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The Lovely Bones

Play trailer 2:25 Poster for The Lovely Bones PG-13 Released Jan 15, 2010 2h 16m Drama Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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31% Tomatometer 245 Reviews 52% Popcornmeter 250,000+ Ratings
After being brutally murdered, 14-year-old Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) watches from heaven over her grief-stricken family (Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz) -- and her killer (Stanley Tucci). As she observes their daily lives, she must balance her thirst for revenge with her desire for her family to heal.
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The Lovely Bones

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Critics Consensus

It's stuffed full of Peter Jackson's typically dazzling imagery, but The Lovely Bones suffers from abrupt shifts between horrific violence and cloying sentimentality.

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Critics Reviews

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Shubhra Gupta The Indian Express Both [Saoirse] Ronan and [Stanley] Tucci are worth the price of an admission ticket. Rated: 2/5 Apr 16, 2019 Full Review Candice Frederick Reel Talk Online It's an interesting way to tell a heartbreaking story a young girl whose life was taken away too soon, and whose family fights to pull the pieces together after their loss. Rated: B+ Sep 12, 2017 Full Review Ian Freer Empire Magazine The Lovely Bones does a fantastic job with revered, complex source material. As terrific on terra firma as it is audacious in its astral plane, it is doubtful we'll see a more imaginative, courageous film in 2010. Rated: 4/5 Feb 19, 2010 Full Review Patrick Cavanaugh The Wolfman Cometh Sometimes books should really stay books, no matter how lauded they might be, as translating meditative reflections on death from the page to the big screen don't work (like in this movie). Rated: 2/5 Sep 9, 2025 Full Review Ezequiel Obregón EscribiendoCine ...The Lovely Bones manages to move audiences and show that Jackson is a daring director, who still has a lot to say. [Full review in Spanish] Rated: 6/10 Feb 3, 2025 Full Review Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review At once, the director is doing too much visually while not doing enough dramatically. Rated: 1.5/4 Aug 28, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Ted B 3.0 stars; An interesting movie from a movie-making perspective. It's a combination of a psycho killer film and a fantasy. It might have been considered bizarre by the standards of those times (2010); but compared to some of the junk out of Hollywood today, I find it creative. The graphics were good; however, they reminded me of a rock video from that era. Although early in their careers, performances by Mark Wahlberg, Susan Sarandon, Stanley Tucci, and Rachel Weisz were average. However, I was impressed with the teen performance of Saoirse Ronan. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 09/17/25 Full Review Felix P I watched this movie around midnight and I think it hit differently. I really liked it. It wasn’t mind-blowing, but I appreciated the symbolism behind it. Every detail was important and easy to miss if you weren’t paying attention. I also liked the full-circle feeling that this movie gave me. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 09/05/25 Full Review Kelly B Enjoyed the film, some parts felt like the maker was on acid when they wrote it but I watched it to the end which doesn’t happen often as I get bored too easily. Defo worth a watch imo. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/02/25 Full Review Aidan F. decent movie with a very sad story. the actors are great, but the “in between” scenes and the cgi to me were very dragged out and cheesy. It was not a bad movie, but nothing crazy. The story is very emotional however, and the ending isn’t all that satisfying. Overall a decent watch. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 08/28/25 Full Review Ryan D The movie is wonderful, but it wasn't what I expected. Things happen quickly, and some characters don't seem to really care about Susie's loss, as if they never liked her. There was a lack of justice in the end. They could have left the movie with a sunset vibe and non-CGI scenes, beautiful and more real grass, removed the time jump from the movie. The movie is incredible, but I think it had the potential to convey a different and better vibe. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/21/25 Full Review Mike W I can't identify with the low scores. This film is such a classic. Brutal and sad and real. Fantastic acting and just such a tragic but realistic storyline. Maybe the naysayers would rather watch family guy. Fine. Just f off then. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/13/25 Full Review Read all reviews
The Lovely Bones

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Cast & Crew

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Peter Jackson

Director

Mark Wahlberg

Jack Salmon

Rachel Weisz

Abigail Salmon

Susan Sarandon

Grandma Lynn

Stanley Tucci

George Harvey

Michael Imperioli

Len Fenerman

Movie Clips

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The Lovely Bones

The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - Lindsey Finds Evidence The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - Lindsey Finds Evidence 2:13 The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - You Wrote Me A Poem Once The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - You Wrote Me A Poem Once 2:06 The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - I Willed Him To Stop The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - I Willed Him To Stop 2:13 The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - I'm Not Gonna Hurt You, Susie The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - I'm Not Gonna Hurt You, Susie 2:13 The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - Jack Realizes the Truth The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - Jack Realizes the Truth 2:13 The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - You Are Beautiful, Susie Salmon The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - You Are Beautiful, Susie Salmon 1:26 The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - Last Wednesday The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - Last Wednesday 2:00 The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - She's Gone The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - She's Gone 1:57 The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - A Thing of Beauty The Lovely Bones: Official Clip - A Thing of Beauty 1:38 View more videos

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The Lovely Bones

The Lovely Bones: Trailer 1 The Lovely Bones: Trailer 1 2:25 View more videos
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The Lovely Bones

Mark Wahlberg as Jack Salmon in "The Lovely Bones." Saoirse Ronan as Susie Salmon in "The Lovely Bones." Rachel Weisz as Abigail Salmon in "The Lovely Bones." Saoirse Ronan as Susie Salmon in "The Lovely Bones." (L-R) Saoirse Ronan and director Peter Jackson on the set of "The Lovely Bones." A scene from the film "The Lovely Bones." Saoirse Ronan as Susie Salmon in "The Lovely Bones." (L-R) Saoirse Ronan as Susie Salmon and Susan Sarandon as Grandma Lynn in "The Lovely Bones." Saoirse Ronan as Susie Salmon in "The Lovely Bones." Rachel Weisz as Abigail Salmon in "The Lovely Bones." View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis After being brutally murdered, 14-year-old Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) watches from heaven over her grief-stricken family (Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz) -- and her killer (Stanley Tucci). As she observes their daily lives, she must balance her thirst for revenge with her desire for her family to heal.
Director
Peter Jackson
Producer
Carolynne Cunningham, Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson, Aimee Peyronnet
Screenwriter
Peter Jackson, Philippa Boyens, Fran Walsh
Distributor
Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks SKG
Production Co
WingNut Films
Rating
PG-13 (Disturbing Violent Images|Disturbing Violent Content|Mature Thematic Material|Some Language)
Genre
Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 15, 2010, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
May 27, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA)
$44.0M
Runtime
2h 16m
Sound Mix
SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS
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