The moment many squealing tween and teen girls have been waiting for has arrived. New Moon, the second film in the Twilight saga based on the series by Stephenie Meyer, opened in theaters on Friday. While the film might have some redeeming qualities, it certainly is not squeal-worthy.
The first film of the series, Twilight, chronicles the beginnings of a love affair between the animal-blood drinking vampire, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and his mortal girlfriend, Bella Swann (Kristen Stewart). In New Moon, Edward, leaves Bella Swann (Kristen Stewart) behind to protect her from other vampires who would like to suck her blood. This drives Bella into a deep depression that can only be cured by the charming werewolf, Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner). Bella certainly has a thing for monsters.
Throughout the film, both Pattison and Lautner are used as man candy to appease the saga’s fan base. Pattinson’s first entrance into the movie featured him walking towards Stewart in slow motion (probably to give girls time to scream) with music playing in the background. Even better for fans, Lautner spent just as much screen time without a shirt on as with one. Of course, Pattinson took his shirt off as well. These elements of the film not only objectified the actors, but also seemed forced and awkward.
The scene early in the film where Jasper Cullen, Edward’s brother, is tempted to eat Bella after she gets a paper cut during Bella’s 18th birthday party at the Cullens proved similarly forced and awkward. The whole sequence is in slow motion. The audience gets a close-up of Bella’s cut and then a shot of the Cullens restraining Jasper. Because it was all slow motion, the scene took on an overdramatic feel. This plot point may be what convinces Edward to leave Bella, but it is not a moment that should be plagued with false emotions and histrionics.
The scenes that follow Edward’s abandonment Bella featured some interesting camerawork that actually serves to enhance the emotion of the film. As Bella, sitting in her room, mourned the loss of Edward, the camera circles her repeatedly. This gave the illusion that the world around Bella was spinning, mirroring Bella’s confusion without her vampire boyfriend.
Lautner fails to impress as Jacob. In the scene where Jacob tells Bella that he cannot ever seen her again (sound familiar?), Lautner’s emotion was disappointingly one dimensional. However, Lautner did make Jacob a very likable character, so much so that he has the audience rooting for him and Bella in the few moments that they almost kiss. Of course, just as Bella was about to give up Edward for Jacob, Bella has to save Edward from a suicide attempt. All thoughts of Jacob vanish.
Bella’s journey to save her true love, however, does provide the audience with great performances from Dakota Fanning and Michael Sheen as two members of the vampire “royal family,” the Volturi. The sweet little Dakota Fanning that people may remember from yesteryear is no more in New Moon. She plays Jane, a vampire with the ability to inflict agonizing pain on others with her mind. Fanning’s sneer as she tortures Edward was truly sinister. Hopefully, she will end up playing more villains in the future. Sheen proved just as sinister as the leader of the Volturi, Aro, a vampire who can read every thought in a mind with one touch. Between Sheen and Fanning’s performances, the scenes with the Volturi prove highlights of the film.
Laughter is provided by the one liners similar to those in the first film of the series, Twilight. Right after Bella discovers that Jacob is a werewolf, one of Jacob’s pack members says “Well, I guess the wolf’s out of the bag.” Lines like this add some spice to the less-than-stellar New Moon.
Fans of the book will be happy to know that New Moon is very faithful to the Meyer novel on which it is based. Not only that, but the film provides the audience with moments that the book did not. The film shows Edward thinking that Bella killed herself jumping off a cliff and asking the Volturi to destroy him because he cannot live without her. Both moments were hinted at in the novel but never explicitly described.
Another piece of good news for fans: Eclipse, the third film in the Twilight saga, comes out in only six months. (Cue more squealing).