Photo: Summit Entertainment
I am definitely a super-fan of the entire “Twilight” series. How much? Well, let me put it this way. I bought “Twilight” one lovely spring day, went home unaware of my impending addiction… and wound up spending that entire day reading only breaking for the call of nature and when my body literally forced me to sleep. The next day I had jury duty. I drove to Target before it opened and waited so that I could buy “New Moon” and “Eclipse” before I had to go to court. While waiting to be selected, I chewed through the first half of “New Moon” like a starving person. The next day, I took on “Eclipse”. After three days, I was on an all-time Edward-high that left my family wondering if they should be concerned as I had a permanent goofy grin on my face. Alas, there were no more books, so I was left with my dignity to be discreetly obsessed. Then, months later they released “Eclipse” – Special Edition and I dashed out to buy it, because I must have the copy with the fold out poster and the first chapter of “Breaking Dawn” (Shake your head at me if you must.)
Even through the drool-tinted lenses of a superfan, it’s easy to spot all the things that went wrong with “Twilight” the movie. (To be fair, the tagline on the poster reads “Nothing will be the same.” So, we were warned.) As a grown woman, it was painful to sit in the theater that opening weekend. My best friend Sarah purposefully left her husband at home, wanting no one to witness what we assumed would be giggly, silly behavior on our part. We were both prepared to willfully and gladly geek out. We ended up cringing so many times during the film that our arms were sore from bracing ourselves. I traded my hopes for biceps. Sigh. At the time, we could see nothing but the flaws. With repeat viewings, I’ve been able to pick out the good moments, the redeeming factors (yes, there are a few). Now, in addition to my other countdowns (which, are you still bearing with me?) I will be counting down the top ten greatest (and suckiest) things about “Twilight” the movie. (Pun intended)
Number #10 Suckiest – Eric Yorkie stealing half the screen time.
“Bella, look, it’s a worm! Har har har.”
“La Push, baby. La Push. It’s La Push.”
“I am this totally rocking DJ. That’s not cheesy or forced at all. And I work for the school newspaper. And I bite Angela’s head off when she talks to me, yet she still has a crush on me, and when she asks me out, I say yes because that makes sense. Nothing says empowered woman like asking out the guy who treats you like garbage.”
What? What, what, what? Someone explain to me, first of all, why Eric has a larger role than Mike Newton. Eric was in the background for most of the novels, heck, he’s hardly mentioned after “Twilight”. Mike Newton is present far more than he is, and his dialogue is a little more dignified. Even if he pukes in a popcorn bucket in the back of Jacob’s car. (Can’t forget that scene.) Eric, instead of having a cute crush on Bella he’s, frankly, up her arse half the movie. He’s eating up screen time. Valuable screen time that could have been used to develop Bella and Edward’s relationship (instead of that sudden-crash-into-the-steering-wheel-without-an-airbag ridiculousness. At least in the novel, it made some sense… there was some buildup. But I’m getting ahead of myself.) At least Bella tells Eric to shut up at one point. Check the cafeteria scene. It’s subtle, but it’s there. We wish we could all do the same, honey.
Number #10 Greatest – Alice Cullen played to perfection by Ashley Greene.
Ah, the wonderful Ashley Greene. While her wardrobe wasn’t quite right, and she was a bit taller than expected… just look at her face. Her mannerisms. Her way of speaking. She hit every mark with that sweet, cute, all-knowing Alice that we love. Her friendship with Bella seemed natural (sort-of) and… oh heck, you know she nailed it. The twirl as she walked through the cafeteria with Jasper, her carefree “I know it’s all going to work out” attitude, her nearly skipping with joy as she meets Bella for the first time. Thank you, Ashley Greene, for saving us from the despair of a ruined Alice. Bravo. Let’s hope you can only improve on what you didn’t ruin for the next few films, because we love you.
Believe it or not, I read every comment that is left to me. Please, let me know your opinions, because even though I’ve already drafted the list, I am open to suggestions. I hope to make this as accurate as possible! Thanks so much for reading, and join me in keeping your fingers crossed for a bright, amazing, and majestic “New Moon”!
Link to "Top Ten Greatest and Suckiest Things About "Twilight" the Movie - Number 9: www.examiner.com/examiner/x-10163-Denver-Creative-Arts-Examiner~y2009m6d15-The-top-ten-greatest-and-suckiest-things-about-Twilight-the-movie--9
Link to "Top Ten Greatest and Suckiest Things About "Twilight" the Movie - Numbers 8,7: www.examiner.com/x-10163-Denver-Creative-Arts-Examiner~y2009m6d30-The-top-ten-greatest-and-suckiest-things-about-Twilight-the-movie--8--7
Link to "Top Ten Greatest and Suckiest Things About "Twilight" the Movie - Numbers 6,5,4,3,2,1: www.examiner.com/x-10163-Denver-Creative-Arts-Examiner~y2009m7d1-The-top-ten-greatest-and-suckiest-things-about-Twilight-the-movie--654321
Comments
LMAO yes yes yes!
you should just do the whole list at once, its kinda annoying to read one part of a list.
