Review: Twilight -- Peter's Take
Filed under: Action, Romance, New Releases, Theatrical Reviews
Remarkably faithful to the spirit of its source material, the film version of Twilight crams most of the key episodes from Stephenie Meyer's novel into its breathless, 122-minute running time. Under the direction of Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen), Twilight gallops along handsomely, showcasing the cloudy, misty beauty of its gorgeous Pacific Northwest forest locations; you can practically smell the pine trees and feel the crunch of fallen leaves beneath your feet. Using voice-over narration sparingly, screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg trots out all the major (and most of the minor) characters from the book, recounting the story in abbreviated fashion while demonstrating respect for Meyer's novel and its huge, faithful audience.
Twilight may not add up to much more than the sum of its parts, but those parts can be mighty entertaining, especially when handsome Edward (Robert Pattinson, oozing uncertain charm) is whooshing through the woods with plucky Bella (Kristen Stewart, self-assured and determined) on his back. Still, the romance at the heart of the book has been shorn of some of its heart in the translation to the big screen, sacrificed on the altar of a broader demographic. Readers of the book could feel somewhat shortchanged by the relentless emphasis on forward momentum rather than romantic fantasy; the flip side is that newcomers can enjoy the whirlwind pace and the brooding, ominous atmosphere, and everyone can revel in the spectacle of flying vampires playing a pinball version of sandlot baseball.
Weighing in at nearly 500 pages in paperback, Stephenie Meyer's debut novel would appear to defy easy translation to the big screen, especially since it's told entirely from the perspective of its 17-year-old heroine, Bella Swan. As legions of readers can testify, however, the setup is quite simple. Bella decides to move from her mother's home in sunny, suburban Phoenix, Arizona to her father's place in the tiny, rainy town of Forks, Washington. Bella was born and spent her younger summers there, yet hated everything about it; she makes the self-sacrificing move to give her recently remarried mother the chance to travel with her baseball-playing new husband. Bella hates the rain and the cold in Forks, but finds that she gets along fine with her father Charlie (Billy Burke), who is just as inexpressive and taciturn as she is.
Bella's always felt like an outsider, which is one of the reasons why she's initially fascinated by a strangely beautiful high school classmate named Edward Cullen. Edward and his fellow teenage Cullens, all adopted by a kindly doctor and his wife, stick closely together while appearing to be the ultimate outsiders to everyone else at the small school. A series of events draw Bella and Edward inexorably if reluctantly together, and over a period of months their attraction develops into a romance, made dangerous by Bella's dawning realization that Edward and his family are vampires.
Meyer spends a considerable portion of those pages describing in detail the relationship, which blooms quickly before facing a long series of obstacles meant to keep them apart. When they spend time together, it's often in awkward, belabored, teasing conversation; Edward doesn't want to spill the beans about his true nature, while Bella persistently tries to get him to open up. At the same time, Bella can't quite believe Edward is really interested in her. She's convinced she's ordinary and he's perfect, even though she has to fend off three other potential suitors and Edward is more a subject of rumor than an object of desire at school.
Those stolen moments and langorous, probing sessions are condensed into just a few sequences in the movie, which makes the romance feel more hormone-driven. There's even an added scene in which Edward visits Bella in her bedroom for a late-night session, which is more overtly sexual than anything I can remember from the very chaste and proper novel.
Of course, any adaption of a book for a feature-length movie requires changes. Here we have scenes combined (Edward's background, teased out over many pages, is summed up by him in a couple of lengthy expositions) and rearranged (Jacob and Billy Black are introduced far earlier), things that added character depth but didn't move the narrative forward are dropped (Bella's cooking for her father, Mike's puppy dog affection for Bella, Eric and Tyler as pursuers of Bella) and the invention of still others (the extended "activity" at the ballet studio, the last bit before the credits roll).
To my mind, though, most of the changes, jettisoned in favor of a leaner pace and a tighter focus on Bella and Edward, are acceptable compromises, making for a better viewing experience. Carter Burwell's percussive musical score really helps, bolstering the ominous atmosphere created by Hardwicke, director of photography Elliott Davis, art directors Christopher Brown and Ian Phillips, and editor Nancy Richardson.
