The ‘Twilight’ saga continues with bockbuster hit
Parisa Amini
The Twilight Saga broke records when it brought in $275 million its opening weekend with the premiere of the second film, “New Moon.”
Stephenie Meyer’s latest book turn movie, broke the record for the largest grossing midnight screenings with $26.3 million, beating the $22.2 million total of this past summer’s hit “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.”
Most theaters in the Phoenix Metropolitan area were sold out for the midnight showing.
Many were curious as to how “New Moon” would compare to its predecessor, “Twilight.”
Kirby Erickson, 25, was hopeful.
“I believe it will be better, but my expectations are low,” Erickson said.
James Camp, 28, attended the movie, but he too was not expecting much.
“My girlfriend made me,” Camp said. “But I’m anticipating the same, just more violence.”
Kendall Barrett, 17, wanted to see the advancement of the story.
“‘New Moon’ wasn’t my favorite book, but the characters are more developed, and I’m excited to see Jacob play a more key role,” Barrett said.
“New Moon” redeemed the damage that “Twilight” caused with a change of director, more believable acting and better special effects.
In “New Moon,” the audience was introduced to the newest characters of the story: the werewolves.
The movie called for the use of Computer Generated Intellegence to animate these giant creatures and give them personalities.
The movements of the werewolves were fluid and showed little evidence of manufacturing. In one scene, Bella angers one of Jacob’s ‘brothers’ causing him to change into his wolf form. The transformation was produced as written in the novel, satisfying many fans.
While much better than the first of the series, “New Moon” did disappoint on a few levels.
At times, it was difficult to watch Kristen Stewart because she seemed uncomfortably close to her male cast members.
This could be an issue with directing, but every time Bella was talking to Jacob or Edward, the frame felt crowded as though she were invading their personal space.
On the contrary, 17 years old, Taylor Lautner’s acting was superior to his cast members.
He gave a performance that stayed true to Jacob’s character.
It doesn’t hurt that his abs are perfect.
What made this movie was the chemistry between Lautner and Stewart.
They brought the relationship between Jacob and Bella to life. The end of this movie left ‘Team Edward’ with a dilemma; should she be with Jacob instead?
The mass was still divided with the ageless question: ‘Team Edward’ or ‘Team Jacob?’
In an interview with MTV, Stewart felt the story depended on both sides.
“The story wouldn’t exist if there wasn’t a genuine argument for why (Bella) should be with both,” Stewart said.
