First off, I just want to state that I haven't read the book on which the film was based on. Having said that I was very excited for this to come out and pretty upset when they decided to keep pushing back the release date. I'm a Peter Jackson fan, I've seen everything from Bad Taste and The Frighteners to The Lord of the Rings and King Kong. So, naturally I was excited to see the film, which in the trailers looked visually stunning and deeply moving.
The film was a pretty big letdown. I found it so hard to believe that it was getting such bad reviews but now that I've seen it I can understand why.
The film isn't completely terrible though, if you look at the pieces of it and not the whole picture it has several good parts. The main problem with the film was its awkward pacing. The film kept traveling between the in-between in which the dead Suzie is watching her family and the real world where her family is falling apart. There are moments where it flows great but then there are montage resemblant scenes with Suzie and her new found friend Holly and a mess of a scene with Susan Sarandon.
The moments in which the film really shines come from the moments of suspense, Jackson's background in horror (comedies) really comes through here. The cinematography in it is well done except there are a few cliche flashback scenes where the film trails. There are plenty of extreme close up shots and slow dolly shots which ramp up the tension considerably. The sound is also great, particularly the scene where Suzie's sister Lindsey breaks into the house.
Just as the trailer promised the film was a visual treat, the only problem was it didn't really add to the story or give any type of explanation for it. In my opinion it probably detracted from the film. It looks great when the tree turns into birds and they all fly away and when the rose blooms in the ice, and yes I realize they both come up later in the film and it did add a sort of foreshadowing for the film, but it just wasn't needed.
The acting by Saoirse Ronan was great, she played her character perfectly. Rachel Weisz and Mark Wahlberg give good performances but not stand out by any means. They both have their share of awkward moments. Susan Sarandon is a mess in the film, though that was her character, I suppose she did an alright job with what she was given but I expected something different I suppose.
My biggest complaint, and as I stated earlier I haven't read the book. So I'm not sure if the problem was in the source material or if it just didn't translate well, but the ending was terrible. Trying to give away as little as possible. There was no need for the film to end that way. It should have ended with the scene with the Safe and then the lovely bones line and not the way it did.
I wouldn't say avoid this film because parts of it were very god but don't feel the need to rush out and see this one, wait for the Blu-ray or DVD release.
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