A little while ago on this website I had a bit of a rant about the current, shocking state of vampiric action and how they all seemed to have gone a bit soft, not to mention breaking the cardinal mythological rules. This was in relation to the DVD release of the (cancelled) TV series Moonlight. Well, the makeover continues for a teenage audience, with the release of the movie version of Twilight, a hugely popular series of books, predominantly for teenage girls, by Stephenie Meyer, where a moody but good vampire, Edward (played in the movie by Robert Pattinson of HARRY POTTER fame) falls in love with a high-school student, Bella (Kristen Stewart – JUMPER, IN TO THE WILD). That’s it basically. It’s a high school romance with (good) vampires, who have a problem with a few old school vamps.
So what’s the big attraction with this story? I am assuming it is the high school romance, the classic Romeo and Juliet forbidden love. The big attraction with the film appears to be the male lead, as Robert Pattinson is currently flavour of the month amongst those fickle teens, whose bodies and minds are adjusting to new monthly cycles. Thankfully, under all the make-up, he is a surprisingly decent actor, which is a bit of a surprise given the record of Hogwarts alumni. The real strength of the film comes from the relationship between the two leads, which director Catherine Hardwicke spent a lot of time trying to get right.
At the recent press conference in London, she explained how she knew Kristen Stewart was perfect for the role of Bella and cast her immediately, but couldn’t find a suitable Edward because all the boys she saw were too high school handsome or cute, but Pattinson had a certain otherworldliness. She added that what convinced her in the end was the chemistry between them that was so important for the film to succeed. If the box-office takings in the US is anything to go by then the movie did succeed, but that was due more to the huge (female) fan base rather than its artistic merits.
I even tried to find out if the director and her stars could shed any light on why there was a fascination with good vampires, and why the writers were all messing with the traditional mythology. It seemed a fair question to ask of people who had just made such a film. It is certainly something I would have asked if I was making the film. But no. The question was met with stony silence, followed by nervous laughter. To his credit, Robert Pattinson did say he had given it some thought and came to the conclusion that it was do with violence by or towards vampires being acceptable, then he immediately dismissed his answer as being rubbish. So it was back to the usual inane questions about the weather and kissing that plague these press conferences.
And the film itself? I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised, mainly because I was expecting a HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL meets BUFFY, but without the inane songs or any of BUFFY’s greatness. There is a bit of old-fashioned vampire action when one of the wandering old-school vamps gets a bloodlust for Bella, and the good vamps rally round to protect Edwards new squeeze, but it almost feels like it was added to keep the boys in the audience awake.
When it comes to high school vampires, BUFFY can’t be bettered, as the quality of its writing appeals to all age groups. TWILIGHT, on the other hand, is very much a teen film, but with a bit more substance than most teen movies, it just doesn’t have much for adults to get their teeth into (sorry), like THIRTY DAYS OF NIGHT.
If you’ve just got back from the land of the undead, TWILIGHT is on general release now.