Twilight
Movie Review
"Twilight"
Review by Eric D. Snider
Grade: B-
Rating: PG-13
Released: Friday, November 21, 2008
Directed by:
Cast:
Look, I know the drill. If any element of the "Twilight" movie varies even slightly from the way you pictured it in your head, then it is the worst film ever made and you hate it and Catherine Hardwicke has ruined your childhood. Or, alternatively, you've built up so much anticipation for the movie that you're going to love love LOVE it no matter what, even if it's bad, you don't care, you refuse to listen to any criticisms LA LA LA I CAN'T HEAR YOU. I know how it goes.
The book's most devoted fans are seeing the film anyway, so I guess I'm talking to everyone else -- those who haven't read the book, or who (like me) read it, mostly enjoyed it, then didn't give it another thought. Is the "Twilight" movie of any use to those people? Or, as a friend asked me, does it work purely as a vampire movie?
Oh, heavens, no. Noooooo. This is not a vampire movie. This is a somber teen romance that happens to have some vampires in it. Little attempt is made to establish the mythology of the bloodsuckers, and the supernatural elements are downplayed -- a wise move, since the special effects, when they are necessary, are at about the level you'd expect from a movie that is more focused on romance than sci-fi action.
All of which is in keeping with the tone of Stephenie Meyer's book, which is eight parts romance and two parts action/fantasy. That's why it's been such a phenomenal success with women, and why the male-dominated geek industry -- the Nerderati, if you will -- has been so skeptical of that success. "What?" they scoff. "A super-popular vampire book that we, as men, AREN'T interested in? Inconceivable! It must be terrible, and its popularity is probably being over-reported!"
The screenplay, adapted by Melissa Rosenberg (TV's "Dexter"), is faithful to the plot of the book, if not to all the details. Bella (Kristen Stewart), a somewhat introverted 17-year-old Arizona girl, moves to her dad's house in a podunk Washington town that exists in a perpetual gloom of rain and fog -- the perfect place for a clan of vampires to call home. A few of them attend Bella's high school (incognito, of course), where they are held in awe by the other students for their physical beauty and aloofness. They claim to be the foster children of the good-hearted Dr. and Mrs. Cullen, and they keep to themselves.
Yet one of their group, Edward (Robert Pattinson), is smitten with Bella, and she with him. A tentative romance develops, punctuated by much secrecy and awkwardness on Edward's part. The Cullens are a noble camp of vamps who refrain from feeding on humans, but the urge is still there, and it means Edward can't let himself get too passionate with Bella lest he lose control of himself and get all bitey-sucky-killy. If nothing else, "Twilight" is a compelling ode to the benefits of chastity.
So the plot remains mostly intact -- but more importantly, what Hardwicke captures extremely well is the FEEL of the book. The director of such gritty teen fare as "Thirteen" and "Lords of Dogtown," Hardwicke has a knack for wistful, angst-ridden teenage melancholy, and it's in full bloom in "Twilight," where the overcast skies complement the stormy, forbidden romance. The soundtrack is stocked with moody acoustic-guitar tracks, and Bella's contemplative narration takes us into her confidence like a diary. I think Hardwicke has got the tone of the film exactly right.
One of the reasons I only liked Meyer's novel rather than loving it was that it felt bogged down by endless descriptions of how beautiful Edward was. Don't get me wrong -- I love hearing about hot 17-year-old boys as much as the next person. But the continual mooning and swooning made me impatient.
In the film, of course, this is mostly eliminated. There is no need to tell us about Edward's beauty when he's right here in front of us and we can see for ourselves (assuming we are not distracted by his tall, disorderly hair, that is). But in the process, the film has trimmed down Edward and Bella's interaction, or at least it feels that way. Their love seems to be assumed rather than demonstrated, and there's some stilted, clunky dialogue in their early scenes together. It doesn't help that Pattinson's version of "awkward" looks and sounds like most people's version of "stoned," or that he is required to say things like "I don't have the strength to stay away from you anymore" and "You're like my own personal brand of heroin."
There are other problems, too, mostly with the Cullens, who always appear to be practicing their Zoolander Blue Steel faces. Edward's vamp-sister Rosalie (Nikki Reed) is antagonistic toward Bella, but the film doesn't explain or do anything with that fact. The vampires' pale skin is represented by too much powdery face makeup, which makes Dr. Cullen (Peter Facinelli) in particular look like a mime. The crucial baseball scene, with the Cullens whacking one homer after another out in a forest clearing, is underwhelming. (In a game of vampire baseball, do they use vampire bats? Get it? Vampire bats? I got a million of 'em!) Other elements, like the mere presence of Bella's friend Jacob (Taylor Lautner), were apparently included only because 1) they were in the book, and 2) they're needed to set up the sequels.
With only a few moments of levity, "Twilight" is by and large a serious story about serious things -- things like love and death and vampires, that is. Anyone who can't accept such a silly premise as fodder for sober contemplation would do well to steer clear of it, but those willing to consider a vampire-based teen romance should find this one suitable, if not everything they dreamed it would be. As Bella could tell you, life doesn't always turn out the way you wanted it to.
Grade: B-
Rated PG-13, some moderate violence, a bit of mild sensuality
2 hrs., 2 min.
Copyright © Eric D. Snider.
This work may not be transmitted via the Internet, nor reproduced in any other way, without written consent from Eric D. Snider.
This item has 80 comments
November 21, 2008 at 6:30 am
Quote: "Don't get me wrong -- I love hearing about hot 17-year-old boys as much as the next person"
I see. So now we get your REAL position on Proposition 8.
November 21, 2008 at 6:40 am
Ha ha! Eric made a joke, and then jday said something that indicated he got the joke! Ha ha!
November 21, 2008 at 6:59 am
Does the movie really keep with the tone of the book?
I got the impression from the book that Bella is generally a silly happy girl. And I think most of the the story is told in a fun, lighthearted way.
