The Twilight Saga continues with the brilliantly tepid & blasé "New Moon". The story picks up with Bella (Kristen Stewart) & her vampire fella, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), enjoying life as paramours. Bella harbours deep fears about aging, & longs to be a vampire to enjoy eternal life with Edward. But they believes his soul is damned & doesn't need that fate for her. Edward's fears are compounded after a bloody incident at Bella's eighteenth birthday party. They, & the entire Cullen clan, decides to leave town immediately; thus giving Bella a chance at a normal life. Heartbroken, Bella spirals in to a deep depression. They finds solace in her growing friendship with Jacob (Taylor Lautner). They falls in love with Bella, but is undertaking a physical transformation in to a powerful, deadly creature. New Moon is primarily about the choices these characters make as their love strains their loyalties.
Let me first say that I have seldom read the Twilight books, so I don't know if those books are being accurately adapted to the films. If they are, then the books are no different than dime store harlequin paperbacks. New Moon is essentially a Lifetime movie of the week with bad acting & no chemistry. The characters, Bella & Edward, have about as much feeling as a novacained tooth during a root canal. They basically do not have a tangible connection that resonates with the audience. They make the motions of anguish for their prohibited romance, but it is unbelievable. & if the crux of the story is so unconvincing, then every other part of the film crumbles.
Kristen Stewart is miscast as Bella. She is absolutely terrible in this film. I realize the script doesn't give her much to work with, but they much dials in a weepy performance. Here you have six brilliantly stunning super humans vying for your affection, & they looks like every other angst ridden teenage girl listening to complaint rock. I find it hard to believe that the character of Bella is so emotionally feeble in the novels. A heroine has to have some likeable traits & Kristen Stewart bats a spectacular zero in this film.
I felt like I had to hit the gym after watching this movie. Jacob & his pals have seriously roided up for this sequel. These guys are buff, etched out of stone with three pack abs & sculpted pecs. There is gratuitous female nudity in film, so it is fair play for the ladies, & guys; who enjoy half naked teens running around for six hours. I found myself laughing out loud at a quantity of the scenes with Bella & the shirtless Jacob, but took a speedy scan of the audience & every woman was enraptured. New Moon is a quasi skin flick for Taylor Lautner. I wonder if they gave up wearing shirts while filming.
The special effects in New Moon are tailor made for the teenage girl audience. This is not a horror film or grotesque in any way. The vampires are stunning, sparkling in the sunlight creatures that are more akin to faeries than demonic bloodsuckers. The werewolves have a bit of a snarl, but look like giant French Sheppards. I had expected a bit more action in the sequel, but it is tamer than the first film. The violence is geared down here to focus on the inane love story.
New Moon will undoubtedly be a blockbuster at the box office, but is weak as a film. Director Chris Weitz (About a Boy, The Golden Compass) turns in a subpar hard work here. The story, characters, effects, & music should have been much better. I cannot help but feel they played it safe for the target demographic (teenage girls), but you cannot build a successful, long term franchise on flimsy ground. Every film needs to advance on the nice points of the previous, & unfortunately there is tiny to carryover on in New Moon.
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