To Taylor: Hmm. True. Except, it wouldn't all fit on one article. But that's very true. Maybe I'll get more up for you in the A.M.
I think you are exactly right. I am a severe Twi-hard. The Eric Yorkie crap along with the other non book parts drives me insane still. Ashley Greene did nail Alice and perhaps that is why Alice is my favorite character from both the movie and the books. Can't wait to hear the rest. Lol I think doing one at a time is awesome it keeps us wanting more lol and coming back to read your next article. Have a great night!
I feel the same as you do regarding these matters,I am a 40 year old Edward obssessed fan. My family and I saw the movie while on vacation in Mesa Az. You are right on the money with the cringe factors with some of the scenes. when i saw the movie i hadn't read the book,due to my sister-in-law obsession(normally if she say's it good it means its totally crap)but she made a great call. Hope Alice has more humour in new moon. A feel that alot of the humour was missed from the first film too, they made it too tragic and cringe- worthy.
p.s the meadow scene was so crap(cringe!!)
I just wish Bella outing Edward was done as per book( much better).
To be fair to Catherine (Hardwicke), Eric in the film was a mixture of Eric and Ben (her words in an interview), so it was more necessary to have some screen time with him since he is in NM as well. Just like Jessica had some of Lauren's irksome qualities. No movie is ever going to be a perfect representation of the book as we all see things differently in our mind's eye. I read the books only after seeing the film (though I had already purchased TL and NM). I might have waited months to read them if it hadn't been for the movie! :)
It is so nice to know that I am not the only adult past my twenties who is obsessed with this.
I totally agree with you about Ashlee Green. She played Alice so well and I think she is one of the best actors/actresses they had in the whole film. She brought Alice to life how I imagined her.
Love your Countdown totally agree.I am 40 something and love the books. I think the movie was meant for tweens, or someone who hasn't read the books. If I have to hear "La Push Baby" again! I have the movie and I just skip the parts that I think have nothing to do with the book and I think the Nomads had too big of a part in the movie too (like the factory and boat scene). I guess I really wanted to see the relationship of Bella and Edward play out more.
so yea alice was amazing she did vary well.bella i thought she was ok.they could have had someone better to play edward.and they changed the movie so much its not even funny like i was sooooo mad when i first saw it but i liked it to just cause it was twilight i really do hope they make new moon much better and the only reson the first one came out not so good is cause they made it two fast when they relized that they wer hiting the peek of theur sails then the made a movie to keep it going witch was stupid cause if they watied then it probly would have been better
wow i couldn't agree more. I really disliked the fact that they made eric so much more prominent than mike.... totally doesn't make any sense to me. not only that, but, i felt likethe movie had far too many holes in it. so much important stuff was left completely out... or... orse in some cases... changed completely! i barely even noticed mike's intrigue to bella... huge flaw, in my opinion. anyway, totally on board with you!
I hated Kristen's acting in the hospital after the James showdown when Edward tells her that she should move to Jacksonville. What was all that "what what what are you saying, no, no, no you just can't say stuff like that to me." Horrible! And the scene in the baseball meadow when she runs to the car and spits at Edward that she's got the seatbelt.
i dont agree cos i wasnt cringing when i first watched the movie. sure there were bad parts but thats the same with lots of things. i hadnt read the books before the movie and the movie must have obviously motivated me to read them because now i have so it couldnt have been that bad!!
I would have loved to have seen the blood-typing in biology scene instead of the greenhouse scene which I think Catherine/scriptwriter wrote instead. That scene would have developed more of a relationship between Edward and Bella and would have brought Mike more into the equation.
did they read the book before they started shooting cuz they left out all of the good parts !!!!!
Completely agree about Ashley/Alice. I wish she would've had more screen time.
they did leave out A LOT of good parts but i agree there are a few good ones
Really? I didn't really care about Eric being around so much, since I like the actor who plays him. I think that Ashley Greene was great, but she only had about 9 lines,
u sspelled CULLEn wrong.. now thats disapointng
The first movie is like the first book, sticky. The great story is there but in both versions the way the story is told gets in the way of much magic there is. I know that sounds cheesy but the writing in the first book was almost distracting and the shaky camera work and the way none of the scene's had enough room to breath in the movie were distracting also. I am really excited about a new director for New Moon. I love the story and even though I know how things pan out, I'm still kind of on Team Jacob (heart)
I'm a nearly 63 year old new fan - is this a record?
