Twilight (DVD)
Movies, Three Stars — By trench on April 10, 2009 at 11:15 pm | 82 VisitorsBefore I begin with my review I just wanted to mention that I’ve never read any of the Twilight books, so I am unable to judge the fidelity of this film from its origins. As some of my regular readers already know, I am a huge fan of any story featuring vampires, but opted to skip this in theaters because it seemed more like a chick flick than an actual vampire feature.
To start, I’m calling Twilight your average teen romance. I felt that Twilight set the tone for its upcoming features, and after watching the first of five films (assuming they release one per book), I’m actually looking forward to its sequel. This franchise has the opportunity to put out some excellent films in the future, and it ultimately rests in the hands of director Catherine Hardwicke the producers (thanks NDO for the update) to make everything come together.
The sticking point for me was definitely the forbidden love relationship between Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) and Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson). There are few films that cast members with chemistry as good at these two, and I think that their pairing was an excellent choice. Pattinson definitely is THE draw for the films female fanbase and is without a doubt the biggest part of this films success. I do acknowledge that Stewart is as important in her own right, but lets be real here, without Pattinson, its hard to imagine this film performing as well as it did at the box office.
Back to the story, I really liked how they portrayed the vampires as much more than just blood lusty monsters. The Cullen family portrayed as “Vegetarians” was an interesting take on vampire lore, and vampires living in daylight (and glittering in the sun) rather than being restricted to the nightlife was a nice twist. I’m curious to know if there are any actual weaknesses for these immortal beings, because it really seems like they have nothing to fear but being murdered by their own kind.
Finally, a bit of foreshadowing. Could they make it anymore obvious that the American Indians in the film are more than what they seem? Werewolves perhaps? I guess the sequel will help answer those questions. Without any prior knowledge, I’m pretty sure about the direction this series is headed.
Tags: evil_vampires, Kristen Stewart, Movies-on-DVD, Robert Pattinson, Three-Stars, Vampires, vampire_slayer
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I have mixed heritage of Chamorro, Filipino, and Japanese and I currently reside on the beautiful island of Guam. My interests include critiquing films, eating out, import cars, gaming, web design, MMA, and bodybuilding. I'm also a die-hard fan of both the Los Angeles Lakers and San Francisco 49ers. I hate bandwagon fans!
11 Comments
The pair may have had chemistry but I could not overcome their lack of acting ability. Their mostly decent, but there are certain scenes that are laughable because of the way dialogue is delivered. I thought this movie was a disappointment because I heard so many people give it their thumbs up so I came in with heightened expectations. I do agree that the franchise has the potential to put out good films in the future, especially because my girlfriend (a fan of the books) tells me that the story gets much better in later editions.
FYI, Catherine Hardwicke is not directing the sequel that is supposed to come out this November. Apparently, she was very disappointed with how the producers wanted the next movie to be made. While it’s not uncommon to see changes made when a book is made into a movie, she has publicly stated that they wanted to make changes that were too radical from the original story.
Interesting to learn that they are going with a new director so quickly. I do agree that the acting could have been alot better, but the love relationship between the two was quite interesting to me. I came into this film without any expectations at all so I figure thats why my disappointment was minimal. Vampires versus Werewolves. You know its coming!!!! haha… I’d actually like to read the books now.
I will put this movie in my Netflix queue. After all the hype and massive merchandise in the mall everywhere, I have to see it. I want to know what the hell is going on with this movie.
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Alright Trench, I will give this film a viewing just for the relationship. I would tell you to rent Let the Right One In, an infinitely better vamp flick, but the subtitles have been messed up. I wrote a post on it.
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@ Filmbook Enjoy the film for what it is. It feels like it could have been almost a series on television. I read your review on Let the Right One In but haven’t found it here on Guam. We can order Netflix here, but it takes forever to get in my mailbox because I live on such a small island.
@Stony I’m more open to these types of films now than I have been in the past. I used to hate watching any film with romance in it. Did you know I only recently watched and enjoyed SIXTEEN CANDLES? haha
I’m glad to hear that at least ONE guy I know enjoyed the movie. I too had no expectations when I first watched this movie because I didn’t even know what it was about. I enjoyed it enough to buy the first two books of the series. I was hooked after that.
I too enjoy the spin on the traditional vamp stories. Of course, the forbidden love thing is ALWAYS a hit.
I would suggest to your readers that if they plan on watching the movie and read the books, to watch the movie first. If they read the books, they’ll be extremely disappointed with the movie. The books are so much better. I own the set.
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I had a blast playing Mystery Science Theater 3000 with this movie! The acting was pretty weak but I do like the different portrayal of vamps in this one. I think the movie would’ve been waaaay better with a different director…the execution was just sad. Maybe it’s cause of the tween thing. I will watch the sequel though, it wasn’t a total letdown.
choco*fishs last blog post..Twilight (DVD)
I agree Choco. The film would probably have done much better with a different director. Perhaps the change of directors for its sequel is a good thing.
…i liked that it was different and not too hippitty hoppity genre after stereotype after teeny mileyish….glowing vampires?..eh…..vampires belong in horror movies!!!lol…
For sure the male lead is definitely lacking in acting ability, but I thought the female lead was actually pretty good. The guy has a lot of fangirls, so maybe he might become the next keanu reeves. Haha.