The movie trailer seemed overly cool and serious. Bella (and everyone else) looks so serious, worried, and sad. Shouldn't Bella be smiling silly when she is with Edward?
November 21, 2008 at 7:15 am
I got the impression that Bella was miserable about having a good dad and lots of freedom, miserable about having friends that like her, miserable about being the girl that all the guys like, and miserable that her abusive vampire boyfriend won't turn her into a vampire too.
I really, really hated that book. I hope that the movie is just as bad. As long as I get to hear "do I dazzle you" followed by "frequently" the movie will be absolutely perfect.
I'm also interested to see how they bastardize Forks, which is my favorite town on the planet.
November 21, 2008 at 7:19 am
Edward. He's so hot right now. Edward.
November 21, 2008 at 1:13 pm
See, actually I hate vampires AND I hate sappy teen romances. even though I am a girl, I'm a boring old married girl in her late 20's. Therefore by the time I got around to everyone telling me I needed to read this book I was already wanting to stab every 12 year old fangirl who had squealed about it incessantly in my presense. I may give the movie a try if the family is having trouble agreeing on a movie to watch this holiday season.
November 21, 2008 at 1:30 pm
I'm disappointed that the movie only got a B-. Where will all the angry letters go now? I mean, this movie had every reason to be bad, bad acting, bad dialog, things thrown in just because they were in the book, and a stupid plot (really, think about it, if you were a 100-year-old vampire would you really spend your free time going to high school and dating some mopey emo-chick? The whole thing would be better if Edward were a cantankerous old man who sucked kids dry for stepping on his lawn...)
Twilight needs the Titanic treatment...I miss Titanic...So many angry letters...
November 21, 2008 at 2:07 pm
I love the books :D Stephenie did an amazing job,
and I really hope the movie is just as great. I'm
in school right now and I seriously cannot wait
to see it tonight! Today's gonna take forever...
Great job, Stephenie!
November 21, 2008 at 5:30 pm
Something I haven't seen Eric mention is that Stephanie Meyer has been a member of his message board for several years... from before she was rich and famous because of Twilight. Is it possible her status as an Eric Snider fan affected his opinion of Twilight overall?
November 21, 2008 at 6:07 pm
#9: You should read Eric's blog.
November 21, 2008 at 7:08 pm
#10: I thought I did. What are you referring to?
November 21, 2008 at 7:16 pm
#11: Today's entry, where he talks about Stephenie Meyer being an Eric D. Snider fan.
November 21, 2008 at 8:00 pm
All I know is, Stephenie Meyer says on her website that my movie reviews are her favorite.
Right, I read that. Kinda glosses over it, in my opinion. I'm just curious, is all.
November 21, 2008 at 8:35 pm
That statement doesn't gloss over anything -- on the contrary, it sums up everything there is to say on the subject.
I've never met Stephenie Meyer, or even corresponded with her. I guess she used to be a regular poster on my message board, but so were a lot of people. I don't think she's posted anything since the book got big, or at least not regularly, and I disowned the message board a couple years ago anyway. (My brother runs it now, and I don't have any connection to it -- it's not an "Eric D. Snider" message board anymore.)
As I also said on my blog today, while I'm delighted that Stephenie likes my movie reviews, that fact didn't influence how I felt about the film or what I wrote about it. Your assumption that I have some special affinity for her or connection to her is incorrect.
November 21, 2008 at 8:37 pm
So, my wife went to the midnight showing with her friends who have read all of the books 4-10 times each. She did the whole pre-movie party thing, saw the movie, and got home around 2:30 a.m.
This morning I called her from work to ask her about the movie. "Oh, it was AWFUL," she said. She went on to explain that she really went in expecting departures for the book, which I actually believed. "I could have overlooked the bad dialog if the actors could actually have delivered the lines, but the acting was so horrible," she said laughingly.
And, she said, when they went flying through the air she could practically see the wires holding them up. Her friend was chuckling through the whole movie for all the wrong reasons.
This sounds like a horrible train-wreck for the author who was able to strike a nerve for millions of people out there. Will she lose fans? Will she lose credibility as an author? Are the other sequels headed for the same washed-out bridge?
Maybe a real studio will need to pickup the franchise and make a redo, ala the Batman series.
November 21, 2008 at 9:54 pm
With the first wonderful opportunity in so many years to do another Titanic-style review, this is what you give us? Eric, I was at BYU when you wrote the Titanic review. I remember reading it in the Daily Universe and laughing so hard. I remember the 'fan' mail. I even bought a signed copy of your book from the Daily Universe office after that, just so I could preserve the review forever in my collection (and your comment "Thanks for the $5" above your signature). So I had high hopes for this review. Don't get me wrong, I certainly laughed at a few parts. But I don't think we'll see any hate mail from BYU freshman or weirdos in Australia over this review. Oh well. At least I can reread the Titanic review and the Police Beat spoofs and remember the good old days...
November 21, 2008 at 10:16 pm
I Seriously LOVE the twilight books!!!! when i was done reading them i didn't stop talkign about them for months.. and yes like all the fans i have edward t-shirts, bella's braeclet, and lots and lots of posters!!..The movie of course is NOT going to be just like the book.. cause no one could ever make it as perfect all the love and compasion.. i know it does suck.. but still they did the best they could!! :P
November 21, 2008 at 10:53 pm
I love the twilight books as much as any other teenage girl out there, really I do. I also LOVED the movie, and I don't understand why some people disliked or really hated it. Yes, I know some parts were a little awkward... But it is still an incredible movie in my opinion! To each is own though, and for all of you that think the movie sucked, well thats your opinion. You have to say though, the baseball scene was amazing, no one can deny that. Go Twilight!
November 21, 2008 at 11:14 pm
LA LA LA I CAN'T HEAR YOU. I mean READ you. I mean.... Nooooooooooooo! Eric Snider, you have ruined my childhood.
November 22, 2008 at 12:07 am
Gosh, Kaydria.
Angry much?
