MY THOUGHTS: The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

Synopsis

Set in contemporary New York City, a seemingly ordinary teenager, Clary Fray (Lily Collins), discovers she is the descendant of a line of Shadowhunters, a secret cadre of young half-angel warriors locked in an ancient battle to protect our world from demons. After the disappearance of her mother (Lena Headey), Clary must join forces with a group of Shadowhunters, who introduce her to a dangerous alternate New York calld Downworld, filled with demons, warlocks, vampires, werewolves and other deadly creatures. Based on the worldwide best-selling book series, The Mortal Instruments. 

Film Rating:
PG-13 
Parents Strongly Cautioned
Intense Sequences of Fantasy Violence and Action,
and Some Suggestive Content.

Directed by:

Harald Zwart

Screenplay by:

Jessica Postigo Paquette

Based on the Novel by:

Cassandra Clare

Cast:

Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower, Robert Sheehan Kevin Zegers, Jemima West, Lena Headey, Aiden Turner, Godrey Gao, Kevin Durand with CCH Pounder, Jared Harris and Jonathan Rhys Meyers

For full cast and crew, go to: IMDB

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NOTE: This review has no spoilers

My thoughts

First off, we have to remember that this is an adaptation/interpretation of the book, so changes will be expected. Like any novel to film adaptations, it never is EXACTLY like the book. It can be frustrating when a film adaptation is completely nothing like the book; but, yet, claims that it is based on the book!  So, I would suggest to fans of the book series to watch the movie with an open mind...and remember it's an interpretation of the story.

After the excitement at the fan barricade, Mariah and I made a mad dash into the theater, grabbed some free drinks and popcorn and settled into our seats...just minutes before the movie started. Yes! We were able to watch the movie at the premiere after winning a couple of tickets from Fangirlish. I was somewhat "holding my breath" as the movie started since I have been disappointed before with bad novel to film adaptations. I didn't want to have too high of an expectation for this film, so that I wouldn't come crumbling down with disappointment after watching it. I also refrained from watching too many trailers, clips and featurettes, because I wanted to maintain that element of surprise and awe for when I actually watched the entire film. However, I did watch the five-minute clip that was released just days before...with that, I got even more excited.

As the movie started, it was as if I was opening the book. Although there were changes, it worked! In different parts of the movie, I could "see" what part of the book it was, but, of course, with some changes. Despite the changes, the entire film worked! The story flowed and connected. The characters were well established throughout the film as we watched each character develop from beginning to end. I also noticed that there was a balance among the characters as they grew throughout the film. The characters were well developed. Considering the changes and the entire film overall, I enjoyed the film immensely! I absolutely loved it! This film captured the "feels" that I felt when I read the book! In essence, the film captured the "heart" of the book, and told the story beautifully.

Harald Zwart, the director, did an AMAZING job at bringing the characters to life with cast they had chosen. I loved that fact that he would constantly seek Cassandra Clare's advice/opinion...whatever it was, Harald kept Cassandra close during filming. How awesome was that! Just have to love him and the crew to death for putting all their heart and efforts in making the film and staying true to the book. Have to admire the guy for reading the book and becoming a fan himself...haha! Gotta love it!

As for Jessica Postigo Paquette, she did a wonderful job writing a screenplay that works...it maintained the essence of the Shadowhunter world that Cassandra Clare created in her novels. Just by watching the movie, it was apparently clear that Jessica didn't just write a screenplay; she read the book thoroughly then wrote the screenplay. She took great care to maintain the heart of the story and characters. I absolutely love her for putting all her heart into writing the screenplay, and maintaining the essence of each character.

In regards to the cast, I believe that each actor and actress embodied each character perfectly. Everyone will always have their own image of what each character looks like...they are not going to please everyone's imagination. But, for me, each cast member played their parts well...to the point that Lily Collins is Clary, Jamie Campbell Bower is Jace, Jemima West is Isabelle Lightwood, Kevin Zegers is Alec Lightwood, Robert Sheehan is Simon Lewis...so on and so forth for every cast member. It's true that some of the cast is not what individual fans imagined, but this cast works! I loved the cast! 