I am not much of a critic. Nor am I a teenager. Much older and somewhat amazed at how much I enjoy/love the movie and the books. I especially loved Robert Pattinson as Edward, and thought that Ashley played a wonderful Alice. I think she is integral to the books. The books have too much Jacob.
So true Megan...I love Ashley Greene as Alice...and Kellan Lutz as Emmett was great too...they nailed it. Even Jacob, was a perfect match in my opinion!!
Yea Ashlee did great. And wheres the rest? I'm sad you only did #10. I mean you cant forget all of the other mess-ups. Like when Rob starts talking with a british accent when he's telling bella thats she's weird for being nervous that vampires wont like her.(lol hes still cute)or the fact that in the one scene when Edward is in the tree leaning toward Bella, in one clip he close to her face, n the next hes more against the tree, n then goes back to being in her face. I am not crazy...I just notice these things. But its still a great movie.
Wow...I can only say that you perfectly surmised what only few of us can explain. We LOVE the books, right!? But then why was the movie such a let down the first time we saw it? I have to say it's a little eerie how much I can agree with you on this. After letting some time pass and then reading the book, I loved watching it again. Yes...there are some parts that definitely left us in want. And I couldn't agree with you more on Alice (GREAT) and Eric...(UGH!). Did NOT need as much screen time...and YES, I felt like the movie rushed into the first few scenes...there was NO build up. It felt like there was supposed to be some explanation, and yet if you hadn't read the books...there was none. Therefore MANY, MANY people hated the movie. AND I felt like the way it was shot was definitely sub-par. I felt like they were catching all the wrong things in some of the most critical moments of the meadow scene. *Sigh* Bravo for saying what most of us have felt, but couldn't express.
i just watched the movie Twilight and i thought it was a complete letdown compared to the book. i know that if they had put all of the details in the movie that are in the book, it would be like 7 hours long, but still they left out like half of the book and they added things that weren't in the book. i understand that they needed to change a few things, but this was almost completely different from the book, and that was the best part of the twilight pheomenon, and they barely even went off of it. i am so disappointed with it. i would have bought the movie and other memorabilia, but since they changed it, no way is that happening! you just lost like $100 summit entertainment!
Uhm Fir?...Maybe you shouldn't pick on other people's spelling. You spelled disappointing incorrectly. Regardless of the typos I thought it was a great article. I agree that Ashley did an amazing job portraying Alice and maybe Eric did get more time than Mike but it wasn't really too much time. One thing that really got on my nerves is the way the conversations Bella and Edward had were just too serious! I mean where is the humor and falling in love part? It was all about serious questions! Jasper's ability was left out..hmm odd. And Carlisle and Alice had virtually no history explained. And maybe the part that everyone could agree about is the fact that there was never an "I love you" I mean I know they were pressed for time and the budget was low, but atleast throw in the basics! I mean there was more from the New Moon book in the 2 minute trailer than there was from the Twilight book in the 2 hour movie! Keep up the good work Megan!
LOVED the books HATED the movie. I know that movies are never as good as the books, but seriously, where was the character development and the evolving love between Edward and Bella?? I must have blinked and missed it.. Also agree that Eric was in there too much and seemed like a absolute tool, and Alice was spot on. Im still a bit unsure about Edward's accent.. I hope the next one is a million times better
After watching Twilight the movie a couple of times, I was okay with it. Like Ann, I just FF through the extra nomad scenes. The Cullens' house is so wrong. It is a big part of Esme is her hobby of her restoring old homes. That house is just ugly. I also can not tolerate the way Edward grabs Bella's arm to take her up the mountain. Every time I see it I cringe expecting her arm to rip off. I found Charlie very unlikeable in the book, but beer swigging Charlie of the movie is worse. I also FF through the diner scenes. Bella is a care giver it is part of who she is, and them eating vegetables in the diner every night seems so off. I love Ashley Greene's Alice. I love the kitchen scene, and the baseball game was great. I am a 61 year old granny who started the Twilight saga at the request of my grand daughter. I am now addicted.
i agree with lisa the books were awsome and the movie sucked
i totally agree with you. I am a complete twihard, and though i am not in my teens (wish i was lol), i am still in love with the books. I brought the books with me to work every day and would read them during my breaks (and endure non-stop teasing from my fellow co-workers). I think Ashley and Rob did a fantastic job and i also agree that they could've left Eric in the background more and given Mike a few more scenes. Now I know I'm going to upset A LOT of people by saying this, but i think that Kristen could've done a better job at portraying Bella. I mean, where was the emotion? Bella is strong, yet vulnerable, and completely in love with Edward. A lot of Kristen's scenes with Rob felt forced. I think she could've developed the character more and acted with more emotion. And after watching this movie several times, i still dont see where Bella and Edward fall in love. There was no build up. Oh and the white kabuki makeup was horrible! i hope they do a better job next time around.