Personally, For anyone who has taste, myself included, thought the books were well written. Granted, I'm not much in the mushy, gushy, romance, thing, but overall, it's fluid, and written in the perspective of a human....nothing like any of the other vampire novels. It's through a teenage girl's mind, ( well sort of since it's written from a early 30 year olds fingers). The movie was changed here and there, to keep it entertaining for a possible box office sell out, like most books made into movies, or miniseries.
Everyone is a critic, and that's mostly due to those, not going into a theater, with an open mind. Keep in mind, there are people out there (or were before they died), that thought Gone With The Wind, would bomb. Keep an open mind, and have no expectations, and you won't be disappointed. If you don't, then you must be one of those people who believe in instant gratification.
November 22, 2008 at 12:42 am
i read the books and thought that they were pretty good though i had a feeling that the movie would be bad. bella just seems so depress. I mean hello she just meant the love of her life!!! isn't she suppose to be happy. same with edward. though i will give it to him that he does act the part a little better than bella (and not just because he is cute), also the casting didn't seem that great to beginning. hopefully if they make the next book they will try to make it better.
November 22, 2008 at 1:50 am
Well, I read all of the Twilight books. I'm 16. My parents and friends refer to me as an obsessed fan and I don't usually deny it! I love the books. I don't always think they're well written but Stephanie Meyer's novels really give the reader something to think about and have a huge emotional impact, which is one fundamental aspect of a great novel. Breaking Dawn wasn't my favorite but overall, I love the Twilight series. I've been SOOOO excited for this movie to come out. I've watched a few previews and a few scenes but havent actually seen the movie yet. I believe that these "human" actors are not able to portray the vampire characters in Twilight. They will never be adequate physically or mentally. The emotions that Edward and Bella feel will never have a hundredth of the effect in a movie that they do in the book. The special effects are...not the best, and it is exactly how much effort there is being put into acting like a vampire or even like Bella is MUCH too obvious. I havent even seen the whole movie yet! I will enjoy it anyways because I will see what I WANT to see, but judging from what actually is there, I guess I sort of agree with this review. Pretty unfortunate actually. It could have been better.
November 22, 2008 at 4:04 am
This movie ruined everything! "I guess it may have been my fault, as I may have expected too much. I thoroughly loved the books and read all four (plus the excepts of Midnight Sun) in a matter of 3 weeks, and highly anticipated the movie. The actress that played Bella was not beleivable in any means, though she looked the part. The only viable actor in my opinion was Robert Pattinson, as the melancholy Edward Cullen. For the most part, the production was reminiscent of a made for TV movie, which figures since the screenwriter's writing was most know for scripting TV shows like the OC. Well all, I read that there has been a "go" for the next 3 books, hopefully the script will be better written to show the true essense of Stephanie Meyers' vision." If you are out ther Ms. Meyer, take JK Rowling route, do not let the scriptwriters and Hollywood ruin your books!
November 22, 2008 at 4:17 am
First things first - Conservative GUy is halarious, I completly got that joke. 2ndly, I haven't seen the movie but I've read the books. I really loved the books, but the second I saw the preview for the movie my first thought was "don't they look a little young?" I guess that disappointed me a little. Also, the book makes Edward sound like the hottest guy in the World, and no offence, but the actor they picked doesn't really live up to the reputation. Bella doesn't look the way I pictured her either, in fact, nobody really did... but my biggest disappointed was to see that Edward wasn't the hottest guy in the movie, when he should be.
November 22, 2008 at 4:30 am
For a first movie, it wasn't too bad. I mean all book series that are made into movies have to pretty much spend the whole movie setting up the rest of the series. I was surprised at how much I laughed in the movie. The books weren't nearly as witty. I think the next time I see it though, I need to see it without all the swoony teenagers who screamed everytime Rob Pattinson showed up on the screen, or the teenager who felt the need to text her friends through the whole movie, blinding us with her screen everytime she opened her phone. All cell phones should be confiscated at movies, as should crying babies!! Man...I sound so old!!!
November 22, 2008 at 5:17 am
I was actually really mad after seeing the movie today. I thought that they would do a better job, especially on the romance scenes. They skipped a lot of vital elements in the story and everything was out of order. A lot of people that watched the movie read the book -- I thought that the people doing the movie would follow a certain sequence, and as a faithful Twilight fan, I was utterly disappointed. The actors/actresses did a great job, and the baseball was really cool, but I don't think the script was similar to the book, and, although this was expected, there were too many scenes that were "not right". Sorry -- hope the next movie is much better :(
November 22, 2008 at 12:42 pm
I LOVED the books and read them eight times. I was going in to the theater thinking the movie was going to be terrible, but it wasn't. It still isn't the books, but I agree with a B- it was a moderately good movie.
November 22, 2008 at 2:10 pm
The movie was decent, right in the C/D range. I went to go see it just because I wanted to go see a movie and Valkyre isn't coming out until Christmas, plus, I wanted to see that the stupid hype was about this book. So, I went... I kept checking my phone to see what time it was and how long it was going to take. For a person who didn't read the book I knew that scenes were off, and stuff had been rearranged to make it appear smoother and better than it was in the book. All this action doesn't happen until the end... This is a nice B-flick to watch on lazy afternoon.
Twilight is not a well-written book. It is comparative to some of the writing I have in my basic level creative level writing class here at the university, and no that is not a good thing. There are so many plot hole, flat characters, and over all disgusting obsession toward a sick romance.
What happened to the days when books were good? Did anyone see interview with a vampire? No? Those were the days when vampire movies were good.
This movie and the book was nothing but a Mary-Sue (when the main character is a standin for the author) and should be critique rightfully, not as some great book compared to the classics, but a simple vampire, teen, angsty, romance novel that could be revised to have a tighter plot, better writing, and deeper characters.
November 22, 2008 at 4:56 pm
I absolutely adore the books and the movie. Catherine Hardwicke, in my opinion, created the best interpretation of Twilight possible. Sure, Bella looks a little emo, but when I read the book, I can so picture the words coming out of Kristen Stewart's mouth. and Rob Pattinson is CRAZY HOT. He is totally perfect for Edward, and I think all the other vamps are too.