Overall, we loved the movie! We couldn't stop gushing about it! This is one of the best novel to film adaptations I have watched! This is definitely a movie that everyone will enjoy! It is definitely an action-filled movie with a little teen romance. But, it definitely maintained the balance of suspense, thrills, drama, action and romance that we are familiar with in the book. 

Let's put it this way, my daughter loved and enjoyed the movie so much so that she didn't want to leave the theater!! We can definitely watch this movie over and over again....hahaha!!

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones
In Theaters August 21, 2013

The Mortal Instruments Mall Tour Stops in Los Angeles

On August 13, 2013...yes, the day after the star-studded premiere, the cast attends a Q&A at The Americana at Brand, a last minute stop added to the TMI mall tour schedule. How amazing was that! Another chance to meet the cast of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones! Again, fans camped out for this exciting event. However, we, on the other hand, were exhausted and we decided to sleep for a few hours in the motel room. Even with the alarm clock set, we slept right through it...that's how exhausted we were...haha! As soon as we realized the time, we hurriedly rushed to get ready and make our way to The Americana at Brand where the TMI Mall Tour was being held. Luckily, we had friends that held spots for us in line...huge "THANK YOU" to Perla, Kristen and Louise! You girls are AWESOME! 

The Stage

As soon as we arrived, we found our friends in line, and we excitedly chatted about The Mortal Instruments and other fandoms! Yes, we gushed like a fangirl, discussing all that we are passionate about...haha!! As the hours passed, security had finally moved the line onto the grounds nearby where the Q&A was to take place. We have even noticed that the stage was already set up since the day before. Of course, we all knew that there were a limited amount of wristbands to be given out on a first come first serve basis. And, yes, we were among the ones to receive a wristband. Only those that received wristbands availed of the signing after the Q&A. Woohoo!!! 

Fangirls Assemble!!

Security then announced that we will be able to wait in the VIP section of the Green, which was right in front of the stage! Since it was hours until the event would start, those who had a wristband were able to go in and out of the VIP area to get drinks and/or food. And, boy, was it a hot day! The Americana staff even started handing out water to everyone! Whew! That was a huge help! All the while we waited, we found out that get rune tattoos put on and get a make over by NYX! How cool was that! 

Although it was a hot day, everyone was too excited to leave the area, especially since it was "standing room only." No one wanted to lose their "spot"...LOL! Of course, we were among those fans...haha! We definitely wanted to be able to get a good view of the stage once the Q&A started! And, again, we were among the same friends from the premiere! Being among friends made the wait bearable...even under the sun. But, boy, was it a huge turn out...even under the blazing sun! 

Oh yeah! Fans galore...haha!

Diana, Cassandra & Mariah

The parents! Yes...we are fans, too! Haha!

Yup! Our friends from London! 

After all that waiting, the hour came around that this exciting event started. Our host Jojo Wright from KIIS-FM got the event started with showing the trailer for this exciting new film. After watching the trailer and fans cheered, Jojo Wright introduced our illustrious guests to the stage! It was amazing! Our guests included: Harald Zwart (director), Casandra Clare (author), Kevin Zegers (Alec Lightwood), Robert Sheehan (Simon Lewis), Jamie Campbell Bower (Jace Wayland) and Lily Collins (Clary Fray).

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones cast

Cassandra Clare (author) & Harald Zwart (director)

Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower,
Robert Sheehan & Kevin Zegers

View the album of this event at: Movies, Shows & Books

We were able to capture this event on video...as well as we could. Check out the video clips from this exciting and fun event!

Wow! They were so amazing, and having fun while at it! We loved every minute of it! Despite the exhaustion, the heat and the crowd, we enjoyed every minute of it! As soon as the Q&A was over and the cast left the stage, the Americana staff hurriedly arranged tables on the stage for the signing part of this incredible event. 

Getting ready for the signing!

