"The Twilight Saga: New Moon" is a dead-on adaptation of the Stephenie Meyer book. Thats not necessarily a good thing because the second novel in the romantic vampire series is considered by some fans to be the weakest of the four stories.
If you adore the second book, the film wont disappoint. If you havent read the second book, you should pick another theater because the movie will feel long and labored.
What sticks out like a sparkly vampire on a beach at Saint Tropez is that the second book, and thus the film, gets away from the real chemistry of the series: Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward (Robert Pattinson). In an effort to keep Bella from harm, the always brooding Edward slips away into the night.
This creates an opening for Bellas best friend, Jacob, (Taylor Lautner) to make his move. His passions get sidetracked when Jacob discovers hes got the power to turn into a wolf, the sworn enemy of vampires.
The real strength of the Twilight books is the Bella-Edward relationship. Because they are apart for so much of the film, the movie drags.
Director Chris Weitz, who took over the franchise from Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke, does little to help the already soulless story line. His staging of the transformation scenes for the wolves is little better than a late-night Syfy cable channel movie. And the decision to have a wispy Edward appear to Bella each time shes in trouble looks like a leftover special effect from bad 1950s science fiction.
Certain parts of the book had to be condensed for time. Screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg makes a huge mistake cutting down the character of Alice (Ashley Greene). In a film full of brooding vampires and heartbroken humans, Alice is a jolt of energy. More of her would have helped fill that long gap while Edward is gone.
The Twilight Saga: New Moon suffers the same problem as the book it is little more than a bridge to the last two efforts. Relationships and characters are introduced but not played out to any satisfying conclusion.
To be perfectly honest, there really was no reason for anyone to try too hard because the film, like the books, has a legion of fans who wont care about iffy special effects, script problems and acting that is at times little more than passable.
Loyal fans only care that theres a New Moon rising in local theaters.
TV and movie critic Rick Bentley can be reached at rbentley@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6355
E-Mail
Print
'New Moon' interactive