Twilight reviewed

Well i finally saw Twilight at the theater on Thanksgiving Day. It was a bit distracting because of who was sitting behind me and down the row on my right. Both groups were very vocal. The women beside me were bemoaning the fact that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is so far away, and were prone to make appreciative noises while Edward was gracing the screen. The guys behind me were less appreciative (lol), most noticeably when Bella is freaking out about Edward leaving her at the hospital, and is rendered heart wrenchingly speechless as a result.

Let me start by saying that the music and casting in this film was for the most part excellent. I have no major complaints about the movie, but the book is sooooooo much better. In fact, my biggest complaint about the film is that they condensed it too much, leaving out really, really good dialogue and handling the exposition poorly as a result. The movie felt like it was on fastforward, and probably slightly confuses people who don't know the books in some ways.

So i guess i feel compelled to list what my complaints are, along with what i liked about the movie. In a very minor way, Bella's house, father, and the Cullen's house is nothing like what i pictured, which isn't necessarily bad, it's just different. James was very weak, and also annoying. The scene in the ballet studio was too short, and also a bit campy with the dancing around the fire. There were many things that were slightly changed, that left me feeling wrong, such as the way Bella's leg is broken, how James doesn't feel any bloodlust when Bella is bleeding, and how he bites her on the forearm, not her hand. Carlisle having to order Edward to stop because Bella's blood is clean and he's killing her was also just wrong. There are lots of little things in the film like this that they just did not need to change and weakened the film. In fact, the movie ended up feeling like a rough draft with large parts left out, nowhere near ready to be filmed, let alone on the screen.

My biggest complaint, i think, is the accident in the school parking lot. TPTB didn't make it obvious that Tyler's van had slid on ice and Charlie was sort of over the top with how hostile he was. More importantly, they changed details far too much; in the book, Edward not only stopped the van, he lifted it off Bella and adjusted her position so it wouldn't pin her beneath it. She also hit her head, and he didn't abandon her. As the scene stands in the movie, it is completely inexplicable how she could have survived from the perspective of a bystander, because Edward didn't "push her out of the way;" the van apparently miraculously stopped just short of hitting her and inexplicably acquired a dent in the process. In other words, movie Edward majorly botched things, while book Edward actually handled things more smoothly.

That said, there were things from the movie that i enjoyed, and of course wanted to see more of. The Cullen household is a good example, despite campy repeatings of "we'll tear him apart and burn the pieces." Alice, in particular, was awesome, from start to finish: dancing with Jasper in the cafeteria, walking on the branch and stepping into the kitchen, pitching the baseball, seeing the vision in the hotel and fighting the urge to drink Bella's blood in the ballet studio. Ashley Greene is perfect in Alice's shoes, i really regret that they totally cut large parts of her story out, though i will admit that her backstory wasn't integral to the plot. i definitely would have loved to see more of the Cullens.

There was so little character development in the film that i'm afraid that people who haven't read the book aren't going to understand at all the depth of the bond between Edward and Bella, or his bloodlust, nor Carlisle's full history. The biggest complaint i have read from reviewers is of course the usual one, that the Cullens are too perfect to identify with (rather like complaints i have heard in the past about Lost in Space). i do not struggle with this at all... i mean, if i was by some "accident" turned into a vampire, would i just surrender to my "nature" (as most vampires do in vampire stories)? No, i would be like Carlisle and the rest of the Cullens, i would be at odds with and fight against those urges. Which is why i don't generally like the vampire genre, to be perfectly honest: Van Hellsing stunk for the most part and MSC's production of Dracula was horrible, i was so glad after seeing it that i hadn't been cast in it, i would have been so embarrassed to be in such a lame play. i guess the trouble is that most people don't fight against their sinful nature anymore, but from a Christian (or Mormon) standpoint, the Cullens are much more realistic than any other vampires we've ever read about or seen. That's in part why i like the Underworld series as well, Selene is not a mindless killer, she doesn't want to murder humans, she quenches her thirst by visiting a blood bank, etc.

The whole diner bit was annoying, but i liked Stephenie Meyer's cameo. i hadn't been expecting it at all. i have no idea why they made Bella go in that stupid bookstore (again, not what happened in the book) instead of letting Jacob tell her that the Cullens are vampires like he was supposed to. Edward revealed far too much to Bella far too early as a result, it makes much more sense in the book when she knows what Edward is when she gets in the car and guesses that he can read minds, etc. For some reason TPTB forgot that Edward and Bella were supposed to be tucked into a secluded corner of the restaurant, left them smack dab in the middle, and cut out lots and lots of character development that really would have helped the film so very much. The meadow scene, while okay, just turned out to be a bit lame as a result. In fact, Bella's angry walk into the woods, when Edward cannot read her mind, just doesn't really make sense. The planned date to the meadow (in the book) does... in fact, it is perhaps the most integral scene in the book because it was Stephenie's dream of said scene that inspired her to write Twilight.

They did capture Edward's self loathing, but he just seemed a little too much of a whiner. i was really relieved that they didn't cast Hayden Christensen but it still felt like Rob Patterson was trying to channel him (a la Ani in Star Wars II and III). Ugh, my review is coming across really harsh. So... in conclusion, great casting for the most part, sub par script, slightly jarring cinematography, excellent music, overall it was okay, but could have been so, so much better.

It doesn't surprise me that people who haven't read the books think that the movie stinks, i would too, would shrug it off as yet another lame teen chick flick. Stephenie Meyer's is such a better writer than that, she doesn't deserve her incredible book being hacked up like this. i'll write more if i see the movie again, but right now i'm just feeling a bit let down and complained more than i meant to as a result.