There are several glaring, embarrassing miscalculations to be acknowledged, however. Who decided on the the powdery white make-up dumped upon the face of Dr. Carlisle Cullen (Peter Facinelli)? It practically screams out "vampire!" The same could be said of the younger Cullens appearance in school. In the book, Bella first sees them sitting by themselves in the school cafeteria. Here, their entrance is staged like a fashion show, complete with slow-motion to allow for Jessica (Anna Kendrick) to describe each member of the group. Awkward, to put it kindly. And why is Jasper Hale (Jackson Rathbone) all bug-eyed with such a freakish expression on his face? He looks like Edward Scissorhands' cousin.
Vampire purists may shudder, and the male population in general may grimace, but, despite the missteps, Twilight succeeds as an action-oriented modern-day fairy tale with a strong romantic appeal.
Twilight' Photos
EXCLUSIVE: Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan and Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen
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EXCLUSIVE: Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen
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The cast of 'Twilight'
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Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan and Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen
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Cam Gigandet as James, Edi Gathegi as Laurent and Rachelle Lefevre as Victoria
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Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan and Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen
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Nikki Reed as Rosalie Hale
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Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen and Cam Gigandet as James
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Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan and Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen
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Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-20-2008 @ 9:58PM
ica cheng said...
Thank you for a fair comment. Giving in the good and the bad and not insulting any hard core Twilighter. The hype on this movie has been so high and hopefully this wouldn't be a reason for people to be bitter and pelt tomatoes at it. I hope we could all just enjoy the movie.
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11-30-2008 @ 12:11AM
Tricia Sotelo said...
Well I just saw Twilight after waiting in line for over 24 hours to see it. Strange enough, I WAS expecting to hate a lot of the movie, but being the crazed Twilighter I am, I slept on the concrete all the same.
Instead of being let down, I got much, MUCH more than I expected. I absolutely loved the movie. It was awesome! I felt that it still held true to the book, without screaming Smeyer in your face.
I loved how fans of the series can get all these little inside winks, and those who didn't read the series could just enjoy it without having to read it.
Sure somethings were a bit... hmm.. let's just say funny, but overall it was pretty rad.
As a Twilighter, I feel pretty happy about this movie. So if you can overlook a couple things, you will love this movie to death--- ha, death. Get it? Vampires?... alright, im done haha
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11-21-2008 @ 9:25AM
Jackie said...
I said the same thing myself about Carlisle. He looked like somebody had dumped a ton of baby powder on his head.
The teenagers I took loved the Cullen's entrance into the school cafeteria. There was a lot of squealing going on at that part.
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11-21-2008 @ 10:38AM
Kelly said...
Robert Pattison is definitely a front-running contender for "most awkward acting of the year award." His acting made me cringe away in a stiffled laughter throughout the movie. Somehow, the director thought it was a good idea to change Edward's ability to "dazzle" people (spoiler alert: not in the movie at all, by the way), into "stalk people with a far-off, high-as-a-kite gaze." Oh, and I hope that butt-chinned kid who played Jacob gets some acting lessons as well... he's up to bat in the next one, hope he can handle it. Sounded like he was delivering lines on the opening night of a high school play. Charlie was a nice redeeming quality, however; nothing's funnier than when an over-protective father constantly drinks cheap beer while cleaning his guns.
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11-21-2008 @ 11:15AM
Amanda said...
Umm… Yeah. I’m not sure I liked the movie at all. I thought the editing was choppy to put it nicely and the director had too much fun moving the camera around. I thought the movie was cheesy Which is what I expected from a teen movie, but the music that was throughout the movie made it much worse. I loved the books and I feel a little let down by the movie. I’m seeing it again tonight and maybe I will be able to look past what I liked about the books and just enjoy the movie. I hope.
I thought Robert Pattinson’s acting left much to be desired. If I didn’t love the character of Edward I don’t think I could have over looked his flaws in the movie.
Overall I don’t really know how I feel about the movie because even with all these flaws I’m still excited to see it again. I’m hoping this time I will enjoy it more after putting all my preconceived notions aside.
I still say that people should see it and I hope they do better with the next one. Your review was right on. You saw things how I saw them..
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11-23-2008 @ 4:35PM
Ginni said...
My feelings exactly.
11-23-2008 @ 6:09PM
Amanda said...
it was better the second time. I liked it!
12-01-2008 @ 12:49PM
Morganna said...
I loved the movie but if your a hardcore twilgiht fan you noticed the things that went wrong in the movie but just look past it and it will turn out to be a great movie.... especially (my fav part) "It looks like he's in pain." part.... Loved it!
