The Lovely Bones (2009)

Centers on a young girl who has been murdered and watches over her family - and her killer - from purgatory. She must weigh her desire for vengeance against her desire for her family to heal.

Director:

Peter Jackson

Writers:

Fran Walsh (screenplay), Philippa Boyens (screenplay)

Stars:

Rachel Weisz, Mark Wahlberg, Saoirse Ronan

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 10 wins & 45 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mark Wahlberg	...	Jack Salmon
Rachel Weisz	...	Abigail Salmon
Susan Sarandon	...	Grandma Lynn
Stanley Tucci	...	George Harvey
Michael Imperioli	...	Len Fenerman
Saoirse Ronan	...	Susie Salmon
Rose McIver	...	Lindsey Salmon
Christian Ashdale	...	Buckley Salmon
Reece Ritchie	...	Ray Singh
Carolyn Dando	...	Ruth Connors
Nikki SooHoo	...	Holly (as Nikki Soohoo)
Andrew James Allen	...	Samuel Heckler
Jake Abel	...	Brian Nelson
AJ Michalka	...	Clarissa
Tom McCarthy	...	Principal Caden

Storyline

A 14-year-old girl in suburban 1970's Pennsylvania is murdered by her neighbor. She tells the story from the place between Heaven and Earth, showing the lives of the people around her and how they have changed all while attempting to get someone to find her lost body.

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Plot Keywords:

afterlife | child molester | investigation | serial murder | sexual predator | 

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Taglines:

The story of a life and everything that came after...

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material involving disturbing violent content and images, and some language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Site Official Site [France]

Country:

USA UK New Zealand

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 January 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Lovely Bones

Filming Locations:

Bryan Ave & Queens Ave, Paoli, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$65,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$116,616, 13 December 2009, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$43,818,839, 7 March 2010

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$93,621,340, 5 January 2013

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks,Film4,WingNut Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

135 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Billy Jackson: Peter Jackson's son, can be seen shopping at the record store in the mall.

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Goofs

In Susie's photo album that her father flips through, there is a picture of a Smurf figurine at the top of the right page. While Smurf figures were around in the 70s, that particular Smurf (a singing "rocker" Smurf with a microphone) wasn't released until the late 1990s.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Susie Salmon: [voiceover] I remember being really small; too small to see over the edge of a table. There was a snow globe, and I remember the penguin who lived inside the globe. He was all alone in there, and I worried for him.

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Connections

Featured in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Kick-Ass/Death at a Funeral/The Joneses (2010)

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Soundtracks

Alice
(2006)
Written by Elizabeth Fraser, Robin Guthrie and Simon Raymonde
Performed by Cocteau Twins
Courtesy of Mercury Records Limited and Cocteau Twins
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

Heart-wrenching, uplifting, captivating & hauntingly beautiful

A very unconventional movie that crosses many genres (murder/suspense/thriller/drama/fantasy), defies normal expectations and is an intense emotional experience. Right from the outset you are informed of when the lead character will be murdered and who her killer is but you are still kept on the edge of your seat and surprised by later revelations. The story dovetails between reality (before and after the murder) and a surreal afterlife realm in between Heaven and Earth. Despite the tragic, heart-wrenching and dark subject matter, the film is uplifting, captivating and hauntingly beautiful throughout. As the credits rolled, I ran through a gamut of emotion and found aspects of the film resonated with me long after.

It is difficult to conceive as to why this movie was critically panned. I can only surmise that either the story didn't follow the source material closely (I have not read the book) or viewers didn't appreciate the story being told from the perspective of a 13 year old girl or critics were just being spiteful towards a successful director (Directed by Peter Jackson and produced by Steven Spielberg).

PROS

(a) Original, imaginative, creative story / screenplay. (b) Authentic, well-drawn, endearing characters. (c) Thrilling & entertaining from start to finish. (d) A visual masterpiece - both from a cinematic perspective and a CGI/special effects perspective. Definitely warrants viewing in HD (Blu-Ray). (e) Superlative lead actors: Saoirse Ronan, Stanley Tucci. (f) Solid supporting actors: Susan Sarandon, Rachel Weisz, Mark Wahlberg. (g) Subtle but powerful soundtrack. (h) Thematically rich and filled with symbolism & metaphors.

CONS

(a) Childhood romantic relationships seem forced and only marginally believable. (b) Film appears to be heavily edited due to the long running time. Certain characters, scenes, and threads could have been fleshed out more. (c) The clairvoyant girl (Ruth) was a bit cliché & one-dimension. (d) Adequate resolution of killer's fate but not deeply satisfying.