We excitedly waited for our chance to climb the stairs to the stage...to just briefly chat with them was a wonderful experience. Of course, we just had to tell them how much we loved the movie! I was so awestruck when Jamie Campbell Bower asked Mariah if she liked the movie; and Mariah replied to him that she didn't want to leave the theater...hahaha!! It was great! They all asked if we loved the movie...our reply over and over was "yes! we loved it!" All the while, they were signing our posters! I even asked them if they could sign our premiere tickets...yes, those are our souvenirs from the exciting premiere night at the Arclight in Hollywood! They were all too kind to do so, especially since by the time we got to the stage...we were not permitted to take pictures, and we were not permitted to have more than one item signed. However, they did sign our tickets...yay! I even told Lily Collins that loved the movie, and that premiere night was a mother/daughter time at the movies. She loved it! I even told Robert Sheehan that he was absolutely hilarious as Simon Lewis! He was all smiles! When we got to Cassandra Clare and Harald Zwart, they asked us what we thought about the movie. We told them that we loved it! And, in my opinion, the film captured the heart and essence of the novel. They were so awesome to talk with, but, alas, time was short and there were many fans still in line. 

Our posters signed by the cast!

Our premiere tickets signed by the cast!

After we had our turn for the signing, we grabbed some swag from the TMI booths that were set up behind the stage! Woohoo!! What a fun way to end the event...with swag!! Yay! These are definite memories with my fangirl friends...haha!!

We collected some swag!

And, that concludes the three whirlwind days of The Mortal Instruments events!!! At the end of the day, Mariah and I made that drive home to Coachella. Although we went home exhausted, sore and sunburnt, we had an unbelievably incredibly fun time for those three amazing days! And, we'll do it again for the next film, City of Ashes....hahaha!!!

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

In Theaters August 21, 2013

THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS: City of Bones Hollywood Premiere

The cast at the L.A. Premiere

August 12, 2013 was THE day for The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Hollywood Premiere! And, we even camped out for this exciting event! We weren't alone either; several other fans camped out as we did just to be "front and center" to be able to catch a glimpse of the celebrities walking down the black carpet from the fan barricade...and, yay, we sure did! We even won tickets to watch with the cast! 

Our tickets to watch the movie!

Let's start at the beginning of the day...since we camped out, we were already visited by Kevin Zegers and Jessica Postigo, that was an amazingly memorable experience. Well, as the day started, everyone that camped out started to clean up and get ready for the event. We noticed that more fans were coming out to line up for the premiere. We soon observed that they were setting up the barricades for the upcoming event. I then noticed that they DID set up a fan area! My excitement climbed a notch after seeing that. About noon, event security decided to give us tickets as line place holders, so that we can leave and do whatever we need to do before 4:30PM. They reminded us that we had to be back in line before then...before the event started. After we got our place holder tickets, we went back to the motel room where we freshened up for the evening's event! We were so excited that we got ready in no time flat...haha!!

When we returned to the Arclight theater, Cassandra, Mariah and I took our places in line with the others that camped out. Excitement among the fans in line started to escalate as time grew closer to the start of the black carpet event. About an hour before the arrival of guest celebrities, we instructed to procure our tickets at the "will call" table, and press had to line up, as well, to procure their press badges. Yay, Cassandra from The Mortal Minute and Tatiana from City of Shadowhunters for getting press! 

Harald Zwart (director) & wife,
Velsemoy Ruud Zwart (co-executive producer)

As the guests started to arrive, Harald Zwart and Velsemoy Ruud Zwart were the first to come out to the fan area. They had just about the same excitement as the fans did! Harald and Velsemoy are such awesome people! How cool was that...they visited us while we camped out and even spent time with us in the fan area. They so rocked it that evening! Then, others followed to the fan area...OMG! It was one of the most amazing experiences that will be remembered for a long time to come! It was great! So many of the cast, crew and other guests came out and took their time with fans, including Jessica Postigo, Harry Von Gorkum, Aiden Turner, Jared Harris, Nathan Sykes (The Wanted) and, of course, our Shadowhunter Queen...Cassandra Clare! They are such amazing people! We had an absolutely exciting time at the fan area! 

