I saw Eclipse last night. (Specifically, I was harassed through work-email, gmail, text, and phone conversations until I agreed to go with my friend that wanted to see Eclipse last night). Here is the run-down.
I read all the books slightly ahead of the curve. I got to be the one to recommend the Stepenie Meyer series to my friends before they became wildly popular. (No, I did not think that they were new literary classics. As an English major, I could recognize that the works of authors like Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemingway and J.K. Rowling held infinitely more value). However, I enjoyed the books for what they were: a teenage vampire love story. Because of this appreciation for the novels, two years ago (unlike today), I was not ashamed to go see Twilight on opening night.
Back then, though, there existed a semblance of control and dignity about the series. Nordstrom did not have a Twilight Saga clothing line, people remained undecided about where their loyalties lay (Team Edward or Team Jacob) and I did not yet know highly intimate details about Taylor Lautner's ab-tastic workout routine. True, there was no way to avoid viewing the film sandwiched between rows of squealing, swooning tweens, but I did it with a minimum of shame.
Now, things have shifted. The hype of the series has far surpassed the actual content of the films (and probably even of the books that I once enjoyed).
Eclipse was entertaining, mind you. It was just - at the same time - so bad. For all the months and months of build-up, Summit should be able to produce a slightly better movie. The real heart of the Twilight plot lines lies with the teenage angst that all three main actors seem totally incapable of effectively portraying. Add to all this poor acting some ill-conceived special effects and the raccoon on top of Kristin Stewart's head that is supposed to pass as a wig - and it's a recipe for a movie worth a potential rental, not the $10 theater ticket price.
The final nail in the Twilight vampires' non-existent coffins? I have moved onward and upward. In my maturity, I no longer pine for a sparkly, high school vampire too chaste to make a move on his heroine. Instead, thanks to the advent of True Blood, I've seen that a real vampire (Hello, Eric Northman) worries less about his beloved's soul and more about hunting werewolves and chasing Estonian tail in the most explicit way the HBO rating system will allow. Teenage Twilight fans might still be satisfied with the passionate Jacob-Bella kiss that occurs in Eclipse. But after True Blood forever raised my expectations with the sheer amount of "adult content" it can pack into one episode, Twilight pales in comparison.
I would like to say that I have learned my lesson, that I will of course wait until the final Twilight movie - Breaking Dawn - comes out on DVD. However, the plot of this book was so off-the-wall that I might get sucked into making the trip to the theater one last time. Until then, however, I am glad I have True Blood to satisfy all vampire-cravings.
I read all the books slightly ahead of the curve. I got to be the one to recommend the Stepenie Meyer series to my friends before they became wildly popular. (No, I did not think that they were new literary classics. As an English major, I could recognize that the works of authors like Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemingway and J.K. Rowling held infinitely more value). However, I enjoyed the books for what they were: a teenage vampire love story. Because of this appreciation for the novels, two years ago (unlike today), I was not ashamed to go see Twilight on opening night.
Back then, though, there existed a semblance of control and dignity about the series. Nordstrom did not have a Twilight Saga clothing line, people remained undecided about where their loyalties lay (Team Edward or Team Jacob) and I did not yet know highly intimate details about Taylor Lautner's ab-tastic workout routine. True, there was no way to avoid viewing the film sandwiched between rows of squealing, swooning tweens, but I did it with a minimum of shame.
Now, things have shifted. The hype of the series has far surpassed the actual content of the films (and probably even of the books that I once enjoyed).
Eclipse was entertaining, mind you. It was just - at the same time - so bad. For all the months and months of build-up, Summit should be able to produce a slightly better movie. The real heart of the Twilight plot lines lies with the teenage angst that all three main actors seem totally incapable of effectively portraying. Add to all this poor acting some ill-conceived special effects and the raccoon on top of Kristin Stewart's head that is supposed to pass as a wig - and it's a recipe for a movie worth a potential rental, not the $10 theater ticket price.
The final nail in the Twilight vampires' non-existent coffins? I have moved onward and upward. In my maturity, I no longer pine for a sparkly, high school vampire too chaste to make a move on his heroine. Instead, thanks to the advent of True Blood, I've seen that a real vampire (Hello, Eric Northman) worries less about his beloved's soul and more about hunting werewolves and chasing Estonian tail in the most explicit way the HBO rating system will allow. Teenage Twilight fans might still be satisfied with the passionate Jacob-Bella kiss that occurs in Eclipse. But after True Blood forever raised my expectations with the sheer amount of "adult content" it can pack into one episode, Twilight pales in comparison.
I would like to say that I have learned my lesson, that I will of course wait until the final Twilight movie - Breaking Dawn - comes out on DVD. However, the plot of this book was so off-the-wall that I might get sucked into making the trip to the theater one last time. Until then, however, I am glad I have True Blood to satisfy all vampire-cravings.
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