The Lovely Bones is a hard one to rank because I both loved it and hated it.
First off, obviously it was going to contain some seriously awesome and stunning scenery because Peter Jackson was behind the directorial helm. And it did: the heaven scenes where our (dead) protagonist's imagination blended with beautiful nature scenes were amazing- like the tree whose leaves suddenly turned into birds that flew away (see movie poster) or the life-sized ships in a bottle that were crashing ashore. This movie may seem like an odd choice for Jackson to direct, given what it's about, compared to his other films. Actually though, I think his adept ability to deliver such powerful fantastical sequences made this movie work. It does the girl's tale justice.
Also, the acting was solid. I tend to like Mark Wahlberg because there's a soft side to his gruff manliness, which definitely shines through here. Our protagonist, Saoirse Ronan (try pronouncing that name), played it just right- ghostly and eerie yet sad and longing. Stanley Tucci played a complete 180 role here especially when you compare this part to that in Julie & Julia or Devil Wears Prada. Finally, Susan Sarandan was hilarious and provided the brief comic relief that we desperately needed half-way through.
Okay, now to the obvious parts that I hated about this movie. I don't think I'm going to be giving anything away by saying that Stanley Tucci's character was a sociopathic pedophile who raped and murdered little girls. And boy was his character a creepy, ugly, scary, and messed up weirdo. I just can't feel at much peace with this movie, no matter how it ends, after having seen a vision of him in a bathtub filled with dirt and blood right after he murdered that girl. I'll bet that many people don't even feel satisfied with the ending, though I won't say anymore.
Overall, The Lovely Bones was a powerful and sad movie that certainly brought out a lot of emotions (including real fear) and hit home for everybody who cares about children and families-- well, for anybody who cares about people. It was written without fear and directed with talent. It's not an easy or really enjoyable movie to watch, but it does do a good job of showing how families struggle to come to terms and cope with such awful tragedies. If you watch it, you will certainly feel digusted and sad with a lesser chance of feeling uplifted.