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11-21-2008 @ 2:59PM
Mitchell said...
am telling you the truth, My boss was Stephanie Meyer's boyfriend in High School and prom date. He let me interview him about a month ago, and might be the inspiration for Edward. Please come and check it out at
temparoo.blogspot.com
I had a picture but someone working on her biography made me take it down
(You will have to scroll down to find the interview)
Good luck and take care!
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11-21-2008 @ 8:48PM
Angelica said...
Rofl. To the last part about Jasper. My friends and I couldn't quite figure out why he was looking like that. I liked your review, you were very fair with it.
I saw the midnight showing and feel that your "the romance at the heart of the book has been shorn of some of its heart in the translation to the big screen" comment was so on! I really felt like what made Bella and Edward so great with one another was lost. :( I did like the movie though, I was just wanting a little more in their relationship development. And the MEADOW scene! That (for me) was just so messed up....they really messed how significant it was in the book.
Some of Robert's acting was just too over the top. When he was supposed to be really intense sometimes it came off comically. Especially the biology classroom scene, I pictured it a lot different that the way he acted.
I did like the movie, but after it ended I sat there with my friends and we all said 'I don't know....' but it was still a good movie. I'm going to see it again with my nana tomorrow! :)
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11-21-2008 @ 2:14PM
Aly said...
I wasn't expecting to like this movie as much as I did :D
Although, I noticed with all the poor boyfriends dragged along to see it, most of the humor in the movie is tied into character details, which really only makes sense if you have read Twilight. I didn't mind it, but thats about the only major flaw I could find. Considering this is an attempt to cram a thick book raging with details onto the screen, I give it props. I was impressed!
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11-21-2008 @ 2:24PM
Dominique said...
I think the pace of the movie could have been slowed a little - as things were pack together so closely that details that were in the book were down-played or left out. BUT overall I liked the movie. I thought Robert did a great job with his acting. I think that the director chose to focus more on Edward's troubled nature (his problem with being a vampire) - Which made his scenes a little more tortured soul-like and angsty
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11-22-2008 @ 12:26AM
Melissa said...
Wow, just wow is all I have to say about this movie. It was absolutely horrible. The music was just bad, the editing was completely off point and I'm sad to say, the acting was just all wrong. This could have been such an amazing movie if they would have just stuck with the events in the book. Why did it have to become this action movie. It's not an action book. It's a love story people and that's why we all loved the book. I think whoever wrote this script should never be allowed to write again. Maybe we can just cut off their hands or something because they definately destroyed this movie. If there is a second movie, I will not be going to see it and as for when this comes out on DVD, I will not be wasting my hard earned money on it. I'm am thoroughly outraged I wasted my money and time last night watching it. If I wasn't with my friends (and had my own car with me) I would have just left after the first 10 minutes. Very bad movie translation for what is a wonderful book.
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11-21-2008 @ 4:57PM
Rhiannon said...
I am not sure if I liked the movie or not.
The acting wasn't bad. They did get the perfect Charlie.
Individual scenes were good. They just went together badly. There were a number of times I was estimating how much time could have gone to something relevant had they had cut the irrelevant scences or too-long shots. For example,the begining sequences with the deer running through the forest could have been cut and 2 minutes could have gone to transitions or more lines for the rest of the Cullen family. Did they get a new camera or fly system the day they shot Bella and Edward in the woods? Because they were using some ridiculously unneeded shots the broke the mood of the scene.
Also, the wailing guitar in the background music was annoying.
The actors did a fine job. I think that if the movie would have been cut better it would have been better. This isn't an indie film, it is a teen-romance.
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11-21-2008 @ 6:35PM
casey said...
I was really excited to finally be able to see what they came up with for the Twilight movie and I was pleasantly surprised. I had expected that the book's sub plots would be lost in the shuffle, like they seems to be in most book to film adeptations. I am glad that Stephenie decided to be such a big part of the movie, I don't think it would have been nearly as close to the book as it was otherwise.
A couple of scenes weren't what they could have been and threw me off for a moment each time.
I was a little surprised to see Jacob and Billy so early in the film, but after a moments shock, I sat back and enjoyed it.
Something seemed to be missing on the beach scene, though I don't know what.
