New Moon thoughts

Thanks to my lovely friend Lara I got to go to an advance screening of New Moon last night and now you get to hear about it.

Let me say this up front. I am not a Twi-hard. Honestly. I don't believe in the magical love between Edward and Bella and find most of the overwrought obstacles put in their path more amusing than anything. BUT, I have read all the books, almost compulsively, because as silly as they are...once you start reading you must finish them, even if you find yourself screaming at the story (I mean, Renesmee...really?!?). It's been interesting to watch the Twilight phenomena from relatively early in the process to see what a rabid following has developed. I remember reading a bit about the casting and filming the first film and I honestly think Summit was unaware of what they had on their hands when they started on this whole journey. They are certainly reaping the rewards now.


A few things about the movie:

- It's deliciously cheesy. And really, if you were going to this movie expecting anything else you are going to be very disappointed and have been living under a rock for the past couple of years.
- I inadvertently giggled at several inappropriate points of the movie, including but not limited to the moment when Edward does his first slow-mo entrance, Jacob having to rip off his shirt in order to pat at the blood on Bella's forehead and pretty much any moment when Edward looked 'pained'
- There are a lot of actors in this franchise who really don't get much to do. Poor Jackson Rathbone seemed to have only 4 lines in the whole film and a really bad hair style on top of that. Nikki Reed and Rachelle Lefevre fared even worse with basically one scene apiece. Same goes for the crew of Volturri, Bella's school friends and pretty much anyone who isn't part of the lead trio
- The Bella/Charlie father daughter relationship has come a long way and provided some genuinely charming moments
- The effects were better than the first film and they did a pretty good job with the wolves in general
- There are several truly cute and or funny moments on the screen. Anna Kendrick's post movie monologue rocked. Bella's 'double-date' at the movies was cringingly funny.
- Rob Pattinson is pretty, no question. And he seems pretty self-deprecatingly charming in interviews. But his Edward is a bit....annoying. The pained expression, inexplicable departure, melancholy suicide mission and painted on abs, were not attractive on screen. Now some of this is absolutely the source material and not Pattinson's fault. But the trailer for his next film "Remember Me" aired before the movie and didn't shine a glowing light on his acting ability either (Oh, but I'll totally end up seeing it). He may have it in him to be a good actor one day but it isn't today.

Which leads me to...

A few things about why I'm solidly on Team Jacob (and also a dirty old lady):

- Taylor Lautner's abs. Look I resisted. Honestly. Popwatch has had an abwatch category for months. I told myself I wasn't that superficial. I am. He's really, really pretty.
- The fact that Taylor worked his ass off to keep the role after the first movie blew up and they thought he couldn't play it as the series went forward. The poor kid must be so sick of talking about how much time he spent at the gym and how much weight he put on but seriously, that shows dedication.
- Jacob's the warm body for Bella to curl up to. (Lautner's delivery of "108 degrees over here" was one of my fav lines of the movie)
- Lautner's protrayal of Jacob just seems so much more natural than Edward (which again, is likely 50% due to the source material)
- Jacob didn't take off on Bella and leave her to mope for months
- Did I mention how good he looks running around without a shirt?!?

So yeah, go see New Moon if you've read the book and want to see it come to life on the screen. Go see it if you're looking for some prolonged teen angst in your day. Go see it for the objectification of some pretty boys. Go see it for the cheese. But if you're looking for a quality film this weekend, you might want to avoid the line full of teenagers.