant landscapes and pretend photo-shoots) but didn't know what to do with the rest of the movie.
12/09/09
A murdered teen (Saoirse Ronan) looks down from heaven at the life she could have led. The repulsive yet redemptive story is harrowing, but director Peter Jackson's visions of heaven feel like a My Little Pony version of Lord of the Rings.
12/09/09
When I first heard Peter Jackson was to direct the film version of this delicate best seller, I was, shall we say, surprised. However, when I saw the actual movie, I got it. Jackson wanted to play with heaven.
12/09/09
In Jackson's simplified, sweetened, and CGI-besotted telling, The Lovely Bones is a sad-but-hopeful, dramatic-but-gentle fairy tale intentionally made less upsetting for teens.
12/09/09
Top CriticIt may not be perfect, but Susie’s story will surely resonate for a long time.
12/09/09
It's a tough subject, but elegant, smooth filmmaking keeps us comfortable when we know bad things are going to happen.
12/09/09
Jackson crafts lovely but ineffectual dreamscapes of the afterlife that eviscerate much of the human side of the story.
12/09/09
Top CriticIn spite of its inherently eerie themes - homicide, phantoms, and vengeance-fueled grief - George is the only truly scary thing in the movie and [Stanley] Tucci thankfully makes the most of him.
12/09/09
Slipping past Sebold’s quondam feminist protest (briefly glimpsing Germaine Greer’s The Female Eunuch, for example), Jackson goes to the edge of lurid sentimentality.
12/09/09
It’s a movie that tips toward overkill -- even Ronan’s voice is amplified into a weird whisper. More quiet would have helped.
12/09/09
Part Disney's Alice in Wonderland, part Fritz Lang's M, the movie is horrific yet cloying, alternately distended and abrupt, sometimes poignant and often ridiculous.
12/08/09
Top CriticThe New Zealand director’s trademark recipe of fantasy, realism and computerized visual effects turns The Lovely Bones into a thrilling adventure.
12/08/09
Top CriticPeter Jackson frees himself from the yoke of LOTR. Stanley Tucci abandons himself into a frightening character. A triumph.
12/08/09
For most of the running time of The Lovely Bones I thought the film was bad, but when the movie entered the final twenty minutes I realized my mistake: it's a disaster
12/07/09
The Lovely Bones has been fashioned as a holiday family movie about murder and grief; it’s a thoroughly queasy experience.
12/07/09
Top CriticThere's a blinkered quality to the film that might have been more intriguing had the story been given a stirring political context.
12/06/09
In spite of its obvious flaws, "The Lovely Bones" carries an inertia of unmistakable tension, care of Peter Jackson, that makes it a suspenseful and entertaining film.
12/05/09
Latest News for The Lovely Bones
December 06, 2009:
The Lovely Bones in the running for Best Film 2009, for most passionately opposing violence against women. 
More...
November 02, 2009:
Examining Peter Jackson's Lovely Bones
He's become identified with big-budget epics like the "Lord of the Ring" movies and his "King Kong" remake, but Peter Jackson has his roots in supernatural thrillers -- making,... More...
August 11, 2009:
Trailer & Poster Review
More...
August 05, 2009:
Trailer Bulletin: The Lovely Bones
Did you miss the Entertainment Tonight-hosted debut of the first trailer for "The Lovely Bones"? Not to worry -- Apple's got it posted for your enjoyment. More...
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