Twilight

...there.. So when, as a Twilight fan I heard that Catherine Hardwicke wanted to get her hands on the book and turn it into a film, I was slightly sceptical about the outcome. Like most I was dubious because books turned into films sometimes, actually more often than not fall incredibly short of the mark in quality - especially if the actors for the characters are cast wrong..

So when this film came out last Christmas I had no intention ...
...books..

Since Twilight was released in December 2008, it has been up for just a few awards - twenty two awards in fact.. From the MTV Movie Awards to the Teen Choice Awards they may not be the Oscars, but still being nominated for twenty two awards and actually winning seventeen of them - just proves the film really has made an impression on the young adults of the world. The book itself was aimed at teens and young adults so there is ... more

Hands up who here has never heard of Twilight? I would be surprised if anyone hadn’t heard of the film, some perhaps haven’t heard that it came from a novel, but still if you haven’t heard of it I would be incredibly shocked! It isn’t something that is in obscurity anymore, however when I originally read the books they were not perhaps the best known novels out there.. So when, as a Twilight fan I heard that Catherine Hardwicke wanted to get her hands on the book and turn it into a film, I was slightly sceptical about the outcome. Like most I was dubious because books turned into films sometimes, actually more often than not fall incredibly short of the mark in quality - especially if the actors for the characters are cast wrong..

So when this film came out last Christmas I had no intention of watching it in the cinema, I didn’t want to ruin my own imagination of Edward and Bella.. By the end of April when the film was out on DVD, I could no longer resist it.. If it was rubbish I would forget I saw it and carry on as if the film was never made, along with the next three.. Ignore that someone had ruined one of my favourite books..

Since Twilight was released in December 2008, it has been up for just a few awards - twenty two awards in fact.. From the MTV Movie Awards to the Teen Choice Awards they may not be the Oscars, but still being nominated for twenty two awards and actually winning seventeen of them - just proves the film really has made an impression on the young adults of the world. The book itself was aimed at teens and young adults so there is no wonder they are the ones that have taken to the film so strongly - though I include myself in this, there are plenty of adults, a few years past the target age that also really enjoyed the film and have become ensnarled in the whole Twilight madness..

Quick Statistics

Directed by - Catherine Hardwicke…
Produced by - Mark Morgan, Greg Mooradian, and Wyck Godfrey…
Novel Written by - Stephanie Meyer…
Screenplay Written by - Mellissa Rosenburg…
Music by - Carter Burwell…
Distributed by - Summit Entertainment…
Release Date - November 21st 2008...
Running Time - 121 minutes…

Characters

Edward Cullen - Played by the British gent by the name of Robert Pattinson…

Edward is a character that everyman on the planet could learn from, perhaps seeing it from a female perspective I am quite biased but it seems that he possesses a respect for Bella that is fairly uncommon in today’s modern man - which is a shame as I wouldn’t mind being doted on just as Bella is in the film..
Edward goes out on a limb to create a peaceful, and protected world for Bella, even though at first the pair do not seem to click - Edward still goes on to look after Bella even if it does seem to be in an odd way!
Is there any wonder girls are clamouring after Robert Pattinson? His portrayal of Edward Cullen, has left us (well most of us) swooning on our sofas.. It could be the moody sultry look he appears to carry with him, or it could be watching the struggle this boy (using the term loosely) has to keep his hands off this mysterious girl..
The character Edward Cullen despite being a vegetarian vampire, struggles to keep himself from looking wild with the smell of human blood all around him - therefore a grumpy look is all we can expect.. If you catch a smile it is a surprise.. Then where would we be if we had vampires smiling with their big fanged teeth sticking out?

Bella Swan - played by the multi-talented Kristen Stewart…
Bella - girl I wish I was (in a fantasy land where Edward Cullen existed of course..) Bella is an awkward teenager, that in general is difficult to build up a relationship with on screen, mainly because she isn’t comfortable in her own skin it seems. As the main protagonist of this film she is the character we try to bond with, as it is her the whole story revolves around. To those around her as the story develops she begins to be an isolated character, as she says so herself within the first around twenty minutes of the film, claiming to be ‘the suffer in silence type.’
At least this character has traits that the majority of girls at the age of 16 can relate to, perhaps even older ladies can relate to the issues, that Bella has to face - perhaps not having a relationship with a blood sucking vampire but the idea of a forbidden relationship has pretty much happened to all of us!

So that is the main two characters out of the way, now onto the rest of the families - firstly, the vampish Cullen Clan:

Carlisle and Esme Cullen - played by Peter Facinelli and Elizabeth Reaser…
These two are the ‘parents’ of Edward and his ‘siblings’ all in inverted commas as it is all a pretence to make the clan seem like a normal family, even though they are not biologically related. Carlisle, is a well respected doctor in the town of forks, after many, many years of practise in the medical profession. A doctor he may be but never the less seems like a true gentleman, even in the face of grave danger.
Esme, well is what you would call a housewife, that seems to enjoy interior decoration. Though she is not highly featured in the first film she is definitely the find of mum you would love to see when your boyfriend took you to meet the parents. Apart from one thing obviously!

