Vampires that don’t sparkle, werewolves that wear shirts, and demons that don’t actually possess people: what do all of these things have in common? They are all commonplace in the captivating and twisted novels featuring Shadowhunters by Cassandra Clare. As a fan of the Mortal Instruments and Infernal Devices books, it was like a dream come true when the news of the Mortal Instruments: City of Bones movie wafted by my ears. Months in advance, I saved the date in the calendar on my phone.
As soon as the casting for the movie was released, it was apparent that there were going to be discrepancies between the movie and the beloved books. From gorgeous, angel-boy Jace Wayland to the hulking, icy villain Valentine, time and time again the viewer encounters characters that don’t exactly fit the script that Clare’s book created. The only major characters whose looks matched their characters were Clary Fray, Simon, and, perhaps, Magnus Bane (though later I was disappointed by his atrocious and bland acting). Also, the movie took care in blurring the age lines of characters; eighteen-year-old Alec Lightwood appeared to be thirty, while late-thirties Hodge Starkweather seemed to be ancient and well on his way to the City of Bones himself. This movie managed to single handedly ruin the characters of Mortal Instruments for fans everywhere.
Horrible casting aside, the differences between the movie and the books became obvious about halfway through the movie. The director and writer seemingly threw the City of Bones out the window and created their own alternate ending to the tragic story. Instead of battling Valentine and saving Jace and her mother at an old Tuberculosis ward outside of NYC, Clary and the wolves battled demons (who were actually the Foresaken, or cursed humans, in the book) in the Institute, which, may I add, is impenetrable by demons because it’s on hallowed ground. Along the way, characters that were important in future installments of the series (i.e. Raphael, Magnus, various faries, and other Shadowhunters) were seriously downplayed or deleted all together. The movie also included many innacuracies. For example, Clary has different powers in the movie than he does in the books.
“I haven’t read the book,” said Kenji Tyler, a sophomore at Bob Jones. “I thought the movie was really cool,” he said.
There were, of course, a lot of interesting things, cinematically, going on. Also, the special effects where spectacular and realistic–that is, for a fantasy. The fight scene in the Dumort was particularly intriguing.
“Honestly, it was a massive disappointment, which I expected,” commented fan Jessica Deming, a senior at Bob Jones who thoroughly enjoyed the books. “I would have liked it more if I hadn’t read the book.”
It’s true; if you haven’t read the book, you’ll probably enjoy this action-packed, adventurous movie. However, if you have read the book, I caution you greatly to avoid this movie at all costs. It’s the Percy Jackson series all over again. As a fan, all I can ask is that they do not make City of Ashes into a movie. Please leave my favorite book series alone.
