Contains child murder theme, disturbing scenes and moderate violence

Release date: 19 February 2010

Running time: 135 mins

Director: Peter Jackson

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, Susan Sarandon, Rachel Weisz

A young girl watches over her family - and her killer - from the afterlife in this poignant adaptation of the novel by Alice Sebold.

Growing up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) has loving parents, Jack (Mark Wahlberg) and Abigail (Rachel Weisz), as well as her wise and kindly Grandma Lynn (Susan Sarandon). There's also a budding romance between Susie and Ray (Reece Ritchie). But tragedy strikes, and Susie is just 14 years old when she is horrifically murdered on December the sixth 1973. Finding herself in an in-between world that is neither Heaven nor earth, Susie is able to watch over those she has left behind and try to help them catch her killer. Her father has "all the pieces of the puzzle" but can't put them together, while detective Len Fenerman (Michael Imperioli) questions neighbour Mr Harvey (Stanley Tucci), and Susie's sister Lindsey (Rose McIver) embarks on her own dangerous hunt for the truth.

Screenplay: Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens

Distributor: Paramount

You should see it because: It's a moving exploration of grief and redemption that's also part ghost story and part detective thriller.

See it if you liked: The Sixth Sense (1999), The Others (2001), The Orphanage (2007)