I was also a little disappointed at the meadow scene, it didn't seem nearly as romantic as it was written out to be.
Prom night was also a little sad, I'd been expecting better.
All in all the movie was a success. Kristin did a wonderful job as Bella, Robert did a good job as Edward, though he was a bit more angsty than I was expecting. Billy Burke was great as Charlie.
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11-21-2008 @ 11:04PM
milana said...
i really enjoyed twilight. i pictured a few things differently more like in the bok but it was still good. robert did a great job. i hope the cast is happy, they did a great job...im going to see it again tomorrow.
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11-22-2008 @ 9:31PM
Forks Fan said...
Rob did a great job. After 75,000 signing a petition to have him kicked out of the movie and have someone else play Edward along with 'rabid fans' insisting if he play the role that it be boycotted, Robert deserves a medal for taking on the role. It makes taking the scathing 'anti-Robert' reviews seriously difficult with that kind of 'fanatic' hate Robert as Edward before one frame of film was even shot.
Some of the reviews trash his acting, but read the 'partial midnight sun' manuscript. Robert plays Edward to perfection...no I don't want to have his babies, date him, or marry him. I just think what a thankless job and no way he could hope to please those so set against him, guys who will hate him since he's 'the perfect' man etc. I think anyone taking on the role of Edward would take it daunting. Edward in the books dealing with the awkwardness, and angst was done extremely well although mis-understood as 'wooden' acting. Robert's (Edward's) hesitation, and stuttering...so called wooden acting is a result of every second fighting the overwhelming desire to kill her in a frenzy that the intoxicating scent of her blood threatened to be his undoing. His having to hide the truth and therefore re-think every comment before it's made to avoid 'giving something away' and the fall out of the times when he slips and Bella questions or confronts him on it.
At the same time Robert as Edward is also struggling and confused by not being able to read her mind, the only mind he has not been able to read in 90 years yet the only human he desperately wants or care to understand what she thinks and feels. Throw in the fact that after 90 years of no real emotion he suddenly dealing with feelings he felt he'd never have, accepted he would be alone forever...he finds himself in the throes of passion with a 'fragile as a bubble' human that he could crush if he ever loses control in a moment of passion. Then add in he is an old fashioned...born 1901...gentleman that later insists they can't consumate their relationship unless she marries him first. All the while he sees himself as a monster and can not fathom Kristen's (Bella's) not running away in fear...he sees her obsession with him almost as a 'death wish'. Edward never got to live out his life, and he is determined that Bella will not be robbed of enjoying a long life. The conflict of their wills on the matter of her wanting to be 'turned' throws him into emotional turmoil. The line where he says 'sadistic lion' is heart-felt. His love for and determination to protect her and refusal to not turn her and get it over with is 'sadistically' excruiating and what he struggles with whenever he thinks of her or is anywhere within sight, or scent of Bella Swan.
YEAH it sucks that all this wasn't explained in the movie, you have to read 4 of the books to understand all the underlying angst and reasons for his thoughts, feelings and actions. BUT Robert Pattinson plays EDWARD with a devotion and commitment to Stephenie Meyer's Edward that few could. Congratulations Robert on doing an excellent job of bringing Edward Cullen to life. (pun intended)
P.S. The next book will introduced the darker, more sinister 'Itailian mafia' or vampire royalty. They are 'dying' for an excuse to kill off the Cullens who reject their gleeful enjoyment of 'snacking' off unsuspecting humans. The Italian group sadistically enjoy inflicting pain on other vampires and ,when they can find an excuse, killling other vampires they don't like.
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11-24-2008 @ 3:59PM
Amy said...
Next book? Did I miss something? Has she decided to write another book other than Midnight Sun - which she has put on hold?
11-24-2008 @ 5:11PM
Forks Fan said...
Hi Amy
No I meant New Moon where the Volturi are introduced.
There are still some people who haven't read the second book which is the basis for the sequel.
Sorry for the confusion.
11-22-2008 @ 10:52PM
Cari said...
So disappointing to me. I truely loved the series and the movie made it seem like a joke. People were laughing throughout the movie. At first I was mad, but then it was so cheesy I had to laugh too. I liked that the movie followed the script of the book, but other than Bella the actors were not good at all. Jasper was awful, Carlisle was hideous. I didn't get the same chemistry that I got when I read the book. I hope that if they make movies of the other books they spend more money on them.
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