When Books Don't Translate Into Movies

I am a HUGE fan of Cassandra Clare; she is brilliant. I read all her books and loved every one of them. And so I was eagerly awaiting the release of The Mortal Instruments, which I saw on release day. Here are my thoughts....

First, the sets: they were gorgeous! From the institute (it reminded me of Hogwarts) to the City of Bones, there were magnificent and very much aligned with what I had imagined them to be.

Onto the acting.... Loved Clary (Lilly Collins), loved Jace (Jamie Campbell Bower), loved Simon (Robert Sheehan), Luke (Aidan Turner), Clary's mom (Lena Headey), but I felt that Isabelle (Jemima West) wasn't sassy enough and Alek (Kevin Zegers)... well he didn't seem like Alek to me. My biggest disappointment was Magnus Bane, however. Magnus is possibly my favorite character of the series. He is a 500-year-old warlock, cocky, irreverent, funny and has had more lovers than he's lived years. I had hoped that there was an actor out there able to encapsulate all that Magnus Bane is, but sadly Godfrey Gao didn't manage that. Sigh. 

The whole movie felt rushed. The 485-page book is non-stop action and two hours are not nearly long enough to get everything in with enough depth to weave a coherent storyline. I can imagine that people who saw the movie without reading the book might have been thoroughly confused. 

So the verdict: it was entertaining but left me wanting/hoping for more. 

However the soundtrack is completely delicious and have been listening to it non stop...

Will I go see City of Ashes if they make the second installment? Absolutely. I still love the world they created.

What about you? Have you seen it? What did you think?