The Lovely Bones

Technically, this is a 2009 film that got a limited release for Oscar consideration. If there is any Oscar justice, Saoirse Ronan should get a Best Actress nomination for her turn as Susie Salmon, a murdered girl who watches her family try to catch her killer (a chilling Stanley Tucci) from the “in between,” a place after Earth and before Heaven. Peter Jackson directs this adaptation of Alice Sebold’s inconsistent novel. Jackson jettisons the stuff in the book that bogged it down or didn’t make any sense, turning the story into a suspenseful murder mystery/thriller. I love the depiction of Susie’s afterlife, although I’ve heard many call it overkill. Mark Wahlberg is very good as Susie’s father. Tucci is just plain sick here, and that’s what the role calls for. Ronan is the major revelation in this film. She’ll break your heart.