Twilight movie: The verdict
Green for not-so-good stuff, blue for good stuff for the top potion of this post.
No ratings from me due to a previous post saying I dislike ratings for movies.
Spoilers ahead: Don't read if you don't want to.
OK, here goes, I wouldn't say it's fulfilling to the fullest. It's not that bad as some people put it too. Overall, a so-so movie.
Although, I took a deep breath and prepared myself before the movie started, I was still fairly disappointed by the final product. The essence is just not in the right place.
Robert Pattinson's role of Edward is quite disappointing.
No ratings from me due to a previous post saying I dislike ratings for movies.
Spoilers ahead: Don't read if you don't want to.
OK, here goes, I wouldn't say it's fulfilling to the fullest. It's not that bad as some people put it too. Overall, a so-so movie.
Although, I took a deep breath and prepared myself before the movie started, I was still fairly disappointed by the final product. The essence is just not in the right place.
Robert Pattinson's role of Edward is quite disappointing.
To me, it's 2 different people, completely. The movie Edward is Pattinson. The Edward in the book is the real Edward. The moment Pattinson opened his mouth and said the first word "Hello", made me laughed my head off. His accent was just so weird and awkward. The phrase, "My family, we're different from our kind", made me want to rewind the disc and heard it again to know what he is saying.
I, unlike tons of female fans out there, do not think he is "hot", "cute" or whatever word used to describe good-looking guys. He's not good-looking at all, at least to me.
Kristen Steward looked and acted like she has some kind of attitude problem. I though she will be an OK Bella but seems like I was wrong.
Peter Facinelli as Carlisle was the WOW factor. He's my favourite actor playing the Cullens now. So much like a true vampire.
Billy Burke played a good father role. Very Charlie-liked. Good chemistry with Steward aka Bella in the father-daughter roles.
The actors and actresses playing the humans, were quite good too. Especially Michael Welch and
Justin Chon who were attracted to Bella. Both of them were very funny, just like in the book.
Cam Gigandet as James was cool. Very James-liked. The smelling-Bella-scent parts where he rolled his eyes, suggested how potent and sweet-smelling her scent is. Rachelle Lafevre as Victoria was good. Beautiful and vengeful, especially during the ending when she spied on Steward and Pattinson in the Prom.
Taylor Lautner as Jacob was alright. Hate his long hair but he will get to cut it in New Moon. I really want to see him in short hair, sigh. Please don't change Lautner...
The special effects were not-so special afterall. The stunts in the Ballet and Baseball scenes were great but other than that, erm... The glittering part in the so disappointing Meadow scene made me laugh too. It's alike to pouring glitter powder all over his body and face. Very dissatisfying. And that tree-climbing scene, they should just do away with that part. It's not even in the book anyway. Too awkward.
Music-wise, still OK. I didn't pay much attention to the background music.
Yes, just like many fans who watched the movie, the Baseball scene is my favourite in the movie. I heard that most money was spent in that part too. Wow, baseball never look any better than what I've seen in the movie. Jackson Rathbone aka Jasper, you are cool! Playing baseball left-handed is the coolest thing ever.
After the actors, special effects, music, comes the plot itself.
Plot-wise, not that great. Skipped too many parts in the book and Pattinson and Steward were just not into character. Pattinson looked as if he was trying to resist smiling all the time when saying the lines. He was too rough with Steward and not a "gentleman" like what Edward is in the book.
Prom was watered-down as was the Meadow scene. It was the defining moment in the book yet strangely simplified in the movie. Where are the rest of the Cullens in the Prom? I was looking forward to see Alice and Rosalie's dresses.
The cameo of Stephenie Meyer and the apple in Pattinson's hands were great tributes to the Twilight saga.
From the Baseball scene onwards, everything's just fine. Details still missing, scenes still cut, but at least the hunt is on.
When Lautner aka Jacob was telling the tale of the "Cold Ones" to Steward aka Bella, the memories of the past showed that the former Quileute tribe members wearing pointy wolf hats on their heads. This was the moment me and cousin laughed the hardest. Must they really showed that to tell the viewers they are descendants of wolves?
