Twilight is one of only a few movies that I like in spite of the underlying story. As I am not a seventeen-year-old girl or a woman-of-a-certain-age or any other female in between, the bulk of the movie just does not appeal to me in the same fashion as other forbidden-romance movies do not. I watch movies to see things I cannot see otherwise and an angst-ridden love story can be found many times over without the fawning of females or the ire of everyone else in the middle.
If you have not been living under a rock, you might know that the Twilight series is a very divisive body of work. The series of novels feature Bella Swan, a recent transplate from sunny Phoenix to rainy Washington state, as she attempts to integrate while smitten with a boy from a local clan of vampires. The main point of contention for many is this classification of the Cullen family as vampires as they bear only slight resemblance to the bloodsuckers of old. These beings are not killed by sunlight or silver, they do not have visible fangs, but apparently they ooze sex appeal as most everyone with female bits thinks Robert Pattinson walks on the water reserved solely for the gorgeous.
The changes in the vampiric behavior does not bother me as much as vampires are not the focus of the movie. The Cullens could really be lepers, circus-midgets, or the mutant family from The Hills Have Eyes and it does not change the underlying structure of the film which is primarily concerned with the budding relationship between Bella and Edward, her sparkling vampire beau. Just like other classic characters, Bella and Edward are determined to be together but destined to be apart due to their … differences. In and of itself, this is a fine plot for a movie but that means that just like many other sappy romance movies (of which I will not deny that I have no interest in), very little happens. We see as Bella fawns over Edward, Edward pulls away from Bella, Edward rescues Bella, Bella embraces Edward and his differences. Again, there is nothing here that you have not seen in another romance movie between two people from different sides of the tracks.
Now I will say there are elements of this movie that I like. Regardless of the fact that he has been thrust upon a pedestal by millions of fans everywhere, Pattinson does a pretty decent job with the character of Edward, heavy makeup job aside. From his glares and his withdrawn personality, you can feel the sense that Edward is either a really disturbed boy or a pseudo-vampire running in the woods hunting elk or water buffalo or whatever. But, as much as she may be the most perfect actress for Bella, Kristen Stewart did not fare as well as her other cast mates here. While I am willing to accept that the character is written with weird looks and stuttering, Stewart delivered one of the most awkward and cringe-inducing performances I have seen in a professional film.
The other members of the Cullen pride do well to sell the absurdity of the existence of vampires while still embracing the fresh-blooded with Peter Facinelli, Ashley Greene, and Nikki Reed all having similar, somewhat off, qualities as they try to pass as normal. Of the real normal characters, my Up In the Air favorite Anna Kendrick is entertaining as the somewhat vapid best friend while Billy Burke threatens to steal the show as the obtuse, yet endearing father to Bella. Even the real vampires are cast well to the point that they look and act dangerous but I would have much preferred if their introduction to the core cast was not in the final thirty minutes of the film. This is somewhat rectified in the later stories but the random thrust of action-like characters in this lovey-dovey romance story was quite awkward even if they did lead to a fairly satisfying finale.
While it is unfortunate that director Catherine Hardwicke could not have infused a bit more life into the romance angle (as that does take up about two-thirds of the film), she certainly created a distinct looking movie with an almost depressive atmosphere in this rainy town. I really dug the blue hues that a good portion of the movie is shot in, certainly fitting to a town bombarded with precipitation more than any other in the country. If it were really direct sun rays that killed vampires, Forks would most definitely be the town they would flock to as portrayed here. Also the original music from composer Carter Burwell as well as the random sampling of pop songs from various genres were not only excellent but fit the mood of the film well.
In any case, if you are reading this review you have likely either decided that Twilight is the devil or Twilight is God’s work and my random thoughts will not change much there. But while I was fully expecting to hate this movie, I did not. Story-wise, I was quite ambivalent as this is not my cup of tea in any stretch. But film-wise, I have certainly seen better but seen much, much worse. Surprisingly to some, there are some things to like in Twilight as long as you can get past the emptiness of the story and the sparkliness of the leading villains.
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