Mariah with Harry Von Gorkum

Jasmine with Harry Von Gorkum

Jasmine with Jared Harris

Mariah with Nathan Sykes

Mariah with Jared Harris

Jasmine with the beautiful Allegra Riggio
(fiancee to Jared Harris)

Jasmine with Nathan Sykes (The Wanted)

All the while, Cassandra and Tatiana were interviewing guests as they walked down the black carpet! As press, they were able to stand next to the black carpet and interview a few of the guests such as: Robert Kuzler (producer) and Jared Harris (Hodge Starkweather)...just to name a couple. How exciting was that! You go girls! 

Tatiana interviewing Robert Kuzler (producer)

Our Shadowhunter Queen, Cassandra Clare

After the exciting rush of meeting a variety of celebrities at the fan area, we made a mad dash into the theater since the presentation of the film by Harald Zwart had already begun. We just made it in time to our seats before the movie started. We were ecstatic to be watching the movie before it is released on August 21, 2013! Woohoo!!! To be in the company of the cast, crew and other guests was nerve-wracking and exciting! Now, what I thought about the movie will have to wait...when I write up my review...haha! After the movie ended and the credits were rolling, Mariah did not want to leave! Yes, she definitely enjoyed the movie...but, I'm not going to go into details about the movie quite yet. As we were getting our things together to leave the theater, I noticed that Nathan Sykes was sitting a few rows behind us...Whoa! It was such an exciting experience.

As we made our way out of the theater, Mariah and I ran into Jessica Postigo! We were so in awe of the film that I was gushing! I just had to tell Jessica what we thought! She was so elated that we loved it! We then ran into the lovely ladies of Mundie Moms, Fangirlish and others before they left for the afterparty. I was able to get a photo op of the ladies that gave Mariah and I a chance to watch the movie that premiere night! A huge thank you to these ladies!

The lovely ladies of Mundie Moms, Fangirlish,
TMI Source

Cassandra & Jasmine caught Harry Von Gorkum
after the movie!

To view the full album, go to: Movies, Shows & Books

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

In Theaters August 21, 2013

Watch it!

'The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones' Los Angeles Camp Out!

What an adventure...all for The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones! Yes, we were definitely living it up as fangirls...from camping out on Sunset Blvd. to standing out under the hot sun at The Americana at Brand. There was no question about it, Mariah and I just had to be a part of this amazing phenomenon! Those three days were exciting and fun as we camped out and hung out with several friends who are also major Cassandra Clare fans.

Where to begin!?! Let's begin with the camp out! Yes, we did camp out on the streets of L.A. just so we can be a part of this awesome experience. At first, we were planning to drive out to L.A. late Sunday night... especially since we just got back from an overnight trip to Arizona! But, then, my awesome fangirl friend, Victoria, messaged me about a tweet by Harald Zwart, the director, about visiting the fan camp and bringing soup. Well, that woke me up! My other fangirl friend, Cassandra, also decided to camp out as well, after seeing Harald's tweet.  Mariah and I met up with Cassandra, then we made our way to the Arclight in Hollywood for the fan camp. I would say we arrived around 10PM, and we met up with other fangirl friends... we even, finally, met our friend, Diana, who flew all the way from London! We weren't many fans, but we were enough to have fun!

After setting up next to our friend Diana, we chatted with a few friends...all in different parts of the line! Yes, we had friends that started the line as early as 1PM on Sunday! That's dedication! It was like a big party! Everyone was so excited that we are all up chatting with everyone! 

Harald Zwart signing for fans!

As the midnight hour came to pass, Harald Zwart, Veslemoy Ruud Zwart and friends visited the fan camp and brought hot soup! How awesome was that! Not only did they bring soup for the fans, Harald and friends hung out, gave authographs, took photos and chatted with the fans. Everyone was giddy with excitement! It was great to actually meet the director of a movie that we all were excited for! I was and still am in awe that they are as excited as we are for this movie! 

Caught Cassandra in this shot with Harald Zwart!