November 22, 2008 at 5:25 pm
Well, I think the movie was poorly made. The acting was so-so, even bad at some parts. I was embarassed knowing what the book was like and how it came out in the movie. The writers/director relied too heavily on the book. The movie was lacking in an area, like something was missing. They barely had Edward and Bella talking before they were in love, which I guess is like the book, but when you actually see it, it seems implausible. But, there isn't much room to talk here, seeing as it is a sci-fi based movie/book. If an outsider who hadn't read the book watched this, I'm sure they would deem it poorly made. I deem it unsuccessful.
November 22, 2008 at 6:02 pm
Did anyone else notice how Bella is paler than Edward in all the pictures at Eric's review?
November 22, 2008 at 7:42 pm
@ Zara: Yes, obviously the movie's biggest flaw is that it cast human actors to play vampire characters (which, by the way, were created by a human author). Where are the vampire actors when you need them?
November 22, 2008 at 9:09 pm
CSS:
I'm not angry, I just hate Twilight. It is possible to be a happy person and not be omfg totally in love with Edward. Please never compare Twilight to Gone with the Wind again. I spent a month reading Gone with the Wind and it's one of my favorite books of all time. I'm SO all about the instant gratification.
By the way, how long did it take for you to read Twilight?
November 22, 2008 at 9:18 pm
While I don't consider myself one of the stereotyped fangirls, I will say I am a pretty big fan of the books. After watching the movie last night, I thought they did a pretty good job adapting it for film and the overall feel was really good. If they do make sequels, I guess my only hope is an improvement in acting, especially on Rob Pattinson's part. Otherwise, I think the movie did an excellent revamping of the book.
November 22, 2008 at 9:41 pm
Best. Comment. Ever.
(at Cinematical:)
-monstermac said...
Mormon tweener porn.
Me no likey.
I'm still laughing!
:-D
November 22, 2008 at 10:52 pm
This books are guilty pleasure for me, but I believe that Meyer's talent as a writer is very limited. While reading the series I could not stop picturing her developing the plot and writing everything as a script so she could sell the rights for a movie or a TV show, that's the only way I can understand why she had to keep explaining everything that happened on the previous books, I could even hear the voice-over with the "previously on twilight... (followed by a trailer of the most memorable scenes from last season)".
I knew the movie was going to be on the same not-so-great level, but I can't believe how bad they blew it, it was foolproof but the director and whoever did the adaptation really dropped the ball.
I believe Eric was being nice, I would have given this a solid D
November 23, 2008 at 2:07 am
SPOILER!!!
So not, but I don't want to get flamed. I like the graduation caps in the staircase. I thought it was a funny moment, which was not in the books.
November 23, 2008 at 3:02 pm
I went to see this movie... might have liked it if it weren't for the horrible acting and lines. Honestly, "spider monkey"? And the deviations from the book, of course. And the squealing fangirls whom I very much wanted to stab as I heard at least twenty times, "OMG Edward's sooooo hot!" It was vomit-inducing. I have no plans of ever watching this movie again. I don't think that I could bear to see something actually well-written rendered so shamelessly crappily. Many responses to my obvious hatred were, "Well, they couldn't do it the same as the book." My response to that was, "Then they shouldn't have tried."
November 23, 2008 at 9:34 pm
How can you guys be so mean? How can you not at least like the movie? So many questions...
November 23, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Brittany makes a good point. The existence of opinions that are different from hers is indeed baffling.
November 23, 2008 at 11:39 pm
I've read all of the Twilight books, and listened to them each on audiobook as well. (Despite disliking the narrator and her insistence on using pronunciations like "foe-ward" and "Jacop.") The books, which I enjoyed, were maybe not the best-written literature on the planet, but Stephenie is an excellent storyteller. They kept me reading late into the night.
I LOATHED this movie. IMO, there wasn't one single redeeming thing about this movie. I hated it more than "Blue Crush," "It's Pat," and "The Brady Bunch Movie" combined. The acting was stilted and cartoony. The music was ear-bleedingly atrocious. The hair styles and makeup were horrendous. (What was with Jasper's hair? And why did Dr. Cullen look like he was made of plastic?) The script didn't provide the characters with any arc,any growth, and none of the characters decisions flowed naturally from the situations. It was like the screen writer wanted to hit certain parts of the story, but didn't bother connecting them together in any sort of common-sense manner. Overall, the internal conflicts that were so prevalent in the books were completely abandoned in the film because the actors simply weren't capable of playing that many layers of complexity.
Actually, I take that back. There was one actress in the film who was actually good: Anna Kendrick, the girl who played Jessica. She was the only person it didn't cause me physical pain to watch.
I love movies. I love reading. I understand how difficult it is to make a movie from a book...especially a book that is so beloved by so many people. But this movie was a giant fail. I will probably read the books again in the future. (And I loved Stephenie's "The Host.") But it will be a cold day in Hades before I set foot inside a theater to watch Twilight or any of its predecessors.
Stupid movie.
November 24, 2008 at 2:11 pm
Just like most people that made a comment, I really LOVE the books! I did have high expectations for the movie and it was ok. I just feel cheated as a book fan! They left out SO many important things and didn't really show Bella and Edward falling in love! I feel like you were running through the movie. Like you were reading cliff notes to the book. They left out Bella and Alica'a friendship completely. They never even spoke in the movie. When I read the books I felt the love that Bella and Edward had but the movie didn't leave you feeling that way. I can't believe Stephenie let them rip her book up like that! I hope the same doesn't happen with New Moon!
November 24, 2008 at 3:30 pm
I mostly agree with Matt (#41) but I couldn't hate the movie. I went into it knowing that it wouldn't be as good as the book (they seldom are) and I just had a good time. Yes, there were problems with the acting, make-up, special effects, dialog, character development, and more, but I think it added to the campiness of the film. No, it wasn't a great movie, but it was fun. I laughed a lot.
