Twilight (2008/I)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Catherine Hardwicke

Writers (WGA):

Melissa Rosenberg (screenplay)
Stephenie Meyer (novel)

Release Date:

21 November 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

When you can live forever what do you live for?

Plot:

A teenage girl risks everything when she falls in love with a vampire.

Plot Keywords:

Vampire | Love | High School | School | Blood

Awards:

8 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Kristen Stewart	...	Bella Swan
Robert Pattinson	...	Edward Cullen
Billy Burke	...	Charlie Swan
Ashley Greene	...	Alice Cullen
Nikki Reed	...	Rosalie Hale
Jackson Rathbone	...	Jasper Hale
Kellan Lutz	...	Emmett Cullen
Peter Facinelli	...	Dr. Carlisle Cullen
Cam Gigandet	...	James
Taylor Lautner	...	Jacob Black
Anna Kendrick	...	Jessica Stanley
Michael Welch	...	Mike Newton
Christian Serratos	...	Angela Weber
Gil Birmingham	...	Billy Black
Elizabeth Reaser	...	Esme Cullen

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some violence and a scene of sensuality.

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #44786) | UK:12A | Ireland:12A | Finland:K-13 | Australia:M | Sweden:15 | Norway:11 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | South Korea:12 | Malaysia:U | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Czech Republic:12 | Brazil:12 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | New Zealand:M | Argentina:13 | Germany:12 | Denmark:11 | Netherlands:12 | South Africa:13V | Taiwan:PG-12 | Spain:13 | Iceland:12 | Mexico:B

Filming Locations:

218 Rim Drive, Washougal, Columbia River Gorge, Washington, USA

Company:

Summit Entertainment

Trivia:

The playing cards used during the prom were from Rio, a Las Vegas casino.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: Vampires sparkle when exposed to the sun. When Edward and Bella come to school, he is wearing sunglasses, which would not be necessary if he was trying to avoid the sun. However, it's clear he is wearing them as a fashion accessory, and to make his skin look paler. It's also why the Cullens usually wear dark clothing.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Isabella Swan: [voiceover] I'd never given much thought to how I would die... But dying in the place of someone I love seems like a good way to go.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Thicker Than Water: The Vampire Diaries Part 1 (2008)

Soundtrack:

Spotlight (Twilight Mix)

Count me as a Twilighter.....

I can't remember the last time that I was literally one of 3 or 4 men in an otherwise packed theater. Tonight was just the case when my wife and I took in Twilight. My interest had been peaked by a co-worker who is female and a big Twilight fan. My wife has not read the books (nor I) but did receive the first 2 for Christmas. We wanted to check out the movie and see what all the hoopla was all about. We were not disappointed.

I really enjoyed this movie. It does play like an episode straight out of any female focused romance story that is currently playing on TV. But there is a maturity about the film that brings it up a notch. It is full on love story stuff, but being a guy who isn't afraid to embrace the chick-flick side, I was pulled into the story, even though I know basically the outcome of the whole 4 book set. Catherine Hardwicke spun a very nice tale, it is shame she will not be back for New Moon. I thought all of the acting was top notch, Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson the obvious standouts. But it was the supporting characters; Edward's family, Bella's friends and family, that really helped with the enjoyment of the film.

I had heard reports of laugh inducing dialog, never caught any of that. With any story that has a target audience that is in their teen years, one must expect earnest and often overly dramatic dialog and moments. It never goes into the day-time soap variety.

There was a lot of online snipping from mucho-macho fanboys that mocked the film (without having read the books) and called in a Covenant clone. Too bad they won't let their geek cred take a hit and actually go see this film before bashing it. Not anything that will change cinema forever, but a very different and entertaining take on the vampire genre. The thing I enjoyed the most was the return of romance to the vampire tale. Recent films have taken a more action approach to the vampire tale. I can't wait for New Moon.