Jasmine with Harald Zwart

Mariah with Harald Zwart

We were not only visited by Harald Zwart and friends, the ladies from several fansites: Mundie Moms, Fangirlish, TMI Movie News, The Mortal Institute, Page to Premiere, TMI Source and more! The most exciting part was the contests that they were having on the spot! The winning prize...tickets to watch the movie with the cast!! Woohoo!! I so wanted to win, but like with any contest...it's all about chance. And, guess what! We did get that chance! Erin from Fangirlish announced a contest..."Who's here as mother/daughter?" Oh wow! Mariah and I can definitely win that; we are, after all, mother and daughter...hahaha!! Yes! We won a couple tickets...woohoo!! I was so "over the moon" giddy with excitement! These awesome ladies continued with the contests until they have given away all the tickets that were in their possessions. Yup! A bunch of eager fans won tickets! Yay! After all the excitement, everyone settled in for a chilly night on Sunset Blvd.

Meeting the ladies of Page to Premiere!

Kevin Zegers as Alec Lightwood

Early Monday morning, fans were visited by a cast member! We woke up to the sweet sound of Kevin Zeger's voice! What a way to start of the morning! Guess camping out paid off...haha! He greeted and brought cookies for us! How awesome was that! When he got to our side of the camp, I congratulated him on his nuptials to Jaime Feld! That definitely brightened his smile...I could only smile in awe! It was an amazingly beautiful Monday morning! Kevin handed out cookies, chatted, signed and took photos with fans! We were absolutely giddy! 

Mariah with Kevin Zegers!

Jasmine with Kevin Zegers!

The visitations didn't end there!! A few hours later, we were visited...again, by Jessica Postigo, the screenwriter! She and her husband, Eric Paquette (senior VP for Sony Pictures), came by Sunday afternoon and found that fans started to create a line...a fan camp! Bummed that I missed that, but I needed the nap after driving back from Lake Havasu! But, no big loss, we got our chance to meet Jessica Postigo on Monday morning! Wow! I am always in awe to meet the people behind the film, since cast AND crew puts their whole heart into making this book come to life. Jessica was such a pleasure to meet! It was so wonderful to see how excited she was when she saw how excited and dedicated we were...camping out and all! 

Jasmine & Mariah with Jessica Postigo!

What other words can describe this camp out experience!?! The only words that keep coming to my mind was: AMAZING, FUN, EXCITING and MEMORABLE! Not only did we meet Harald Zwart (director), Jessica Postigo (screenwriter) and Kevin Zegers (Alec Lightwood); we also met various wonderful ladies from popular fansites! In addition to meeting them, we also met and befriended a variety of young ladies from around the globe to be here for this wonderful event, such as the wonderful ladies, Lilliana of Shadowhunters Colombia, Alessa of Shadowhunters Venezuela, Diana (from London), Irish shadowhunters and so many more! I have found that many fandoms like this one brings together a variety of fans of all ages, and have made many friendships because of it! We had an amazing time camping out! 

Cassandra, Diana, Jasmine & Mariah

For the full album of the camp out, go to: Movies, Shows & Books

Till the next camp out for the next film of The Mortal Instruments saga:

 City of Ashes

Win a Pair of Tickets to the Los Angeles Premiere of 'The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones'

Hey awesome nerds!

As we get closer to the big Hollywood premiere of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, several fansites were able to get ten pairs of tickets to this awesome event! Yes, that's twenty tickets per fansite! So, there are plenty of chances to win! Enter now!

Los Angeles Premiere of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones will be held on Monday, August 12, 2013, at the Arclight in Hollywood.

The fansites are as follows:

TMI Movie News

TMI Source

Page to Premiere

Mundie Moms

Fangirlish

TMI Institute

(contest not up yet, keep checking)

Are we excited!! Well, get to entering Shadowhunters for a chance to win!

Contest ends August 9th or10th...depending on the fansite!

Unfortunately, you must be in the Los Angeles area.

Good Luck!

In theaters August 21, 2013

Contest is over!!

