Directed by Chris Weitz
Written by Melissa Rosenberg
Starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene, Rachelle Lefevre, Billy Burke, Peter Facinelli, Nikki Reed, Kellan Lutz, Jackson Rathbone, Michael Sheen, Dakota Fanning
Rated PG-13
Rating - 2 bullet holes
Review by guest author Trent Bush
First, I have to write a disclaimer. I write this review with some trepidation as I have already had threats about “docking points from my Man Card” from various friends. But, please understand something- I was one of the biggest anti-Twilight people out there a year ago. I thought the concept was stupid, vampires immune to the sun were boring, and the whole aspect of a teenager being infatuated with them a horrible cliché of the Goth culture that exists today. However, when two of my coworkers- both males- recommended I buy this series for my wife because women “dig it”, I took notice. Now, less than a year later, my wife (not a huge book reader) has bought the series, has read it cover to cover, plus now follows the website and soundtrack. Why is the relevant in a movie review? Because when my wife is happy, my life is easier- and taking her to see New Moon made her very happy indeed.
Anyway, for those who have been in a submarine/ traveling to Jupiter/ in a coma/ on sabbatical in Tibet for the past 5 years, the quick summary is that New Moon is based on the 2nd book of a four-part series about a race of super vampires that are invincible and immune to everything including sunlight. Some are good, some are bad, but none have the inherent desire for world domination that most omnipotent beings possess (proof that the series is written by a woman). In the first book, the heroine/ teenage outcast, Bella, moves to a rural suburb of Seattle to live with her father. While there, she meets the family of “good” vampires who don’t feed on humans, falls in love with a century-old vampire in the body of a 17 year-old, and the story chronicles their “forbidden” love. He craves her blood but loves her, she knows the danger but loves him, yada yada they’re a couple. In case you haven’t figured it out, the series can be found in the “Teen Angst Fiction” department in your local bookstore.
The plot of New Moon is essentially that the vampire boyfriend, Edward, leaves our heroine Bella at the beginning of the movie after one of his “brothers” decides that she’ll be a tasty snack. Of course, in true tragedy form, he doesn’t tell her he’s leaving to protect her, but instead he just dumps her in the hopes that she’ll go back to a normal life. FYI- the High School English class is studying “Romeo and Juliet” at the beginning of the movie. Is it foreshadowing when it’s blatantly obvious? You decide. Anyway, the film follows Bella’s struggle to cope with this rejection and how a young Native American friend of the family suddenly makes a play to become the next man in her life… until he turns out to be a werewolf. Plot tie-ins come in from prior books, but not so many that people who haven’t read the series will be lost. The end of the movie involves a confrontation with the vampire ruling class and some setting up of plot points for the next in the series.
The biggest thing to realize is that this is more than a movie- it’s a franchise in the same vein as Star Wars and the Indiana Jones series. If you buy into the mythology, you will love this movie. If you don’t, you won’t. It’s as simple as that. For fans of the books, it’s an easy movie to buy into. It truly does a great job of putting Stephanie Meyer’s vision on the screen in a live-action film. If you’re not a fan of the books the movie is still likeable and entertaining, but can be a little hard to follow as there are parts of the back-story that didn’t make the cut- as is often the case when a book goes to the big screen.
With that said, New Moon is an entertaining way to spend 2 hours while maintaining its metaphors for being a teenager as well as throwing in references to the classics. The screenplay was written by Melissa Rosenberg whose credits include the teen shows “The O.C.” and “Party of Five” plus most recently has been a writer/ producer for “Dexter”. Her screenplay touches on the hot buttons for most teenagers while skipping some of the more tedious aspects of the story. Because of this fact, this is actually one of those cases where I would recommend the movie over the book simply because it shortens many of the lengthy plot points in the book that drag on forever. “Gee’, she’s going to die because he left her. Just like the last 5 chapters… great…”
The special effects are ok but not overly impressive, and the acting by the crew isn’t going to win any Academy Awards. However, the unsung hero of this film is the soundtrack. The music blends into the scenes of the film without being noticed and does a good job of highlighting the mood the scene is going for. But overall it’s enjoyable and definitely worth the matinee admission. Hardcore fans of the series will likely give this a “Golden Gun” rating as the film is pretty much what ever fan would like. For the rest of humanity who might walk in after seeing the first film- I’d say it’s a 2 bullet hole movie. Good for a movie based upon a teen fiction series but not a heavyweight in the pantheon of film making.
Keep in mind this is Big Hollywood’s first foray into the “Twilight” series. The last film was done on a low, shoestring budget due to Hollywood not thinking the series had any potential- plus I’m sure they didn’t want to take valuable resources away from such movie epics as Land of the Lost and 2012. Because of that there is still a slight “indie” aspect to New Moon which is one of the reasons it works. It’ll be interesting to see if Hollywood keeps the next film Eclipse as pure as the first two movies have been. Given the fact that the Hollywood exec’s have already fired Twilight veteran Rachelle Lafevre for the better known Bryce Dallas-Howard, I am not optimistic.
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