Andrew McMurtryREVIEW: Twilight (2008)
January 9th 2010 08:51
“Twilight” is the vampire movie which has taken the world by storm since its movie release. I thought it was about time I reviewed it. It’s a good story, good film, despite all the naysayers. It makes an easy to watch film, which is the best thing about it. The vampire genre has truly gone insane since this book series and subsequent film production have started. TV series, book series and movies have sprung out of the woodwork about vampires. Many choose to make them look ugly and different from humans, whereas “Twilight” makes them look alike except for only a few subtle differences. It just makes them outcasts. But the real story is the forbidden love story which is well done in both the book and the film.
The story begins with Bella Swann (Kristen Stewart). She lives in sunny Pheonix, Arizona with her mum and stepdad Phil. Even though she’s happy with them, she chooses to go live with her dad in Forks, Washington “the wettest place in the Continental US” because Phil is a baseball player trying to find a team. When she gets to Forks, she goes to school, dealing with the normal new kid challenges. That is until she meets Edward Cullen. Initially he seems repulsed by her. But before long they strike up and awkward, hostile friendship. Then he saves from being crushed by an out of control car with his bare hands. All is not as it seems with him and it’s not long before she gets some information from her Quilette (presumably a made up Native American tribe) friend named Jacob Black that she begins to uncover the truth about Edward. When she confronts him about him being a vampire, they begin a relationship, as his family only drink the blood of animals. When a clan of human killers move into the neighbourhood, it’s then a fight to keep Bella safe from the vampires that are hunting her.
Overall, the story is reasonably good. It’s aimed at teenager and reaches that audience well. It’s metaphor for forbidden teenage love is a great message for that age group. The little things like Kristen Stewart’s Bella stumbling and tripping all the time make her seem like the average awkward, uncoordinated teenage girl. It’s very relatable for many young girls. The chemistry between Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson is good enough for a teen romance. The acting of the whole cast is good. Bella and Charlie (Billy Burke) have a believable relationship as well even though they don’t talk that much. They play characters that are very alike, which doesn’t make a lot of sense since she is so comfortable in her mothers company. Her mother (Sarah Clarke) is loud and talks non stop. I guess it’s the whole opposites attract thing that goes all the way through the movie. With all the good actors, it’s too bad the script is so bad. At some moments, there are some really good lines and then others are so unnatural, for anyone, no matter how old they are. It makes the actors seem uncomfortable in delivering the lines and it makes some scenes very cringe worthy. But the romance story works well enough to carry the movie.
In terms of the setting, Forks provides a wonderful background to the film. The beautiful pale cool colour really set ups the scenes well. It couldn’t be more perfect. In a story when many of the main characters can’t be in direct sunlight or reveal what they really are, it’s brilliant, making the valley and forest surrounding the town much more vibrant and green. It’s wonderful. But when it all comes down to it, the whole movie comes down to if the Bella and Edward characters are compatible. The final battle between the Cullens and the evil vampires is not the best part of the movie. The love story and the blossoming relationship of Edward and Bella is much more interesting. The fantastic soundtrack is a very good mix of indie and rock hits and fits in very well with the aesthetic of the movie.
I enjoyed “Twilight”. It’s a very easy movie to watch. What I don’t get is that if you don’t like the movie, don’t watch it. So many people have an opinion on this film and the books it is based on but why do you need to criticise those who enjoy it. I enjoyed this movie, mostly because you don’t have to think through it. It is done in layman’s terms. While I cringe at some of the dialogue, it is a watchable and enjoyable movie. At some times it’s goofy and sometimes it’s serious but whatever the tone it is an enjoyable teen movie. I’d give it 3.5 out of 5.
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