Rosalie, Emmet, Jasper and Alice - player by Nikki Reed, Kellan Lutz, Jackson Rathbone and Ashley Greene…
These are Edwards four ‘Siblings’ - well as close as he is going to get anyway. Rosalie is a blond with a bad attitude, for someone who has immortal life, and according to description stunning beauty she isn’t half miserable about it. Rosalie is definitely not a character anyone will warm to straight way, mainly because of her constant complaining about Edward and Bella!
However her boyfriend/foster brother (confusing family) Emmet, is pretty much the opposite to her, as he is portrayed as a lively character who never fails to amuse the family - usually by picking faults and making jokes out of them. However he also has a serious and protective side to when it involves his family and danger - though how he puts up with Rosalie I will never know!
(I know they are not real before anyone makes that comment!)
The next member of the Cullen clan is newly vegetarian jasper, who bless him looks incredibly pained in a school environment. However during this film we do not find out a lot about him so keep an open mind about this timid young man.
Jaspers other half on the other hand, is explained more in this film than most, aside from Edward. Alice is a young girl with an illustrious talent for being able to see subjective visions - no wonder people think she is weird! Despite that Alice is a character you will warm to pretty much straight away because she seems like such a pleasant young lady - who despite the hardships that came before her vampire days seems to bear no grudge like her sister Rosalie..

Now Bella’s Family, well her separated parents at least..

Rene Dwyer - played by Sarah Clarke…
Forever ditzy is Bella’s mother, quoted to ‘repel technology’ and despite having a relatively small role throught remains a fairly comedic character. Rene’s incapability to use technology is one that constantly amuses her daughter, and is something constantly commented on, even in the aftermath of the action. This mother daughter relationship despite being set miles apart is still strong, and one that is enviable to some. Even though due to her new husband Bella has ended up in Forks with her dad..

Charlie Swan - played by Billy Burke…
Charlie is the chief of Police in Forks and also Bella’s father, Billy plays a very awkward character almost as bad as his on screen daughter. Charlie’s character changes depending on his surroundings, if he is not working he spends a lot of time away from Bella fishing. To be honest the character does pretty well looking after his 17 year old daughter, considering he barely spent a great deal of time with her before she came to live with him. Charlie does care, even if he doesn’t show it often, and if he does it just looks plain awkward!

There are various members of the Quileute tribe featured in the first film, in the shape of Billy Black and Jacob Black but the characters are not so heavily influenced on this particular film. Watch out for the next film if you like werewolves!

Basic Plot

Well without ruining for anyone I can begin to tell you a little bit about the film - though I am sure that most people already know the story behind one of the more modern romances that has been brought to our screens. The film centres around Bella, and her untimely obsession with the Cullen’s even after discovering from her new friends that they aren’t really interested in anyone in the school.. Forks in Washington is one of those small towns were everyone knows everything about one another which means the Cullen’s keeps themselves to themselves is something they work hard to do - just to be rumbled by a new comer.. However it is just never that simple, what kind of film would it be if the not so normal characters were busted and it ended at that.. There also has to be something a little more sinister going on making the film worth a watch - and that there certainly is, in the shape of some more vampires, except these ones are not as human friendly as the Cullen’s..

That about covers it without spoiling the plot I think…..

So What Did I Think Of It?

Well when it comes to it, anyone who knows me knows that I am a bit of a fan of this film. Well I say a bit of a fan - I am a huge fan of it, purely because I do think it is a great adaptation of one of my favourite books. Admittedly it has become a bit of phenomenon but despite that it is one I can put up with. However I am not a fan because of the same reason that a lot of girls are, I do not have a thing for Robert Pattinson or any member of the cast. The character however, well that’s a totally different story.. This film is as I have said one my favourites, and I have to say that it is mainly because it is vampire orientated. For as long as I can remember I have loved reading and watching things about vampires, whether it be films, television programmes or books - this franchise is combining the two things I love doing, reading and watching films!

So what about the film do I like?

Well that is a long list so I’ll start with some things I can be critical of and like at the same time….

Most people I have spoken to about this film have agreed with me on the point I am about to make so I know it isn’t just me.. Kristen Stewart (Bella Swan) is, well, a little wooden to a point she is at times literally like a tree, honestly in the first fifteen to twenty minutes of the film she is the most awkward character you could come across. It is like everything is so forced, now this could be something that the director has told her to do, or something she has picked up herself from the books - but it does get a little irritating with the fake excitement and the ‘oh my gosh,’ that literally makes me want to slap her.. Either way I hope she can develop her acting into a better Bella or I am going to get very mad at the screen! Having said this though in places, majority when the film is past the hour mark she does play the tense scenes well, and is very believable when things get a bit sticky. Thank fully her on screen chemistry with Edward once things are a bit further developed is fairly believable, and they really could be a couple.. During certain scenes there definitely is no lack of feelings between them, and no doubt anyone who has seen the film knows exactly what I mean - and those who fancy either Rob or Kristen would want to be in their places!

