“Twilight Saga: New Moon” hit theaters this weekend to packed midnight shows across the country, breaking records for both the weekend and midnight shows.
Kristen Stewart is back as Bella Swan, a clumsy 17-year-old who is in love with vampire Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson).
But when Edward and his family need to leave the city of Forks, Bella is left behind.
Finding solace in her friendship with Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner), Bella begins to develop feelings for her friend.
But right when things couldn’t seem more complicated, she discovers her new best friend is a werewolf.
One of the main concerns when it comes to turning a book into a movie is whether or not it will feel true to the book. In the case of “New Moon,” director Chris Weitz was really able to do something “Twilight” director Catherine Hardwicke truly could not: He made you care for the characters more than you would in the book.
Fans of the book were prepared for the absence of Edward, but Weitz and crew managed to give him a place in the film.
Albeit slightly creepy at times, the slightly disembodied floating Edward, who Bella sees from time to time, not only allows him to be in the film more, but it explains Bella’s desperate desire for an adrenaline rush.
One interesting twist in “New Moon” is the introduction to the Volturi. The Volturi are vampire royalty of sorts who are based in Italy.
Michael Sheen (“Frost/Nixon”) heads the Volturi as Aro, an ancient vampire who is both deeply twisted and genuinely intrigued by human nature.
Dakota Fanning as Jane, another member of the Volturi, is excellent in her role. But the cringe-worthy one-liner she mutters while exuding her powers is almost laughable.
When “Twilight” was released last year its $13 million budget alone was preposterous.
Almost as absurd was the complete disregard for the majority of the audience.
Summit Entertainment, who produced the film, seemed to assume all fans were teenage girls who would be content with a low-budget, poorly acted and poorly written film.
But after its success, they seemed to shape up.
“New Moon” seems to be targeted at a more mature audience and at the same time doesn’t take itself too seriously.
There are laughs, tear-jerking moments and underaged, super buff shirtless boys.
If you hated “Twilight” and are hesitant about going to see “New Moon,” I can say with all honesty this film is light-years ahead of the original, both technologically and in writing.
As for acting, you can only do so much with previously cast actors, but Weitz does his best