Directed by Peter Jackson whose previous films include "
Brain Dead, "
Bad Taste" and "
The Lord of the Rings" trilogy "
The Lovely Bones" is the story of a murdered girl who, from her afterlife existence, observes her family and how they react to the shock of her disappearance. She also watches her murderer and the progress of the investigation to find her. This point of view - of the murder victim - provides an effective detachment to the narrative.
Despite the loss of life this is is not a tragic story but a poetic film. The script is very good but the film stands out for it's flawless execution. The first part is necessarily rather long. The viewer is plunged into typical small-town America and the daily lives a family. The family comes across as just a little too perfect, but also very endearing. We care about them. Which makes what happens next all the more powerful.
The murder of the girl is the mid-point of the film and the turning point of the plot. It is the best scene in the film. The viewer's anxiety builds with that of the victim and at its peak is palpably uncomfortable. It seems like an endless scene that you just want to stop - but also you don't want it to stop because there might just be a chance that she escapes. It achieves this without being gratuitous or graphic - and it is all the harder to watch for that. Producing a range of strong emotional responses from the viewer this is by far the most successful part of
The Lovely Bones.
The second half is like a completely different film. We are transported from small town America to an imaginary world. This is "heaven" or " the hereafter", call it what you please, the scenes are incredibly beautiful and moving.
Such scenes of visual poetry, beauty and sadness are haunting. And one
is haunted by them, just as the girl's family is haunted by her loss and the mystery of her disappearance. I was left with a feeling of deep melancholy when the film ended. The feeling slowly dwindled over the following few days - but the film raised many questions. I shall have to watch it again.
The Lovely Bones is an excellent film. It proves the power of movies as an art form It creates so many deeply felt emotional responses. Peter Jackson has made an amazing film that is generically unclassifiable. He has used his experience in directing fantasy films to make what would have been a straightforward family drama into a complete hybrid.
Saoirse Ronan, very young, very talented, plays her part with an aching understatement. We feel the lost potential created by her disappearance. She leaves a gap in our lives.