November 24, 2008 at 5:21 pm
Stephenie if you are reading this, please, please, please don't let them do to the rest of your books what they did to Twilight. I am sorry, but this movie was awful. Kristen Stewart was poorly cast. She made Bella seem angry, tired, and bored all of the time. There was no chemistry between Edward & Bella, which made their love story seem false and super corny. The visuals and special effects were lacking to say the least. This should have been a big budget film with better casting, as your books deserve better!
November 24, 2008 at 9:42 pm
I am a huge fan of the Twilight series, but I'm still deciding on my opinion for the movie. I wished there was more of a love story between Edward and Bella. They portrayed Bella as extremely depressed, and their love story seemed hokey. Also, they needed to show more of the Cullens! Everyone only got a few lines, it was disappointing. No, I do not absolutely hate the movie, I just wish they would have included more in it and taken out some of the more unnecessary scenes (the 10 times Bella and Charlie go out to eat? Bella cooks for Charlie all the time! Also, the meadow scene. One of the most IMPORTANT parts of the whole entire series and it barely lasts a few minutes and half of the scene wasn't even in a meadow!). But despite that, overall the movie was cool just to see everything visually, but I'm disappointed. They are making New Moon as a I read today, and I truly hope that they will get a BIGGER budget and make the movies just as amazing as the books are. No matter what, I'm just glad that the books have done well, and happy for Stephenie Meyer and her success.
November 24, 2008 at 10:58 pm
Martinisweeti88, "don't they look a little young"?!
Could have sworn that you typed that you had read the books- please, remind me of the age of the characters.
Indeed, I think it appropriate to the roles they are playing to LOOK YOUNG.
Haven't seen the movie nbor will I ever because I am one of those people who read the books and is quite determined to hate the movie.
Oh, and I would like to mention that I read a lot.
Things beyond teen lit.
Or even fiction.
And I still enjoyed the books ;)
November 25, 2008 at 5:32 am
so totally agree with this review. I loved the book and was so disapointed that they made it out to be so horrid. Edward comes out as a creepy stalker, bella was to serious and when did htey fall in love? like one minutes hes like I dont think we should be friedns then they're in love? It IS based on a story, why couldn't they follow it? I do hope hte next one is much better, hopefully with better lines? It was funny, I will admit, but the actors were horrible, well at least the girl who played bella. They are going to need some serious producing and perhaps even a new director, like they did wiht the harry potter films, which have gotten extremly better... perhaps the twilight poeple can learn from their mistakes?
November 25, 2008 at 1:39 pm
I find it interesting that several of the commentators have mentioned that the Twilight books have alot to think about and cause conversations that last months. What is there in the books to think about? What justifies talking about the books for months?
I haven't read them, nor have I watched the movie (nor do I intend to) but I'm just so curious. It's a freaking vampire teen romance for goodness sake!
November 25, 2008 at 4:23 pm
Well LohenGrin, most of the conversations went like this (unfortunately):
StupitFan1: I LOVE EDWARD!!! HE SOOOOOO SUPER FINE! GOD, I JUST HOPE THAT BELLA ENDS UP WITH EDWARD! I HATE JACOB!
StupidFan2: I hate jacob too! he's dumb! i hope he dies in bd!
StupidFan1: bd?
StupidFan2: breaking dawn silly
StupidFan1: oh, yeah me too! I mean if u had 2 pick between a leech and a dog what would you pick? the leech duh!
StupidFan2: uh u would??
StupidFan1: yeah, demi moore says they keep you young like barbie!
StupidFan2: kewl
However, if you were of the rare majority who wanted to talk about the paranormal v. love story then you would have to read the books to get it LohenGrin. :-D
November 27, 2008 at 8:12 am
How exactly do you make a vampire flying through the forest with a girl on his back look real. It looked exactly how I imagined it when reading about it: Hilarious.
I didn't like the book that much. The story was pretty good, the writing wasn't. Bella was a horrible character in the book, but I found her likable in the movie. I actually really liked her and I liked the the movie. Yes a little cheesy, a little low-budget. But so what. It was still pretty good. And I liked the dialogue. Most people don't talk like Juno. And a great ending!
November 28, 2008 at 10:58 pm
Well, Eric, I do actually know there are other opinion then mine, but I just thought it was so good, and I'm sad that its getting bad reviews. I'm sorry if I offended you or anyone else.
November 30, 2008 at 10:38 pm
I loved the movie and have seen it multiple times, I personally think with the budget they had they did great, I loved the characters - The books were great too! - not everyone can be pleased as we are all unique in this world and it would be pretty boring if everyone liked the same things. the fact is many people do love the books and the movie and I am proud to be one of them! and an older Twilight fan! and certainly a Stephenie Meyer fan!
December 1, 2008 at 10:41 am
Up until now, I have only read the first book (I'm in my exams period and I know that if I read the other books, I will most certainly fail all of my exams)and I really, REALLY, loved it. Iknow, I know, it has the classical boy meets girl background, but there is so much more deep inside of it! The anxiety of not being able to even get too close to each other and to know that they can't stay together forever are two of the many emotions that paint the heart and soul of the story.The lack of these emotions is what made me sad when I watched the movie. They only took the background and left the soul of the story aside. I can't say that I hated it, because like another person said, it gave me the chance to put images and faces to the words, but I do wish that the director and even the actors forced themselves a bit more to honour Stephenie's book. And it really didn't help that there was a huge gang of screaming girls in the theatre the night I went to see it (I'm 19, and even I thought it was ridiculous and disturbing!).I'm still going to see it again tomorrow night, just to be sure of my emotions about it. I really do hope that the other movies will be better, because I don't want the book's popularity to fall (up till now they're so great!). I also hope that the people who didn't like the movie would at least try to read the first book, because you know what they say...You can't jugde a book by it's cover!
December 1, 2008 at 1:47 pm
This movie was awesome.
