The Lovely Bones 4K 2009

“The Lovely Bones” is a very controversial film adaptation. On the one hand, it’s an incredibly beautiful and even majestic film—after “The Lord of the Rings,” Peter Jackson probably doesn’t know how to do anything else. On the other hand, by condensing the narrative into two and a quarter hours, the director cut out some important details from the book, which clearly affected the logic of the story. And thirdly, only after reading the book will it become clear exactly what the director removed from the plot—and why. Although one can make an educated guess. Most likely, Jackson compromised to appeal to a wider audience.

The main contradiction, however, is that the film is both dark—at least due to the plot conflicts—and benevolently light...

Let’s keep it simple. If you ask directly whether this movie is worth watching, the answer is unequivocally “Yes!” If only because *The Lovely Bones* is a touching, poignant, and painful story. At the same time, the redemption from that on-screen pain is so simple and naive that it generally softens the horror of the story about a serial killer of children.

The main character—fourteen-year-old Susie Salmon—falls victim to a maniacal neighbor. After her death, finding herself in a space between the earthly world and heaven within her dreams, she longs for her abuser to be found and punished.

“ *Zodiac* meets *The Edge* meets *Where Dreams Lead* meets *A Mile of Moonlight*.

Consequently, the film is divided into two visual realms. The first is the real world—the authentic America of the 1970s, recreated with David Fincher’s meticulous attention to detail—and the second is, in fact, Susie’s dreams. In the real world, it’s a classic, genuine thriller—a sort of retro game of cat-and-mouse, with the twist that we know who the killer is, and everyone on screen figures it out too. In the fantasy world, it’s a painfully glossy, frozen beauty—so beautiful and so far removed from reality that there’s nothing to fault here. Some will inevitably compare “Susie’s Paradise” to a similar setting from the movie *Where Dreams Lead*—a comparison that, while appropriate, feels somewhat unnecessary.

It’s striking that Peter Jackson managed to assemble such a cohesive cast—everyone is perfectly cast, and even the beautiful Rachel Weisz is just as stunning as she needs to be here. And Saoirse Ronan, the simple-minded schoolgirl killed before her time, is so natural in her role that she remains the central figure even when she’s not on screen. And her emotions—especially the sparkling delight at having her dream come true—are downright overwhelming.

Jackson already made a film about girls nearly fifteen years ago—“Heavenly Creatures.” However, that film featured a brilliantly presented, entertaining exploration of psychopathology. Here, on the other hand, we see a story that, with a few exceptions, is quite down-to-earth and ordinary. At times, it may even seem that Jackson, in his role as the thriller director, finds the non-fairy-tale reality a bit boring. That’s why his villain is almost theatrical, and why Suzy’s dreams are so outlandish.

Throughout the film, the narrative balances between painful drama, fantasy, tragicomedy, and melodrama; however, in his portrayal of a teenage girl’s thoughts—whether due to moral constraints or the fact that he himself is already a grown man with children of his own—a certain uncertainty is palpable. It’s as if the director has distanced himself from any moral involvement in the story and is trying to portray it with a degree of impartiality. And he succeeds.

Incidentally, there’s another character in the film who also views the events with a certain detachment—fortunately, it’s the lively Grandma Suzy, played by Susan Sarandon. Her presence enlivens everything around her and injects a burst of crazy chaos into the dreary daily routine. Perpetually tipsy and with a cigarette between her teeth, she is the only character in the drama who retains her sanity and consistency. Her lively spontaneity and desire to move forward clearly resonate with the main character’s naive enthusiasm and are partly reflected in how Suzy chose to move forward even after her death.

Well, what’s left for us to do? We need to try to watch this story with an open mind. Even though it’s emotionally taxing, and even though it’s sometimes hard to watch, after watching it, somewhere deep inside you’ll feel that part of Suzy’s bright world—a world that’s crazy in its naivety but very luminous—the world of a girl who never really grew up. Unlike us.