Gerald Wright's Movie Coverage
THE TWILIGHT SAGA:Eclipse
(In IMAX)
Directed by: David Slade
Running time: 121 min.
Release date: June 30, 2010
Genre: Drama, Romance, Thriller, Adaptation, and Sequel
Distributor: Summit Entertainment
MPAA Rating: PG-13
In this third action-packed chapter of The Twilight Saga, based on the novels by Stephenie Meyer, 17 year old Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) finds herself in the midst of a string of strange and mysterious killings in Seattle. She also has the situation of making a decision concerning her love triangle. She has devoted herself to vampire Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), decided to become part of his dark world, and weighed the pros and cons of the ramifications of becoming his eternal lover. Meanwhile, Bella's bestfriend Jacob Black (Taylor Lauter) is a werewolf and is determined to win her love that she sometimes exerts towards him. The decision that she has to make has the potential to ignite the ageless feud between vampire and werewolf.
The fascinating way this film brings the audience into its plot is quite familiar in this type of installment series. The storyline maintains continuity by using the same cast. However, in this better presentation through IMAX, I could see they increased their budget by the use of exciting visual effects, such as CG enhanced wolves and "in your face" vampires.
But most importantly, Eclipse is a very different kind of vampire flick. It is a romantic story that swings from darker more abject feelings to very pure romantic themes in a coming of age scenario. The story never allowed me forget that Bella is graduating high school and many of her classmates are uncertain of what the future will be. This will have a great impact and appeal to the teenage audience that this film is targeting for its box office draw.
I was really taken in by the subplot of the series of mysterious murders. The complicated relationships of characters intensifies the story. Emotions such as jealousy and trust play a big part in the way the story evolves. Supporting characters Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard taking over from Rachelle Lefevre), a wicked vampire set on revenge and Jane (Dakota Fanning) another vampire who seeks power, provide the film with a successful atmosphere and setting of shock. Eclipse captivated and entertained me at the same time.
Rather than elevating the author Stephenie Meyer's story with over-the-top spectacular scenes, screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg down-played the "lovie-dovie" scenes of the book and enhanced the scare tactics of the film with thriller/shock aspects of a horror genre. Then with the cat and mouse strategic means of adding suspense, the characters give the audience an "edge of your seat" dramatic story to embrace.
The additional members of the cast Billie Burke, Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser Jackson Rathbone, Kellan Lutz, Ashley Greene, and Rosalie Hale give great performances in this supernatural summer flick.
FILM RATING (A)
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