On the other hand we have Robert Pattinson, who literally has the surly and sultry vampire look down right from the beginning, his acting is well pretty good throughout. However the scenes close to the beginning when Bella and Edward first come into contact, when Edward looks like he is about to be sick at the smell of Bella.. Well Robert, you did a great job of amusing us! It is probably the best scene of the first half an hour or so, as you know if you see Robert out and about with that face he is probably about to be sick.. Anyway away from talk of sick.. Robert’s acting is something that really is good from the outset, it seems he has looked into the whole idea of vampires and taken notice of Stephanie Meyers book and fallen into his character really well. Edward literally now can step out of the book and onto the screen with the same attitude as the book. Mainly because Robert, being a British gentleman, brings a new dimension into his acting from his posher upbringing - he has that feel to him that makes most girls swoon. If not at the actor at the character, as to most the dimension he brings to it, the caring nature that Stephanie wrote and Robert has acted is pretty much the beginnings of every great boyfriend..

Now I have heard Robert Pattinson mention that his character has been reflected onto him, and he finds it slightly odd. However I would like to point out that is a bit of a compliment that he plays the character so well it is very believable - though for some people it is a bit of a crazed fantasy!

The rest of the acting in the film, falls into a more mediocre category, mainly because this film is just an introduction to the rest of the family so it is hard to gauge if they are any good.. The characters of the Cullen family, their actors have pretty much come from obscurity - so it is probably too quick to form an in-depth opinion. Though I will give it a go..
Ashley Greene who plays Alice, seems to have fallen into her role very quickly and I have to say she plays it well. The power she holds is one that would be a hard thing to act out, but she makes it so easy to believe, you wouldn’t think any different of her. I couldn’t actually see anyone better in her place, because she has literally made it her own, with her friendly personality that anyone would fail not to like. Similarly with Elizabeth Reaser who plays Esme, she just gives her such a great personality, it would be hard not to want to be part of this imaginary family - vampire or not. Carlisle I have to say out of the whole family is played the best, maybe because there is more of him in this film than there is the majority of the rest. Peter brings a level of authority to his character and demands respect, how they do it through a script I will never know, I am guessing it is a sign of a good actor. The rest of the cast, give a reasonably good show but there doesn’t really seem to be anything special acting wise. Though this is just the first film, I am not going to write them off just yet, as there is plenty of room for these actors to expand their characters in the following films. So if you are looking to watch this film but have heard things about the actors and wonder if you should give it a miss, well it’s up to you but I would say watch it anyway - get a feel for the characters and watch them develop over the next two possibly three films!

One of the things I most like about this film, is the setting for some of the more tense scenes.. From the trailers I would have thought most people know about the woods, where Bella outs Edward and his family. It is just a normal wood with trees and mud, but it seems to have that something about it because it just seems so beautiful especially with the snow and the dewy look to it. I am a bit of a sucker for a romantic setting, but it shows the setting managers did a good job to provide somewhere that looks just the part for a vampire romance. It is not just the woods that gives the setting for this film the edge, the river and all its huge trees are also a good reason to see this film. For a film that is meant to be about the story, they sure have made a good job of picking some beautiful countryside to film it in!

However the whole idea of Forks in Washington, the town Twilight is actually set it, from the book sounds amazingly drab and depressing - and as we see Forks for the first time as Bella enters, you can imagine just how depressing it must feel! It is not exactly as I imagined it from the book, but they can’t get everything right now can they? As usual though the film setting is not totally in the right place throughout as they never are, because one town is never enough. So some parts that are drab and dreary may not be Forks at all! The majority of places in this film, are relatively average, and just as you would expect for a teenage film, a normal high school with a canteen and classrooms. A restaurant with the usual bits and pieces you would expect which is perfect for the film really. It may sound a bit dark and boring, but as I have said for a lot of things in this review, this film really is a beginning of a series of films, it is just a starting place for bigger, sunnier things to come! Those of you who have read New Moon will know what I mean!

For those of you who still haven’t watched the film, or those who hadn’t noticed, I will tell you my opinions about the part of this saga I find the most interesting. The Vampires, whether they be a little darker at the core, than the vegetarians, but they all share one interesting feature that vampires of old don’t. Remember all those years vampires could be killed off with a wooden stake to the heart? Or protect yourself with a bit of garlic round your neck? A cross perhaps? Or just a bit of sunlight on your side? Well watch out they can come out in the day time now - and a bit of garlic won’t help you anymore.. Stephanie Meyer has created a whole new generation of vampire!

