Vampire chick flick Twilight hit theatres hard, earning just under $70 million in the first weekend. The horror/romance drama drew crowds of women into the theatres for the film based on Stephanie Meyer’s book.
The story revolves around Bella Swan (Kristin Stewart), the everyday plain Jane who moves to Forks, Wash., to reconnect with her father Charlie (Billy Burke). Forks is a far-cry from her usual hangout in Phoenix, but Bella soon adapts to the familiar rhythm of teenage life.
That all changes when she meets the Cullens – specifically, ridiculously good-looking and completely off-limits Edward (Robert Pattinson). After a series of events, Bella learns the secret behind the Cullens: they are vampires.
This news does not send Bella running – if anything, it sends her right into Edward’s arms. And it certainly does not hurt that the Cullens are “good” vampires, who only drink animal blood. She soon catches the attention of James (Cam Gigandet), a hunter vampire. Twilight’s final scene is a cliff-hanger, pointing straight to the next installment, New Moon, set to be released in 2010.
We all know what normally happens when a book is turned into a movie – the cinematic quality just does not stand up to the literary work.
But, as for the positives, the setting is beautiful and absolutely believable for where the book is supposed to take place. Unlike most reviewers, I think that the make-up and costuming were pretty good, considering what they had to work with – making the undead look pretty is not an easy thing to do. A big plus was the amazing connection between Pattinson and Stewart on screen; their tentative yet entirely sincere relationship clearly showed on-screen through their dialogue and, later on, their love.
The negatives – while Pattinson and Stewart shone, their background stars only flickered dimly. Burke was the only lesser character who I thought deserved credit. He managed to bring a new dimension to Charlie’s character, one not seen in the books. Another aspect I did not like was the overall script. Most of the one-liners were delivered poorly, and there were many parts of the movie where the whole audience laughed – and we were not supposed to. The only thing that saves the script at all is Pattinson and Stewart’s convincing connection on screen.
In summary, I would say that this movie is worth seeing … at least once. The pop culture of the times deems Meyer an accomplished writer, and I agree, having read Twilight before seeing the movie. But be warned, all you Twilighters out there: you may leave disappointed.
Will Cunningham 
Mikaela Brown 
Sophia Hunter