Guest Reviewer Brandon Carter submitted his take on the box office power and current hit Twilight. Thanks for the submission Brandon!
I went into this movie with huge expectations. As a fan of the Twilight series, I had read in numerous reviews that it was very true to the books, and that that was a defining part of the movie. Unfortunately, that didn’t prove very true.
In fact, I found the accuracy compared to the book was unparalleled in disaster. Even the Harry Potter movies aren’t this bad. Fabricated events don’t happen in HP, and neither does the changing of character’s personalities.
Let’s start from the beginning. The intro of the movie was painful to watch, as Kristen Stewart (Bella) is a terrible narrator. It’s really awkward to hear stuff from the book being read over scenes in the movie – it’s almost as if it’s just the book with pictures. The opening sequence with the deer was interesting, although eerie.
Stewart’s lack of emotion ruined most of the film for me; however, it paid off in the scene driving to Forks with Charlie. In the book it describes both of them at being a loss of words because they aren’t very good at being emotional around each other, and I think both of them pulled it off well.
From then on, though, it goes from average to terrible. The usefulness of Stewart’s monotone ends around the 20 minute mark. It steadily progresses from good to an annoyance. She displays no emotion on her face, nor voice inflection. It’s almost painful to hear her converse with Pattinson, as they turn what should be a budding romance into awkward chatting.
And whatever happened to special effects? Seriously, this is 2008, people. Your budget may have been just $37 million, but can we get some better effects than MOTION BLUR for the fast running? That’s so 1990s. And the shining-skin-in-sun effect? Horrendous. At first I thought the movie was having static, but I squinted a bit, and realized oh! That’s the reason vampires can’t go out in the sun – horribly rendered shining!
Cheesy acting dominated all other negative parts of the movie. It was like fingers running down a chalkboard to see some of the scenes between Edward and Bella – I thought they were supposed to be in love? Haven’t we moved past the "move/talk like you have cooties" stage? Apparently not. And what’s up with the like 4 sex references? Added in for humor, but sheesh, you could make cornbread with that stuff.
The highlight of this film for me was the minor characters. Mike, Jessica, the Cullens, Charlie, and the Blacks were astounding in their performances. They not only looked the part (except for Carilisle. Dude, get longer hair), but they outshone everyone else in dialogue. The 4 or 5 lines that Rosalie had were so true to character. I loved it. And Alice was impeccably perky, just how I imagined her. The only problems were that Jasper looked constipated the whole time, and Eric and Angela were like…social. I thought they were really shy, or at least Angela was. But no, she appears as a nerdy girl, while Eric is an overconfident flirt.
Overall, if you’re not comparing the movie to the book, you’ll love this film. It’s great for those who don’t sit there, like myself, and pick apart every minor detail. I enjoyed this film a lot, even though I criticize it so much. However, I definitely wouldn’t recommend this movie to someone who hasn’t read the books. It’s just not friendly to that audience.
3.5/5 Reels
Squid Rating
Read the book and then watch the movie!
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Trailer:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1GbukZnl1Y
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