The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

Based on the 2007 first novel in Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instruments YA fantasy series, City of Bones is set in a world much like our own, except that vampires and werewolves make up part of the populace. Clary (Lily Collins), who lives in Brooklyn with her mother, Jocelyn (Lena Headey), has no idea that such creatures exist until the night she and her friend, Simon (Robert Sheehan), meet Jace (Jamie Campbell Bower), a Shadowhunter who identifies Clary as a member of his half-angel tribe that lives to fight evil. When Jocelyn—who neglected to tell Clary about her nature—goes missing, the trio set out to track her down before a turncoat Shadowhunter (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) can get hold of her magical chalice and wreak havoc. Along the way, they receive help from some—including a mentor (Jared Harris) and a witch (CCH Pounder)—and hindrance from others, such as disgusting demons and ravenous bloodsuckers. To Simon's chagrin, Clary and Jace also fall in love. Unfortunately, director Harald Zwart's film is bogged down by a sprawling plot, awkward dialogue, and a silly Star Wars twist. Optional, at best. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include the production featurettes “Bringing Them to Life” on characters (7 min.) and “Descendants of the Cup” on stunts (5 min.), deleted scenes (5 min.), the music video “Almost is Never Enough” by Ariana Grande featuring Nathan Sykes, and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are the behind-the-scenes segments “Into the Shadows” with author Cassandra Clare (9 min.), “Deadly Attraction” with costars Lily Collins and Jamie Campbell Bower (5 min.), and “Entering the Shadow World” (5 min.), as well as an interactive character lineage tracker, and bonus DVD and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a disappointing adaptation.] (K. Fennessy)