This new breed of vampires can be divided into two, one side that is a bit more like the traditional vampire - munching on humans and having a good suck on us.. Then there are the others, the more pleasant of the species, the vegetarians.. Vampires that only have a good drink on animals, a less suspicious looking hunting ground. It is a bit of a novelty I think to change exactly how we perceive the hunting habits of vampires for a book, but it does give them a bit more of a human side - even though we know they are not anywhere near human. It’s not only that Stephanie has changed for her new look at vampires, they can now step out in sunlight, were they used to crisp up and disappear before remember? Now they can stand out in the sun but now they just look pretty and sparkly instead almost like they are made of diamonds. Which would make sense considering they are pretty much indestructible! However not only do they have some abilities that age old vampires never had – something a bit newer for the generation has come around and that is the fact that some vampires have special talents. From being able to read minds to see the future, these vampires have taken on a whole new role in society make friends with one and you will probably be better off than having them against you.

I have to say of all the films I own with extra features this one seems to take up most of my time to watch. Purely because there is not one part of it I don’t want to see when I put the disk in, there is however a wide variety of things on the disk for you to feast your eyes on. From extended scenes to the becoming of Edward, it really has every question answered that you could ever want to know about Twilight.. Well I say every one but I’m sure someone could come up with a question!

The deleted and extended scenes featured here are a little bit hit and miss. The extended scenes especially - mainly because they just show a more awkward and unimaginative lengthened version of what we have already seen. Both sets are introduced by Catherine Hardwicke who I have to say has the most annoying voice that I would prefer not to hear every time something she directed popped up on the screen. However as annoying as it is, I can forgive it because the deleted scenes are just so easy to watch - maybe over and over again. Though I do think that most of the deleted scenes should be in the film, especially the downright odd ones where Edward is biting Bella’s finger, and she then in turn sucks it, putting this scene in the film could have given it a bit of a saucy edge. Especially if it had also featured the scene with Carlisle and Esme being a bit saucy, that would have made it less of a teenage film and bordering on something a little more teasing. On the other hand Carlisle and Esme are not like that in the film or the book to be honest, they are a very composed couple who seem to keep their attraction under wraps despite it obviously being there.

There are a fair amount of musical extras on this DVD, from piano concerts of Robert playing as Edward from a small book on the lid of the piano - giving such a natural and poised performance. It just proves how talented Robert really is and gives a whole new dimension to his character. Unfortunately it is a shame to say that out of all the song picked for the soundtrack, only one out of the three videos provided had anything obvious to do with the film, the video for Paramore’s Decode actually features parts of the film as the feature their performance revolves around. The song itself was written directly for the film because the lead singer was a big fan of the books and wanted to put a piece of herself into the film - which shows a bit of passion! There is also a video of the one song on the soundtrack that best fit’s the film, called Bella’s lullaby it is a beautiful song that is made more upbeat and teamed with a beautiful video set in the area of the film, and undercut with lines from the film itself. It seems every main character, or set of characters has their own theme, it proves that music is as bit a part of this film as the actors, the script or the set!

There is so much to see on this extra disk, there are trailers and TV spots from the films release in November 2008 - there is also footage of the UK premiere of the film, and it just shows how overwhelming the whole film was for the cast, with all the screaming fans! Just as there was at a meeting at the Comic-Com festival with girls all over, and the cast settling in for a long afternoon of answering questions and finding out what their fans really want to know.. There is also a fairly lengthy documentary that is just five minutes short of an hour long, of the process from the book, to the screen, including post production and some painful scenes involving wires. The wire work itself took some doing but did look very good after a bit of post production, after all you cannot see people jumping from tree to tree without a bit of wire work! There are a lot of insights into how Kristen became Bella and that her clumsy acting is all on purpose in her portrayal of Bella. There is a similar thing for Robert Pattinson too, which shows there is far more to Edward Cullen than you see on the surface - he put a lot of thought into his character, from the idea of him being strained and tortured by being surrounded by a girl who smells so tasty! It makes you watch the film so differently purely because of these extras and it gives you a new perception.

However long the extras may be they give you a deeper look into the making of the film and the relationship between the author and director to help her keep it as close to the book as Stephanie Meyer wanted. If it is possible just by watching this it has made me love the film even more.

So if I haven’t persuaded you enough yet to watch this film I’m not sure how I can!

Where Can I Get It?

At the moment it is on offer in various places for £5 on Play.com and in HMV however they are all subject to change, that is for the single DVD the 2 disk special varies in price and if I gave you a price now two weeks later it would have changed! Given that the film is almost a year old don’t expect to pay too much for the privilege of owning the beginning to one of the great film sagas to hit the big screen!  

...less