Twilight: The First Bite

The twilight movie can be perceived from different perspectives of movie goers but can be generalized into three standpoints: the skeptics, the romantics and the nonpartisans. The skpetics are those movie goers who watched the movie because they were either forced by their friends or they just want to kill time. They are those people who talk nineteen to the dozen on how boring the movie is because of those sweet parts. They may also look smug (even though one may not see the facial expression in the dim confines of the movie house) when they see lovers walking hand-in-hand towards the entrance of the cinema. They may also be those people whose eyebrows rise a bit higher than normal when young girls who get to much affected by the scenes giggle undauntedly. They look so serious as if devoid of any human emotions but at the back of their minds they are planning how to assassinate the director who is culpable to the unorthodox love story between a vampire and a human which simply makes the hair at the back of their nape stand because they can’t simply stand another minute of the corny movie. In the end after watching the twilight movie, they either wind up being more cynic and loathing the movie or ends up accepting the idea of love and appreciating the movie despite his opposite notions.
The romantics are those movie goers who are simply over zealous to watch the movie. They may be couples in love, singles who are in love of the idea of falling in love or just inspired of the idea of love despite the heartaches and sufferings. One could catch a glimpse of their smiles when the sweet moments come in despite the faint light illuminating the cinemas. Their saccharine smiles, which reach their eyes and ears are bright enough to light up the room. After the two-hour film, they end up being more romantic, talking incessantly about how great twilight was or being a cynic because the story is too good to be true and it is simply impossible to fine their own Edward Cullen or Bella Swan.
The non-partisans tend to be in both worlds. They are those who giggle when necessity calls for it but gazillion thoughts are swirling in their mind as one mentally critiques and contemplates the movie in its entirety.
Twilight as a movie adaptation of a book can be either a piece of good fortune or a stroke of bad luck. Bad news first. The drawback of having a film adapted from a book is the inevitable and incessant comparison with the novel. In every movie adaptation, this circumstance is surely bound to happen. Imagine watching a film adaptation and then a person keeps blabbering about the differences between the book and the movie. “Err, shouldn’t Victoria’s hair be flaming red not blonde?” ‘The scene in the restaurant is very different from the one in the book” and so much more. One must bear in mind that a two-hour movie cannot essentially contain all the book’s contents. Besides, what is the point the word poetic license? The director can only guarantee a faithful adaptation and the twilight movie stayed as faithful to the book as possible. Absolute adaptation in the same way as absolute assurance in auditing is impossible. The point I would like to insinuate is: Learn to appreciate the movie in the same way as you appreciated its book. Set aside your biases and expectations and then decide later. Comparing is not bad just do not expect the movie to be the exact replica of what is in the book because in one way or another changes must be made for the movie to fit the allowable movie run time. Also give credits to the director, cast and crew by appreciating the movie despite the differences and deviations.
On the flip side, the good thing about twilight as a movie adaptation is that it gave life to the characters and whatever mental pictures we just conjure in our imaginations. It also gives the readers something to look forward too. Another plus of having a movie adaptation is its instant demand. The readers of the books are also the people who would want to watch the movie version.
Catherine Hardwicke’s adaptation of the Twilight has so far lived up to my expectation even though the film is short-budget, looked rushed and there is too much green. The pine trees are given too much exposure in the movie. The meadow part was quite short and disappointing but it was compensated by the shimmering effect of Edward’s body as the sun rays caress his pale white skin. The story was pretty much the same with the book but with certain alterations as expected. Some lines in the book where featured in the movie. The soundtrack was cool and vastly diversified. The soundtrack would take you back to the classical music of De Lune to the modern punk rock music of Paramore. Iron and Wine’s, Flightless Bird, American Mouth as it wafted in the air while Edward and Bella were waltzing totally blew me away. That waltzing scene before the movie ended was awesome in its own way. The director should have followed strictly the dialogues in the book with respect to the ending part because it would make the ending more romantic. The characters are quite interesting. Robert Pattinson who played Edward Cullen suited the role perfectly. Ashley Greene was ideal for the part of Alice Cullen. Jackson Rathbone justified the role of Jasper Cullen with his always-in-pain look. Kellan Lutz was perfect for the role of Emmett Cullen. Carlisle Cullen, Rosalie Cullen and Esme Cullen were exquisitely portrayed by Peter Facinelli, Nikki Reed and Elizabeth Reaser. The inclusion of the Cullen jewels or heirlooms had a spunky effect on the movie. Kristen Stewart who played Isabella Swan is quite too strong for the character she portrayed, though. Isabella is supposed to exude a personality that is clumsy and fragile. Kirsten Stewart failed on that aspect because her personality is quite stern. Jacob Black played by Taylor Lautner disappointed me. I was expecting for someone who is the exact opposite of Edward but equally devastatingly handsome. Lautner may be handsome but not devastatingly. He is okay for the part of Jacob Black but someone out there is more suited for the role. The long mane simply doesn’t suit Taylor Lautner and when he combed his hair so that his long mane could fall on the sides of his face, swear to heavens, it was atrocious.
Twilight tells us that love conquers all and that love can melt the coldest heart. Twilight tells us that in relationships self-control and discipline are essential. It tells us that love should be sacrificial not self-centered; that love is defying the odds in order to be with someone you love.Watching the movie without reading the book is great except maybe for few staggering questions of who’s who especially as to the identities of the other three vampires during the baseball game, were they family or foes?
If one had read the book and watched the movie, impression is entirely unto one’s own hands. Anyway, appreciation is subjective. One may perceive twilight in a skeptic kind of way, in a romantic kind of way or in a non-partisan kind of way. In the long run, despite the inevitable snide remarks let us just be thankful that twilight debut successfully into theaters and quenched a part of our thirsting imagination. In conclusion, I would say that Twilight is a movie one wouldn’t regret watching and one wouldn’t regret missing.

April 6, 2009
7:30am