Bloody great! (Twilight [2008] (DVD))

Member Name: mummy2harry

Product:	Twilight [2008] (DVD)
Date:	05/06/09 (130 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great pace, great cast, intriguing, just a brilliant watch

Disadvantages: None for me

Somehow, all the fuss about these Twilight books has passed me by. Perhaps because they are books written for teens I haven't been that interested, but either way I haven't really picked up on anything to do with it. I had no inclination to see the film either, the picture of the Pincess Beatrice lookalike on the cover put me off a bit, but after reading some very positive reviews, I decided to succumb and get it from the library, after all it wouldn't cost me anything! I certainly wasn't expecting to actually love the film and consequently want to read the books as wel...

Bella Swan has just moved from her home in Arizona to her dad's place in Forks. She wants to keep herself to herself, but manages to integrate herself nicely at the school. One fellow schoolboy catches Bella's attention - Edward Cullen - but she is warned off by her friends who say he and his family are odd. However, Bella's already fallen in love with him, and nothing is going to stop her from making Edward hers. But Edward is hiding a potentially lethal secret from Bella. He's a vampire...

Now you probably know by now that this film (and the sequels set to be released over the next few years) are based on the books of the same name by American author Stephenie Meyer. They are actually teen fiction, and I haven't read them myself because to be honest vampire stories really aren't my thing, but after seeing this excellent film, I am definitely more tempted to read them than I was before. The films have a predominantly young cast, but for their ages, they give amazing performances and bring what is a fantastical story to life, so much so that I was believing everything I was seeing even though I know it couldn't happen!

When the film started, I was surprised at how grey and miserable it looked. As I haven't read the books, I didn't know what to expect at all with this film. It had a dark and depressing air to it, and I was quite intrigued to see how it was going to progress and whether the budding love story would cause the film to change direction and become brighter or not. The film began quite slowly, building up the background of Bella and the relationship with her father, and introducing Edward Cullen as a mysterious character who we know little about. The friendship then blossoms and turns into more, and the film seeks to look at the dangerous relationship between humans and vampires.

Admittedly at first, I was not at all keen on the acting of Kristen Stewart who plays the female lead of Bella Swan. She seemed too wooden and nonchalant but I soon realised that this was completely intentional and very well done by the young actress. She has a very striking look, an angular yet pretty face which is eye-catching on screen for viewers, and warms you to her as she does seem like a normal high school girl. Her relationship with Robert Pattinson who plays love interest Edward was fantastic, totally believable and you can sense the tension between the pair throughout which enables the viewer to really get into their relationship and want them to fall in love because they seem so right for each other.

Pattinson has previously been seen as Cedric Diggory in the Harry Potter films, and escapes that role to do something totally different here. He is perfect for the part, attractive to look at (very much so actually!), yet with a dark brooding persona that I personally enjoyed watching. He acted the quick changing personality of Edward so well, you are left in awe of his acting throughout because of this. He portrayed the confusion of Edward excellently, the story is really brought to life through the talents of Pattinson and Stewart combined. The supporting cast are also excellent, Cam Gigadent and Peter Facinelli particularly stood out to me for intriguing and brilliant performances as vampires James and Carlisle, and embraced the roles wholeheartedly.

I enjoyed the quick changes of pace in the movie. As I mentioned, it starts very slowly at the beginning, taking its time to reveal the characters to the viewer so you actually care about the journey they are about to take for the rest of the films. However, by halfway the pace has really picked up and some amazing scenes follow, particularly a stunning baseball scene with the pumping track "Supermassive Black Hole" by Muse which is just phenomenal to watch, and was easily the best sequence in the film. It does slow down in parts, mainly to develop the relationship between Bella and Edward and this is cleverly done by the director.

Despite my initial reservations about this movie, I can definitely say I was wrong and I absolutely loved it. The people who cast this movie did a great job choosing Stewart and Pattinson, both young, gorgeous and talented people who completely become Bella and Edward, these star-crossed lovers for the 2 hour duration of the film. I was totally hooked by the progressing story, and knew immediately how I wanted it all to end. I was shocked by certain turns of events, although obviously this won't be the case for those who have read the books, and I loved not knowing how it was going to develop. I was quite sad when it ended because I wanted to see how Bella and Edward's journey was going to develop, and I can't wait for the next film, Twilight: New Moon, this winter. A must-see film, just brilliant.

Directed by Catherine Hardwick.
Screenplay by Melissa Rosenberg
Based on the books by Stephenie Meyer

Certificate: 12A / Running Time: 122 minutes.

Main Cast:
Kristen Stewart ... Bella Swan
Robert Pattinson ... Edward Cullen
Billy Burke ... Charlie Swan
Ashley Greene ... Alice Cullen
Nikki Reed ... Rosalie Hale
Kellan Lutz ... Emmett Cullen
Peter Facinelli ... Dr. Carlisle Cullen
Cam Gigandet ... James
Elizabeth Reaser ... Esme Cullen

Thank you for reading.

Summary: A fab film I didn't expect to like