U shouldn't forget that this was a very low budget movie.They did not take it seriously, and the director did not concentrate on the details that the fans might take seriously.One of which is ...a good actress for Bella...she gave the worst portrayal of Bella possible...I think the whole movie seems worse that it would be with a better Bella.The next movie will be much better. That being said, you are so right about Eric, and so totally right about Alice! I fell in love with the character because of her, and Im sure everyone would agree that some people started liking Alice more than Bella just because of the actress :)
I have to admit I was forced to read the books by a friend who was totally obsessed, because after she made me sit through the movie I still didnt get her addiction . while I didnt think the movie was that bad .I've half finished eclipse & cant figure out who I adore more Edward or Jacob I'm totally hooked .I wish I never seen the movie first how disappointing.good on em for their effort ,Cant wait till november .
Some huge basic errors in the film that should have been tidied up too; Emmett EATING in the cafeteria, Edwards shirt suddenly doing itself up in the forest scene, the close-up on Bellas face in the hospital bed had the tubes near her eyes at first and then they moved, also Kristens' constant blinking and by the way, mumbling doesn't make it seem like good acting- I had to watch half the dvd on subtitles to make out the dialogue! Hope the new director makes a better effort in New Moon.
please finish your list :)
Eric was ridiculously cheesy. But I think that was the point...to make them all look cheesy to Bella. Then it made us focus more on Edward and Bella not being cheesy :-D
ashley was a great alice. peter was a great carlise. robert was a good edward. but i do not agree with taylor playing jacob. dont get me wrong, hes good looking. but i see steven strait playing jacob.
*carlisle
i agree!!! Ashley Greene did a great job as Alice! And i miss Ben!!!!!!! having Ben in the movie would have took away some of the useless babbling for Eric. Taking out all of those useless Eric scenes would have given the makers time to have proper "O_O you read minds (overall better restaurant in port angeles scene) and O_O you're a vampire" (in the car) scenes
JJ i desagree with you
because i think that taylor lautner
will and is a good jacob black be cause he fits the role in every way.
Thank you Megan for writing all this down! I wasn't impressed with the movie but my roommate made me read the books. Finished all 4 in a week and a half. Breaking Dawn in a day. :) One thing that I am looking forward to in "New Moon" is that the tint will not be blue like in "Twilight" but golden. I think that is why everything looks better in "New Moon"
they also should put a scene where they explain the story of aliceeee
and yess
they should put bennnnnn
not eric
angela likes ben
not that eric
i so understand how u feel! i wanted to see the movie first but my dad made me read the book fisrt before i saw the movie! and thnk god he did! if i didn"t read the book i would have been so confused! when i actually sasw the movie i was kinda angry and annoyed! thank god that i was able to drool over rob and taylor and that ashley greene played a great alice or all would have been lost! i really hope (and pray) that the next movie will be way more super awesome! and make us feel the way we felt when u read the books! pleaaaase! is that to much 2 ask!!!
i forgot to also write that kirsten stewart also played a good bella!
Alice Cullen played to perfection by Ashley Greene: im in complete agreement with you, in my opinion, she is the best this film could have happened, seems to be a nice and natural human, too.
I love the book more than the movie. Hopefully New Moon would be much better.
Hey! I´m portuguese, and i think i´´m actually the only person i know that is completely in loove with the books.. what a pity.. i would love to have someone to talk to about the tiniest little detail.. moving on..
I think you left some scenes behind in the "suckiest" part.. i mean you kind of included it in the Heat part. The time where, in some class, they have to watch some movie with the lights off. OMG! HOW COULD THEY NOT INCLUDE THAAT!!??!! its so... so... ="($!=$!# GREAT!!
But really.. in my opinion.. jasper is too white, the kitchen scenes with bella's dad where unexistent.. rob looks like a weard teenager the first few scenes in the highschool.. (i mean.. they're vampires, they're supposed to be gracious and all that..). Rosalie isn't the most beautiful woman in the world.. please..!! bot ok, she does great playing it. and kristen is too too too much awkward! really, common.. she looks like a retard..! but oh well.. it keeps us ocupied xD
oh and.. Lautner is just PERFECT! really.. those abs.. that white white naughty smile.. omg.. (too young.. too young.. i mean.. i´m a little imature and i´m not that old - only 20 -, and on the other side of the world sooo... does that help? ahahah xD)
Hello. I also wanted to point out--not sure if anyone noticed or not, but in the baseball scene (in the movie), Rosalie says, "I can smell her across the field", you know, in the book, Alice says that, not Rosalie. However, i can see why they had Rosalie say it, it makes sense.
wvwc18@yahoo.com
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