Catherine Hardwicke's directing is unique. The whole screen will be filled with an actor/actress's face before shifting to another face and shifting back again. Can't she just pulled the lenses out a bit to capture both their faces instead?
I'm not going to nitpick on every single detail that went wrong inside the movie. That way, I'll be too critical.
I know that I said in previous posts that I shouldn't be laughing but all these laughing was not because it was that funny in a comedy way, it was because of the plot and maybe the frustration?
I have to agree with the media about Pattinson's awful acting. Ugh.
I can now totally see what the other fans saw when they commented on the movie. I was wearing rose-tinted glasses at the time and was so angry at fans who said bad things about Twilight movie. Now, I shared exactly (almost) their sentiments.
I can't seem to read any Twilight books without the face of Pattison coming to my mind. Seems that after watching the movie, the actors/actresses are weaving in with the characters in the book. The romantic words that Edward said to Bella in the book was spoilt by him. Zzz...
The media should engage some fans to comment on the movie instead of just asking their own personnel. The big and important difference between a fan's review and a media personnel's review of the same movie is that, a fan has almost all the background knowledge of the characters and plot whereas a media personnel does not. Most don't even read the books to begin with. How can they understand why characters behave in this way and that?
Although I must say, fans are prejudice in a way. I am. I love Twilight that I will watch the movie again and buy the DVD even though it is not that good.
I'm 70% in, 30% out. 30% is mostly due to lack of substance in the plot (I'm blaming the scriptwriter and the lack of budget) and Pattinson's bad acting. So now, whenever I talked to my cousin or brothers about the movie, it's always Pattinson and Steward, not Edward and Bella. Got to draw a line.
Hope to see Twilight movie again. I didn't hear the famous "And so, the lion fell in love with the lamb" line. I guessed Pattinson's mumbling plus the lack of subtitles made it hard to hear.
Well, looking forward to New Moon movie, maybe the change in director will be a good thing. Christ Weitz, it's up to you to make things work out the way it's suppose to. One very good thing about New Moon movie is, Pattinson will be largely missing in it. But if it's Copon who is taking over Lautner, then we'll see.
I almost cry when Edward left Bella in the book, but I think I'll be happy for the lack of Pattinson in the movie.
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Went to Marina Square at 1+. I wanted to see some Christmas CDs. My brothers and I spent quite a while in HMV, browsing. After that, sat on a bench to let time past.
It was 3+ when we went to Golden Village. I collected my tickets with my father's credit card. Waited for my cousins to reach. Movie started at 4pm.
All this while, I was really cold and excited. My heart was just pumping very fast as the moments ticked by. My cousin rushed here from her school, just in time. She is going to Secondary 5.
We went into the theater 1st. I was shocked to see the vastness of the theater and the number of people sitting in it. Mostly teenager girls and quite a lot of teenager guys too.
Our seats were not bad. In the centre of the screen. Then, my cousin went out to get my other cousin in. They didn't missed anything, haha. The movie started. Refer to the top potion to read all about it.
Had a great time whispering to my cousin who is also a Twilighter. We were trying to muffle our talking and laughing all the way.
A good thing that nobody screamed when Pattison appeared. Murmurs rose when Facinelli made his appearance in the hospital. Not "hyperventilating" like my cousin though.
During the kissing scene, the whole theater was quiet. Someone made this "Ooo... Ooo..." sound that had the whole theater laughing.
After the movie ended, my cousin and I were discussing about the movie. We went to walk around, and had dinner at Sakae Sushi. My aunt joined us too.
My cousins bought a bag and Adidas watch respectively.
Reached home quite late, I started blogging, but because it was too long, I finished it today.
A good experience, not necessarily a 5-star movie but since this is Twilight, a dream come true. Twilight fans will know this feeling, particularly those who have been fans since the start. It's a long and excruciating wait.
PS: Perhaps it'll be a better experience for people who didn't read the books to view the movie. Although, confusion will bound to occur. Too many scenes do not flow well and only readers and fans will know what's going on. Either way, there will be good and bad to it.
