Being hailed as "the new Twilight", The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones does have some similar qualities to the vampire saga. Yes, it stems from the first in a series of books. Granted, it has a love story between the main protagonists. There are supernatural elements. But to completely compare it to it, would be unfair to this new teenage fantasy series set to be the next big thing.
Set in modern day New York City, The Mortal Instruments sends audiences into a world of good vs. evil where demons walk the Earth in many forms, disguised amongst humans. Living alone with her mother, Clary has been plagued by visions of a symbol-like image, drawing it everywhere she goes.
On an unplanned night-out with best friend Simon (Robert Sheehan), she sees a club baring the angular symbol on it's sign. Intrigued she tricks her way in and inside, witnesses a mysterious, blonde young man murder someone. Distraught, Clary returns home and swiftly falls asleep, only to awaken to her bedroom filled with her own seemingly-recent etchings of the symbol she keeps imagining.
Understanding that this is definitely not something troubling every other normal New Yorker, Clary questions the young man about why only she can see him and why this symbol is presenting itself to her. Soon she discovers she's not like every other normal New Yorker at all and she must team up with new ally, Jace and his fellow half-angel warriors, to fight threats she didn't even know she had.
Teenage fantasy, especially that which holds its origin in written fiction is almost a doomed genre. Series such as The Hunger Games did pretty well to hold back such prejudice whereas others have not been so lucky, Beautiful Creatures for example. Pious critics before they have even seen it, already think that it will flop just because it is that kind of movie.
Admittedly, whilst it is not for everyone, if you take it for what it is and expect the usual, then The Mortal Instruments will surprise you. At the end of the day, the story was written for teenagers and young adults, therefore with a very specific target audience in mind. It's not a surprise that a middle-aged man isn't going to enjoy it as much as a 16 year old girl, and this has to be taken into consideration when judging it's quality. It's evidently not trying to please everyone.
One thing about City Of Bones that sets it above others of its style, is that where it so easily could have become cliché and cheesy, the film actually pokes fun at itself sometimes making for a much more refreshing take on the genre. The sarcastic British-like humour that Jamie Campbell Bower as Jace, brings to the table almost saves some scenes from becoming completely corny.
The fact that audiences have seen things likened to this before probably means that people will enter into it with an already negative viewpoint. However, it's darker and a bit more grown-up than things such as Percy Jackson and others we've seen previous, with Jace spouting lines like 'If you wanted me to take my clothes off, you should have just asked.' It feels a bit nineties, which is a good thing, and the acting is strong from a young, new to leading, cast. The team of the Shadow-hunters is one that meshes well on-screen, and their chemistry and friendships are more than believable.
The action scenes are well choreographed and truly impressive. With most of them being filmed with a numerous amount of cast members and extras, it must have been challenging to put together but they make for interesting, real battle-like fights, and the special effects are unarguably good.
What sets apart The Mortal Instruments from the likes of Twilight is that the love story seems to come secondary to the drama that enfolds throughout the movie, with a twist at the end that may nip the blossoming romance in the bud come the sequel, even.
Many critics are claiming that the film is terribly paced, feeling rushed, but regarding that it is the first of what will inevitably be many more to come (the sequel has already been confirmed), it sets up the characters and what they're essentially all about, well. It's clear that they're preparing this to be an on-going series, so the fact that you don't really learn much about the character's back-stories in this instalment shouldn't faze viewers too much.
All in all, the film plays out very much like a glorified episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer with a bit of romance thrown in, and it works. Amongst the cheesy lines and the dry tongue-in-cheek one-liners, there is a film with substance here but if you go into the cinema thinking you'll come out feeling culturally and intellectually moved, then you would undoubtedly be disappointed. If you go in not really pinpointing what to expect, The Mortal Instruments will leave you desperately wanting to pick up a copy of the follow-up book, 'City Of Ashes'.
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