Okay, it sucked. But there were parts that I really, really liked. Basically Charlie and Jasper are the two greatest characters in the history of cinema.
I'm actually not being sarcastic when I say that.
Really.
December 1, 2008 at 7:54 pm
my sentiments exactly, haha.
did anyone else notice that kristen only had two emotions? stuttering and yelling. and then there was the whole 'I'm not going to smile until the VERY END of the movie at the PROM which I supposedly HATE'
December 11, 2008 at 2:26 pm
I hate sci-fi stories in book, movie or television format most of the time. I heard a GREAT deal about the series as a middle school teacher and decided to give it a try. My mother-in-law is really into all sorts of vampire books and she already had these on her waiting list to read so I borrowed them. Looking back I'm not sure how I feel in love with the characters when halfway through Twilight I felt as if Edward was a new person or there had been a new author. I read New Moon in one day because I was angry the whole time (for obvious reasons). The movie was a GREAT disappointment to me after reading the series in pure obsession in 3 weeks time. I blame the director and producers for not demanding better work and retakes! I agree with the review except as a teacher... I'd have to say it was a pity grade!
December 13, 2008 at 7:51 am
I am obsessed with the books as well. I read all of them in 3 days just because I wanted to know the whole story. {an incredibly guilty pleasure-- I am reading them again because I read them so fast the first time-- I don't want to miss anything.} I like the way that Stephenie writes, and I love her characters as she has written them. They have a real quality that I fell in love with. I am actually in the same generation as Stephenie.
I went to see the movie last night, and I was a little disappointed. I like the set up of the town, the music was good, and I like the actors who were portraying the characters. I do think that the author's soundtracks are much better match, but there is not much you can do about that... What I think this movie needed was a better makeup artist, a better director, and a better budget.
I hope that the screen writer for New Moon was a little closer to the story than she was in Twilight because it was like she took Twilight and pulled out all of the emotion, and scenes that were vital to the story and added her own crazy disjointed scenes. (the greenhouse-- what?) (going out to eat? what? maybe once in the whole series...) and then at times obsessively went along with the dialog in the book, but it didn't make sense because all of the back story was gone and replaced with what the screen writer wanted to do to make the story better.
In New Moon, it would also be nice to "hear" Bella's thoughts like we did at the first of the movie, and when she said she was in love with Edward. I think that would have added more depth to the movie.
December 13, 2008 at 10:19 am
i love the book! but the movie script is all wrong! stephanie meyer you have to tell the script writer to read your book over! the story is great but the movie story is not the same. i hope you tell them on the next sequel!
December 15, 2008 at 8:35 pm
i read the whole saga in four days. and i really do love the book. i love the characters based on the book. i love how stephenie described each character and how my mind imagined them to be. i love the plot, though we all know it is not usual to have a human-vampire love story, but well, it goes with fiction :). i love how stephenie distorted my dream guy image, because right now, i only have my dream vampire. as you see, i love every inch of the story and I'M REALLY DISAPPOINTED with how it was adopted. i've watched the movie in its premiere night, and i'm super excited about it. but then, while the movie was playing, i can't help but rant because of the differences in the portrayal of the characters and the differences in the chronological arrangement. i really don't care if i get to watch a five-hour movie, as long as it captures the real essence of the novel. i do hope ms. meyer still reads this page, so that i, in behalf of the other fans who got quite disappointed with the movie, could tell her to please ask the writers to stick with the novel. please don't let hollywood or anybody else distort it. and can we please ask you to publish the fifth book, midnight sun? i don't want to read the partial draft for i want to anticipate the whole novel. please ms. meyer? and, tell them to stick to the book on the next movie! :)
December 16, 2008 at 8:27 pm
personally i LOVED all of the books, and my friends though THEY were obsessed. lol. they were suspenseful and just plain ...AWESOME. it took everyone i knew about a month to read them but it took me less then three weeks.
But the movie was really disappointing. Dont get me wrong, it did have parts from the book but the characters were all wrong and where was the meadow seen? thats a major part of the books, especially in new moon. i cant believe my dad actually let me skip school to see that, considering me and my friends got a HUGE lecture for skipping school. but it did have some funny parts. I cant wait to see if they do better with the new director for new moon. i wish they COULD redo twilight cause then they might actually get it right.
=0 =) =0
December 19, 2008 at 10:20 pm
I'm 58 years old, read just about everything in sight, but had ignored these books because, what little I had heard about them did not peak my interest. One of my family wanted to go see the movie and I went along just because they wanted company and I love the movies. I thought it was well done, very different and stopped and got the book on the way home. Two days later I was finishing the book, shocked at how well the director had followed the book, and in the car to get the 2nd one, New Moon. Just finished it a half hour ago and plan on hitting the book store for the next 2 in the morning. All in all I really liked both books very much!
December 24, 2008 at 3:24 am
I think some people need to keep their definitions of "emo" in check. How people have said Bella appears "emo" in this movie baffles me. How does such personality traits of curiosity and introversion fall under the category of being emo. Keep your minds open to new characters people. Not every reserved shy person aligns with this "emo" subculture. I do not recall Bella wearing all black nor is there anything in the movie which gives off a feeling she is emo.
December 24, 2008 at 2:06 pm
the rejected twilight screenplay is the funnest things i've heard in a while.
December 30, 2008 at 11:50 pm
I read each book in under a day. I was so enthralled with the story, it was impossible to put it down. I'm truly sorry for the people who hated it--because they will probably find me and eat me for saying this--but it reminded me of Romeo and Juilet. (I'm sorry!) I'm actually extremely similar to Bella-in looks and characteristics. I could easily relate to her character, and Stephenie is an amazing writer.
That said, I was a bit disappointed with the movie.
I completely understand the budget, but some of the scenes looked really fake. Kristen Stewart was too serious for the role, but each time I saw the movie--3 :)--I started to think better of her. This was a really hard role to play because no actors could really master the love Bella and Edward shared, but she and Rob (who is, come on, incredibly handsome) did the best they could, and they delivered.
