The Twilight Saga: New Moon

First of all, I haven't read the novels/books, so I can't say how close this is to the source material. I've heard that, the first movie (Twilight) didn't bring everything from the book onto the screen (which makes sense, because otherwise the source material would've been really slim/weak). While we had our introductions in the first movie (and I'm assuming you have either seen that or at least read the book), we should be able to have more "fun" with the characters this time around ... well if you thought that, than you are very wrong!!

The things K. Stewarts character (Bella) has to go through, come across. But while some additional stuff has been made up (or so I've been told), that wasn't in the book, to have a "special" character with more screen time, this all adds up to a pretty dreadful experience.

The acting wasn't really top notch from part 1. There is no reason for that. And I think the only one coming out of, mostly unscathed, is Taylor Lautner. And the girl who played in "Up in the Air", forgot her name. But that's more due to the movie "Up in the Air" than to her role in this one.

While nothing much is happening (not only acting wise), the movie still tries to be as dramatic as it can be. The problem being, it isn't at all! And while there are a few nice action pieces, the whole thing feels utterly ridiculous, which makes it quite hard to really enjoy it. Again though, as with the first one, this was aimed at a female audience group and if you saw it in theaters, than you might have heard quite a few of them screaming. There is one "special" scene that really made them happy ... and some guys too (although they might have been cynical)! While the scene as it is, didn't excite me and influenced my vote directly, the impact it has/had, does reflect in my vote, as well as the fact, that the target audience seems to love it ...

I loved the Twilight movie, that's how I started reading the books in the first place. I've read them about ten times each and I still like them. But New Moon's big screen adaptation was a huge let down.

One thing that was improved was that many of the characters actually smiled or laughed naturally when the moment called for it, as opposed to the "I don't crack a smile cause I'm a seriously deadly vampire" routine in Twilight.

I liked the portrayal of Alice, she seemed more like what she should be according to the book, Charlie and I also liked the wolves and the rest of the special effects.

But I couldn't feel the bond between Edward and Bella. I couldn't believe that they loved each other. Hell, I couldn't believe they even liked each other. Even at the end, after their ordeal, after deciding that they would never let each other go, they were frigid. The actors just delivered their lines, they didn't feel them.

The score ranged from awful to non-existent. It seems as though it was not written specifically for New Moon. Carter Burwell's score brings to memory specific scenes in Twilight. This one is an indifferent, generic one, I guess it would fit in whatever movie you threw it in.

However, the most important flaw was that the entire movie seemed very rushed, like it was originally supposed to be much longer but somebody edited it heavily and really, really badly. For example, in an instant we are informed that Edward is going to commit suicide thinking Bella's dead, she drives off with Alice *bang* next thing you know you see a plane in the air, *bang* next thing you know Alice and Bella are already inside the stolen car on their way to Volterra and it carries on like that until the end.

No character development, no bonds between them, no space to breathe, no explanation whatsoever of how things happened or how decisions were made, nothing but a hastily chopped up summary of the book.

Is the actual movie coming out any time soon?

What would you do, if a wolf should fall for you, when rejected by your lover, spending months under the covers, he wants more than to be friends, an outstretched paw he's keen to lend, scratch his back and he'll scratch yours, just be careful of those jaws, as the lupine are not supine, and returns from certain bloodlines, can increase the curdling pressure, and then you may just need a tether.

The first movie is better / fresher probably because it was directed by a woman... (maybe that's why the books are just SO cool) and as for the music, well Carter Burwell has genius and experience beyond his years, so that too would make Twilight an infinitely exquisite experience over and above the sequel. More budget doesn't always produce a superior movie, sometimes less is more, so I still prefer the first movie to this one. (I went into the hall and tried opening it. then i forgot what happened next and somehow) I actually couldn't think of enough things to say about this movie for the required minimum of ten line criteria by IMDb, so sorry about the random bracketed words in the middle.

People who liked either the first movie or the New Moon book will probably have a great time at this movie. People who didn't like them still might have fun laughing at the moments of glorious teenaged awkwardness--Michael Welch returns as the hilariously down-on-his-luck Mike Newton.

As a sequel, New Moon is excellent. It maintains the same tone as the first movie, smooths out some of the rough edges and builds from there. On its own it's mostly quite enjoyable to watch. There were lots of intentional and unintentional humor and of course the movie takes only a bit of the edge off the book's more than slightly unbalanced story structure.

Things that impressed me? FIGHT SCENES. They actually let us see Felix toss Edward around like a rag doll. And they might have robbed us of the sight of spooky elder vampires petrifying in their old age, but they did let us see Edward's head literally crack like an eggshell as he gets slammed into the floor tiles.

I also like that they expanded Alice's role and showed Bella actually missing someone in addition to Edward. I really wish that both the books and movies had gotten more into the Bella-Alice friendship. Also, the idea that a person's spouse is the only relationship they need is a relatively new one. If even a romantically obsessed book series like Twilight can focus on the fact that Bella is reacting to the entire Cullen clan and not just Edward, then maybe we're moving toward a healthier idea of what love is.

Also, Michael Sheen is the champion of creepy. Sorry, Bill Nighy; he played Aro before you played Greyback! My final recommendation? Go see this movie with a big crowd for all the squealing and shouting at the screen. It's like a floor show but with body glitter.