Young Adult literature has a huge impact on the film industry, with lots of books and series being adapted for the screen. Flashback to Mortal Instruments: City of Bones is based on the Cassandra Clare novel of the same name.
City of Bones was released in 2014 and is set in a contemporary New York City peopled with faeries, warlocks, angels, demons and Shadowhunters. An unseen world Clary Fray knew nothing of until the night she witnesses a murder in a nightclub, and seems to be the only person to have witnessed it. Here is where her life takes a massive detour, and she is introduced to another side of life in New York that had been completely unknown to her until now.
This urban fantasy is action-packed with a strong female lead character, a point that made it difficult for Clare to find a studio to make the movie. The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones has all of the usual supernaturals – werewolves, vampires, warlocks, demons and angels. Then there’s the Shadowhunters – half-angel warriors tasked with protecting the Mortal world from demons.
Clary Fray, played by Lily Collins, is a seemingly ordinary teenager until the witnessing of a murder opens her up to an entire life and heritage she knew nothing about. Lena Headey, of Game of Thrones and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles among many others, plays Clary’s mother, Jocelyn, who is kidnapped and Clary is out to rescue.
Also starring in this adventure film are Jamie Campbell Bower (Jace Wayland), Robert Sheehan (Simon Lewis), Kevin Zegers (Alec Lightwood), Aidan Turner (Luke Garroway), Jonathan Rhys Meyers (Valentine Morgenstern), and Jemima West (Isabelle Lightwood).
The film was directed by Harald Zwart, and the screenplay was written by Jessica Postigo Paquette.
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones is rated M for fantasy violence and runs for 130 mins.
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