The Lovely Heartbreak

I don't know why I waited so long to see this movie. I loved the book and looked forward to the movie but when I had the first of many opportunities to see the movie I chose not to. Finally I watched it and I cried almost as much as when I saw Passion of The Christ. I've actually got a headache now from all my blubbering. The movie was an astounding and lovely adaptation of the book. All the actors aside from Rachel Weisz (weird cause she's a great actress but in this she just felt detached) flawlessly made their characters real. I wasn't to keen on Mark Wahlberg playing the dad but he changed my mind and made me believe him with every emotion that played across his face and body. Saoirse Ronan was the key to the whole movie, at time average looking and childlike and other times hauntingly beautiful with eyes that pierce like glass. Everything about this movie was haunting and sad and powerful. My only negative was that SPOILER the ending was different than in the book. In the book Susie's killer played by Stanley Tucci (His performance was so chilling and enraging) gets caught and her body is found. In the movie neither happen it ends with her killer rolling her 3-4 year old dead body stuffed into a safe into a huge hole before in gets filled in. While Susie's "ghost" kisses her would be boyfriend in another girls body. The whole thing just made me cry and repeat NO NO NO it was just disappointing not on a movie level but a personal one where I was counting on her body being found and the bad guy going to jail to put my own heart at ease. In the end an ice sickle falls on the killers shoulder causing him to fall over a cliff and die. All thing said and done this was a great movie. The purgatory scenes are out of this world and the whole storyline will break your heart. Susan Sarandon did a great job to as the cool grandmother come to help the family keep it together. She offered the only comedic balance as the one person who handled the loss the best & brought little joys to the family with her city girl limitations!