The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

Covering familiar Twilight territory, with Harry Potter sidebars, this sprawling action fantasy is packed with supernatural creatures, humour that blunts its more horrific edges and leather-clad actors from goth-lite central casting. It is based on the first of six bestsellers for young adults by Cassandra Clare. The plot-heavy story boils down to Brooklyn teen Lily Collins learning she's a powerful Shadowhunter, part of a secret society veiled from reality by magic and tasked with protecting humanity from destructive demonic forces. Both good and evil sides seek possession of the Mortal Cup, an enchanted goblet that creates the half-angel warriors. Karate Kid-remake director Harald Zwart always keeps things interesting among the impressive CGI swirls of werewolves, vampires, runic spells and a Stargate-style dimensional portal. Once its relentless self-aggrandisement subsides, the story becomes quite absorbing as a cute love triangle moves centre stage and dark destinies point to further sequels.