I did feel the chemistry between Kristen and Rob, and everytime I looked at a man from the Cullen family my heart started pounding and I wanted to jump from my seat and just kiss them. Catherine Hardwicke did pretty well, but I'm glad they're getting a new director for New Moon. Maybe Stephenie should write the script though.
All in all, I thought the movie was really good, and deserved an A-.
January 12, 2009 at 2:10 pm
My wife LOVED the books -- LOVED -- but made us walk out of the movie. Said it seemed like a student film. (She once won an Emmy for a film she co-produced, so she knows a thing or two about movies. Perhaps, without an education in film, she could've made it through the whole movie.)
January 14, 2009 at 8:59 pm
I once considered Eric D. Snider to be an incredible movie critic, but after seeing this I STRONGLY disagree. Twilight was horrible. I love the books, don't get me wrong, and I couldn't care less about the differences, I thought of Twilight the movie as something completely separate from the book, didn't think they were going to be similar. Catherine Hardwicke used special effects in all the wrong places- The baseball scene? Not as many special effects needed as they used. The ballet studio scene? Could've been much better. Now, Edward's "sparkling of a thousand diamonds" looked more like leperousy to me. He looks like he had a skin condition, maybe hyperhydrosis, where the sweat glands are overactive. Or maybe he just has bad, shiny acne all over his hairy chest. Not sure.
The actors were bad, horrible, even. Their lines weren't believable in the slightest. All in all, the movie was worse than bad. Now, since I typed all this, I feel like I'm the critic, so D-.
January 14, 2009 at 9:57 pm
I LOVED LOVED LOVED the books. But, I was greatly dissapointed in the movie.
GREATLY DISAPOINTED!!!
They chose thw wrong actors for, like, half the cast, and Bella looked paler than Edward half the time.
The movie by itself is good, but compared to the book IT SUCKED!!
(I don't mean to offend anyone, but if I do, I'm sorry)
Stephenie Meyer is a great author, and I love her books. But seriously, the movie was disgrace.
January 17, 2009 at 12:06 pm
i don't understand what is the appeal of Robert Pattinson (Edward), his nose looks funny
January 20, 2009 at 7:51 pm
*Spoilers for people who haven't seen the move!*
I love the books. I'm 13. I've read the books 4 times each and my mom put me on twilght restriction. I still read them by flashlight once she is asleep. The movie was better the second time around. I saw the movie first then I got the books for christmas and read them all in 3 days WITHOUT FOOD. I lost 10 pounds.:-D. The only thing I could possibly like better than Robert Pattinson right now is Taylor Lautners new body for New Moon. *Swoon*. He's HUGE! Yum... Any way, I went and saw Twilight again this previous weekend and I noticed alot of things. 1. In the first biiology scene, about half way through the scene. they get an angle of Edward so that it looks like he has angel wings from the stuffed owl behind him. I thought this was hilarious. 2. When meeting Bella for the first time, Jasper looks kinda like Edward Scissor-hands. LoL! 3. Edward actually growls at the 4 muggers in the alley scene. It's really hard to hear but it's there. 4. Stephenie Meyer has a short cameo in the dinner scene. She is sitting at the counter working on her lap-top. The waitress even greets her as "Stephenie". 5. (this one mad me mad) The time billy and Jacob come over while Edward is with bella about to leave, BILLY is DRIVING the car. Paralized from the waist down = NO FEET MOVEMENT! How the hell do you drive a car when you can't move you legs or feet?!?!? I drove my freind crazy whispering friously at her sitting nexty to me during the movie. I mean seriously! They should have hired editors who could spot that major flaw. I admit the movie was a lot different than the book, but they usually are AND Summit entertainment isn't rich so the special affects suck. I also admit that I hoped that Edward would be more sparkly. I always imagined him like a human shaped prism throwing rainbow beams everywhere. Ha Ha, I know. I'm Ridiculous. The meadow scene sucked too. They wern't in a meadow, they were in a little clearing in the middle of the woods. Nothing close to a meadow. It was nice to have voices and faces for the characters though. Bella's actress could have done better. All in all, A-.
January 22, 2009 at 7:52 pm
So, as you may have heard, when the new sequel comes out, it will include Dakota Fanning as Jane, a completely evil, mind-crushing, blood-sucking child of the night. Says Fanning: "It's the role I was born to play!"
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/thedishrag/2009/01/dakota-fanning.html
January 24, 2009 at 6:07 am
So it's official now? Dakota is gonna play Jane? I had heard rumors but...
January 25, 2009 at 1:12 am
Did she seriously say she was BORN to play that part? LOL!! I wonder whose going to play Renesmee in the fourth movie...You know she's supposed to be, like, really, really pretty and whatnot.
Anyway, I read the book again. Edward portrays a Hot, kind, loving, respectful teenage boy, who is satisfied with just watching a girl as she sleeps? WTF??!! I'm disturbed. Bella annoys me. EVERY boy wants her at her new school(nearly every boy), has a SUPER-HOT BF who loves her with every aspect of his being, and she denies it all? Jeez. Honestly, Jeez.
When I read the book again, I saw new things, that both helped and hurt it. I'm sorry, but seriously. A sparkly vampire falls in Love with a girl within a week? What type of plot is that?
The movie was worse than the book. That's all I could say.
I love the book. I don't know why, but I'm so addicted to it, and BTW Emmets hair is supposed to be BROWN AND FRIKIN' CURLY!! NOT A BUZZ CUT.
February 28, 2009 at 6:18 pm
Eric, Eric, Eric. I wanted you to give this a horrible review. Because a) it deserves it and b) I wanted to see the fangirls go all bloodsucker on you.
I think that this deserves a serious bashing. The books weren't particularly good, mostly because of characters and lack of plot (Bella won't stop whining, Edward is a stalker, and Jacob has no likeable traits.) But the movie is a whole new level of suck. The acting was horrible, the special effects would have been good in the 80's, and the entire premise was shaky at best.
