Twi-hards will never get soft and the mania surrounding the epic series won’t die down anytime soon. There may only be four stories, but each one is told in monumental form.
The latest installment in the “Twilight” saga is “Eclipse,” bringing in a whole new set of characters, rules and much more awkwardness.
In the previous film, the hopelessly in love Edward Cullen left Bella behind to give her a chance to live a normal, human life safe from the threat of his vampire family. Bella is dying inside and who is there to bring her back to life but her best friend and shape-shifting wolf Jacob Black.
This time around Edward is back in the — ahem, stone, not flesh — and the tension between wolf and vampire reaches an all-time high. Poor Bella Swan is caught in the middle, quite literally a fair few times.
Edward’s prejudice against werewolves is so strong that at one point he cuts a wire in Bella’s truck to prevent her from visiting the La Push reservation. Fortunately for Bella, Jacob shows up at Forks High School one morning and reveals that Edward has been (yet again) lying to protect her.
Alice Cullen sees a vision of the vengeful vampire Victoria, which . Using a ‘getting information’-type excuse, Bella rides off to the beach with Jacob to have a heart to heart. It should be obvious at this point that the news Jacob gets will never be good, and in exchange for divulging the threat in Seattle Jacob discovers that Bella’s transformation is scheduled for after graduation.
Soon after all hell, pretty literally, breaks loose.
Jacob is visibly torn beyond reason and struggles to retain his human form when she tells him (getting angry can fuel his morphing). Words are exchanged, feelings are hurt and Bella runs home to Edward as usual. During this entire ordeal, more people are dying in Seattle as a result of a newborn vampire…or so the Cullens believe at first.
But with the death rate accelerating constantly, Carlisle and Jasper agree that it cannot be the work of just one newborn. It has to be several untaught, untamed and feral beasts on the loose for so much bloodshed. This brings Jasper to a new theory no one had considered yet; a newborn vampire army.
Having seen it done before, Jasper explains the newborn concept and what such an army might be used for. As if Bella didn’t have enough to worry about.
Alice throws a graduation party and it’s here that everything hits the fan. Alice has another vision, this one because a decision has been made; the newborn army is coming to Forks. Formulating a master plan, Jacob runs Bella up to a campsite set up by Edward through a route determined by Jasper. With Jacob’s wolf scent masking Bella’s, the newborns will have to go the path Bella lays — into a trap.
This is where it gets fun.
Newborns caught unaware by wolves the Cullens emerge victorious, even securing a surrender from a newborn named Bree. The Volturi guards arrive to clean up the mess only to find out it’s been done for them. No matter that Bree surrendered and is willing to divulge anything Jane wants to know, she’s ruthless and conniving enough to have her killed regardless because “the Volturi don’t make exceptions or give second chances.”
This is a good time to mention the fact that the Volturi did, in fact, know about the impending attack on the Cullens and allowed it. Obviously jealousy is a factor with Jane, but Felix, Demetri and Alex are mysteries to me. Not to mention Aro, Caius and Marcus.
With Victoria burned and the Volturi guards on their way back to Italy, all ends well. Except, of course, for Jacob. In an attempt to save Leah from one of the newborns, Jacob gets half the bones in his body crushed. Though he’ll recover, Jacob’s pain is Bella’s pain and it’s as intense as ever because she must let him go knowing now that she loves him. But it doesn’t change anything, as Bella’s choice ends in engagement to Edward.
Now the real dangerous task is set — telling Charlie.
The more I see of Taylor Lautner, the more I don’t understand him. What’s wrong with showing a little skin? He’s the hottest person on screen, there’s no reason for him to have a shirt on if he’s gonna be sweltering in it. At 108.9 degrees he’s earned the right to bear his muscles. Shouldn’t it turn him on, all the girls drooling over his gorgeously sculpted body? We know he’s shy, but give me a break; turning 18 should have broken him out of that shell.
Kristen Stewart was pretty good in this one, but she didn’t bring out as much of Bella’s emotion as I would’ve liked. There’s a lot more pain involved in Bella’s life than Kristen shows. The wig didn’t turn me on much either, only because it stood out and I don’t remember her wearing one in “New Moon.”
Rob Pattinson was at the top of his game this time. I think a few English accents may have slipped in here or there, but overall he really brought the ferocity out of Edward Cullen. Peacefully threatening Jacob was tough, but beheading Victoria and finally putting an end to that threat was about as bad ass as you can get. Not to mention the playful banter and teasing of his only love, whom he happens to very sweetly propose to.
Some of the midnight show numbers have already come through and it looks like Twilight has shattered records again. In excess of $30 million for midnight shows, “Eclipse” will break the record previously held by the predecessor “New Moon.”
Eat your heart out, Edward Cullen.
The LG Blog 