Overheard at Table 5: The Mortal Instruments - City of Bones

There is a device in the movie that it a portal, a gateway.  It looks somewhat like a gelatinous pool of water.  The hero tells the main character (the heroine) that you have to focus where you want to go, or you will end up in limbo, with no way of returning, lost forever.

I believe that into this pool is where the director threw the plot of the film.

Other than that, this film is basically like many other films, some of those others were good, some not so good - all of them better than this film.

Let's see, we have the Twilight connection (werewolves vs. vampires), we have the Star Wars Empire Strikes Back ("Luke, I am your Father!") we even have the Star Wars, "ooh I kissed my brother!" aspect.  Only in this one they actually ARE sexually attracted to each other, even AFTER they find out that they are brother and sister (which is frankly, a little gross).  We have demon hunters and demons, which reminded me of Max Payne.

I could go on, but you get the point.

Except for one last point: as these characters roamed around all these ENORMOUS abandoned hotels and churches in Brooklyn, I was awestruck by the amount of unused space there still remains in New York City.

Amazing.

One last argument, though.  My wife insists that Lily Collins looks just like her father (Phil Collins).  I don't see it at all.   She's a lovely young lady and maybe some day she will have a movie in which she can have an actual role to play.