"The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" Movie Review
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I was ready to hate the third installment of the popular "Twilight" franchise. While I appreciate the book series by author Stephenie Meyer, I thought the movie adaptations of the first two novels were horrible. So to my surprise, "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" was actually good.
Gone are the cringe-worthy dialogue, acting, and shots of Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) walking in slow-motion. Instead, we get an intriguing premise, and for the first time, I actually believe the love story between Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) and Edward.
Credit goes to director David Slade, the guy who gave us the better-than-average chiller "30 Days of Night." He was also responsible for the fantastic film "Hard Candy" that featured a pre-"Juno" Ellen Page as a teenager who teaches a pedophile some hard lessons.
Slade knows how to create atmosphere and tension, and he put that knowledge to good use in "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse." From the tense-filled opening scene to the nail-biting finale, Slade acted like a mad virtuoso who made a movie with equal parts action, romance, drama, and comedy.
The first "Twilight" is about the courtship between Bella and Edward, while "New Moon," the second film, was about the love triangle between Bella, Edward, and the shape-shifter/werewolf, Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner). "Eclipse" is about how Bella bridges the gap between the vampires and the shape-shifters.
The "Twilight" franchise is growing up and "Eclipse" is the darkest of the three films. There's a mysterious vampire who is hell bent on creating an army of newborns (that's new vampires in "Twilight" speak). Young people are being turned into vampires in Seattle and it's only a matter of time before they migrate to Forks, Washington.
In the midst of all the chaos, Bella is forced to choose between her love for Edward and her friendship with Jacob. Her most important decision involves marrying Edward or not. That decision will affect how vampires and shape-shifters defend their territory when the newborns attack. But first, Bella must graduate from High School.
In my review of the first two films, I criticized the way scriptwriter Melissa Rosenberg adapted the novels. I thought she could not write a believable script even if her life depended on it. Well, I was wrong and I apologize to Rosenberg.
Besides the effective direction of Slade, Rosenberg's script was also a shining factor of this third installment. The camaraderie between the Cullen family and Bella is palpable, as well as her relationship with Jacob's werewolf pack.
But what I like most about this new "Twilight" is its self-deprecating humor. When Edward is visiting Bella and catches a glimpse of a shirtless Jacob, the vampire asks, "Does he own a shirt?"
Or when the love triangle is freezing on top of a mountain to hide Bella from the newborns, Jacob brags to Edward, "I'm hotter than you." It's a wink-wink nudge-nudge response to all these Team Edward versus Team Jacob shenanigans.
This "Twilight" is more complicated to make than the first two. If the necessary ingredients of romance, drama, action, and comedy were not mixed well, then there's a big chance that the franchise could fail. I can tell you now that this is the only "Twilight" movie I want to see again.
But don't get me wrong, there are still some dead spots throughout the film, only this time, they are few and far between. When the film is about to go to the dead zone, the direction reins us back into the action.
The action scenes are also crafted well. My favorite is the finale involving the surprise attack of the newborns. Slade also did a good job in handling the acting department. Truth be told, Stewart and company annoyed the heck out of me in the first film.
This time, the actors seem to be more accustomed with their characters making each scene, whether it's dramatic or comedic, more credible. Bryce Dallas Howard steps easily into the vengeful role of Victoria previously played by Rachelle Lefevre.
Dakota Fanning returns as the evil Jane of the Volturi clan. You can witness her devilish grin that will be put to better use in the upcoming last chapter of the saga known as "Breaking Dawn." I also admire the backstories involving some members of the Cullen family such as Rosalie (Nikki Reed) and Jasper (Jackson Rathbone).
This new "Twilight" is full of origin stories to make us feel for the characters. The most effective and engaging is the backstory of the Quileute tribe and how they defended themselves from a conquering vampire.
Third times a charm for "Twilight." If I were you, I'll watch the film in Imax to see its full glory. Whether you want to witness the romance or the fight scenes, this "Twilight" has something for everyone. Bite into this latest installment, you will not regret it.
RATING: 3 Vampires and Werewolves kisses