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Extended Clip

Hey awesome nerds!!!

Yahoo! Movies got an exclusive extended clip from The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones!  Yes!!! A five minute clip...whoa!! Excited! I know I am...haha!!

Check it out now!

Starring Lily Collins and Jamie Campbell Bower

Based on Cassandra Clare's bestselling novel City of Bones 

of The Mortal Instruments series

In theaters August 21, 2013

'The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones' iTunes Featurette and New Poster

Here's the first featurette of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones! Got some new footage revealed in this featurette including interviews with the cast and director, Harald Zwart! 

I am speechless! It's absolutely amazing to see who excited the cast is about this upcoming film based on Cassandra Clare's YA novel, City of Bones!  Being a fan of her books, news of a movie was just "jaw-dropping!" Yes, I was very excited.  As I followed updates, I was ecstatic to find out that Cassandra Clare was included during the filming! 

I am so blown away at the awesome trailers, clips and, now, this featurette at how amazing the film looks so far.  I definitely am looking forward to watching one of my favorite books come to life! 

Not only was this first featurette revealed, a new poster also was revealed   for fans to love! Here it is!

The cast is featured in this new poster: Robert Sheehan (Simon Lewis), Jemima West (Isabelle Lightwood), Kevin Zegers (Alec Lightwood), Jace Wayland (Jamie Campbell Bower) and Lily Collins (Clary Fray). 

Love the poster! 

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones hits theaters August 21, 2013!!

So, awesome nerds, what do you think of this featurette and this new poster!?! Excited!!??!! I know I am!!! 

Don't forget to follow me as I share my thoughts and experiences on my favorites: movies, shows & books!! 

Thank you!

Exclusive UK Trailer: The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

Check it out!!! The exclusive UK trailer - The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones!!!  

Whooaaa!!! More footage is revealed in this new UK trailer. I am definitely getting more excited to watch this film. Last week, fans, as we prefer to be referred as Shadowhunters, were given a glimpse of what to expect when Sony Pictures released 10 movie stills. The anticipation and excitement rose a few notches because of that. In addition to those movie stills, more character posters were also revealed before that. And now, this UK trailer with more footage of the film revealed. Wow!! How much more can we take...Shadowhunters all around the world are pretty much "busting at the seams" with excitement! Of course that's my assumption since I am "busting at the seams" with excitement and anticipation for the release of this film adaptation of a worldwide bestseller...Cassandra Clare's first book in The Mortal Instruments series, City of Bones.

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones hits theaters August 21, 2013!!

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Movie Stills Released

Well, can this week get any better for every Cassandra Clare fan out there!!??!! I think "YES!"  As far as this week goes...haha!! Wow!! Sony Pictures has released several new stills from the upcoming The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones film in the past couple of days. It is a good time to be "fangirling" it now. Can I be even more excited now for the release of this upcoming film since the news of moving the release date!!??!! Heck yeah! My excitement has escalated another notch since Sony released these movie stills! 

These stills were released yesterday, June 13, 2013!

Jace looking at Clary at the coffee shop

Simon and Clary at the Pandemonium Club

Isabelle helping Clary get ready for Magnus Bane's party

Jace and Clary in the greenhouse

Jace and Clary on the demonized motorcycle

(source: youngadulthollywood.com)

Here's a fun part, Natasha Polis of Page to Premiere even matched these stills above to the parts of the book, City of Bones. So, yah, that's awesome!!! Check it out here!!!

Now, here's what was released today!!

(source: www.jamie-bower.de)

With these amazing stills, fans (otherwise referred to as Shadowhunters) will definitely be gushing with excitement and anticipation for the release of the movie.  And, yes, the release was moved up to August 21, 2013!!! I don't know if it can get better than this! But, I'm sure there will be more news as the date approaches. 

Here's the latest trailer:

Oh yeah! Read the books, met the author (Cassandra Clare), director (Harald Zwart) and the star of the movie, Lily Collins! Amazing and fun times!!! I just love it that Cassandra was also a part of filming this.

In theaters August 21, 2013!!!