Eh, I thought it deserved a D or less, but that's just me.
March 22, 2009 at 8:34 pm
I think that the Twilight movie should deserve a C, maybe a C-. I say this because they had changed some things from the book that were absolutely unnesessary and the special effects weren't very great. But it still did a pretty good job at following the book, even though they basically hit all the important part without any lead to it for it to make much sense. I knew that it wouldn't me near as good as the book, as no movie ever is, but I think that the screenplay could have been a bit better, and if the budget allowed, better effects.
March 23, 2009 at 8:34 am
My wife made me watch this over the weekend. I thought the movie was absolutely boring and the characters weren't interesting at all. The movie didn't even try to make them interesting. It felt like they writers/director were betting on the crazy fans to come out and make it a success, so they didn't put much effort into it.
April 4, 2009 at 10:07 pm
While I freely admit that I am a Twilight/Stephenie Meyer fan, and that I have watched the movie several times, it never gets any better. In fact, the more times I watch it, the worse it seems to get. Most of all, Kristen Stewart is quite possibly the most awkward and stilted actress I have ever seen, but I haven't been able to decide whether she's naturally a bad actress or she was asked to act very badly for this movie. Crappy connections between scenes, horrible makeup and acting for all parties, and what is supposed to be a celebratory and, obviously, conventionally cliched "teen love" romance was turned into a somber, wrist-slitting, self-indulgently depressing nightmare. Mostly, I've watched it so many times because my roommates and I just about kill ourselves laughing at all the parts that aren't supposed to be funny (which, basically, consist of the entire movie). I feel so bad for Stephenie Meyer. I am both dreading and anticipating the horrors the rest of the series will be subjected to simply to witness what atrocities will come out next. Ugh. So thoroughly and completely disappointing, and yet, like a train wreck, it is sadly impossible to look away.
April 21, 2009 at 11:37 pm
*edited spelling*
Having read the book and watched this a second time i have formed opinions and disagreements with some of these above comments.
Firstly, i agree with the review in which the director did get the tone of the movie right to the book, which was her aim of the project (Twilight Directors Notebook). Personally i found the two leads very compelling. There was a strong on-screen chemistry between the two throughout the movie. The two leads had charisma and were casted, i believe, to perfection, considering what the movie was trying to achieve. If anyone who criticised Kristen Stewart's performance as Bella bothered to read the book, they would see that her character is quite clumsy and awkward, so if that was what they saw in her performance (which i did) then that is a good thing, it tells us a lot about her as a character.
Secondly, despite the film not having a high budget the film-making was quite clever. The camera work, angle shots and staging of the characters added to the feel of the scenes. It was quite clever and immediately had me engaged.
The last thing i need to mention is a criticism. What's the point of Rosalie in the film 'Twilight'. She seemed like she was just there to hate Bella. Her character wasnt really explored into a great deal. I believe the casting of Rosalie could have been looked into a bit more. The book explained that Rosalie is stunning and drop-dead gourgeous. She didn't really stand out as a character for me like the book did.
However, i did enjoy the movie and i'll be looking forward to the sequel. Thanks!
April 22, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Beau: In response to this comment, "If anyone who criticised Kristen Stewart's performance as Bella bothered to read the book, they would see that her character is quite clumsy and awkward..."
The movie needs to stand on its own. We shouldn't have to read the book to understand that she's akward and clumsy. They should have done a better job in the movie of letting us know that she is. That is pretty much my whole complaint about this movie... They made the movie with the assumption that you have read the book, so they left big, gaping holes in the story that they knew all the book fans could fill in, but the rest of us are left out.
May 2, 2009 at 5:41 pm
Ofcourse like most of you, I'm a twilight fan. I saw the movie and didnt like it to much honestly. Everything was way too serious. Bella hardly laughed and when she did it was like a choking sound. But don't worry. I know for a fact that New Moon will be better. Honestly i don't like the screenwriter, Rossenburg. someone needs to get her outta there
May 8, 2009 at 7:56 pm
I'm a Twihard, no not a Twitard you haters! LOL. True story:
I called my best friend while she was on vacation in Kentucky, figuring she must be bored (and always is) while visiting family. She confessed to me that she wanted to go and READ A BOOK rather than talk to ME! I was surprised and honestly a little offended, I was thinking, am I really that boring? She said no, it's just that she had to find out what was going to happen next. My other best friend and I made fun of her after we found out she'd ordered the fourth, with overnight delivery while she was still in Kentucky! She told me I had to read the books and forwarned me to get all of them. I didn't listen to her. Needless to say I showed up at Barnes and Noble the following day, after finishing Twilight to get the next three installments. I was so stoked to find out they were making a movie. After all the anticipation, I finally saw it. It of course wasn't as good as I'd imagined it. But Edward was swoon worthy and the general vibe and tone of the movie felt simular to the book. I have to say though if I hadn't read the book and just saw the movie, I don't know if I would be a fan of the movie alone. I guess I fall under the category as one of those fans (that read the book) who would have liked the movie even if it was REALLY terrible because I have such love for the characters already. Also a lot of people didn't like Kristen Stewart for the part of Bella. But I liked her as Bella, I thought she nailed it. I think the next three movies will get better as they go along. I have faith in Chris Weitz. I just hope they don't leave out or shorten *purposely clears throat* (meadow scene) pivital scenes. Also the sparkling scene was a little weird (okay its weird anyway, but you know what I mean...) During the sparkling in the sunlight scene, Edward act like Frankenstien's Moster basically. In the book (yes Mr. Snider, I alread confessed I was one of those book comparing fans) Edward is excited to show Bella his sparkliness (is that a word?) Anyway, it was really an intimate moment where they go in the middle of the meadow and there they really connect. All in all, I would say I really liked the movie. I bought the DVD and have watched it three times already. My boyfriend asks what I'm doing and if I don't answer him immediately; he scoffs and says are you reading, watching, or blogging about Twilight?...I'm not going to say if he's usually right;)