Almost as good as the book: “Twilight” fans give their take on the much anticipated movie

By JESSICA SERRANO
UNLEASHED STAFF

It was a murky, chilly Thursday night.
As I approached my destination at exactly 10:30 p.m., I saw a massive line wrapped around the perimeter of Yakima Cinema on North Sixteenth Avenue.
The movie — the teen vampire film “Twilight,” based on the book by Stephanie Meyer — wasn’t scheduled to start until 12:05 a.m., technically Friday morning. So I figured I had some time to question some of the anxious Twilighters around me.
Carrie Darrett, 48, and her daughter Lauren, a 17-year-old junior at Selah High School, were waiting for the film to start along with a crowd of other excited fans.
“I just hope that they don’t leave off the important parts, like the meadow scene, because that scene is the pivotal point of the story,” Lauren said.
To her, that’s the point in which Edward decides whether he’s going to convert Bella into a vampire, like him.
Lauren’s mom had bought the book for her daughter to spark some interest in reading. Sure enough, it worked like a charm. Soon, Lauren couldn’t put the book down. Her mom became hooked, too.
“I love all the books and the romance, and I don’t expect the movie to be the same, but I’ll see it with an open mind,” Carrie Darrett said.
The mother-daughter duo waited in line with anticipation for an hour and a half for the film, which opened Nov. 21.
It took in a reported $70.55 million that first weekend. And a sequel is reportedly already in the works: “New Moon,” based on the second book in the series.
Meantime, “Twilight” is a Romeo and Juliet tragic love story with a vampire twist. The two protagonists are Edward Cullen, played wonderfully by the stunning Robert Pattinson, and his love interest, Bella Swan, played by Kristin Stewart.
The cast accurately portrayed the characters from the book; they had the looks and the persona. But they fell short when it came to emotion and feeling. On a scale of one to five, I’d give it a three.
La Salle High School senior Sarah Palacios said she felt a little let down by the film. 
“As for justifying the book, no, I don’t think it did,” she said. “I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love the movie either. I’m going to watch it a couple of more times and make it grow on me because the scenes that were good were really good, and I love anything ‘Twilight’ related.”
But you don’t have to read the book — or the other three in the series — to enjoy the movie. Patrick Smith, a 17-year-old senior at Eisenhower High School, gave the movie an eight out of 10.
Although he said he didn’t read the book, he praised the movie, particularly the scene in which Edward brings Bella, the fragile human, to meet his blood-thirsty family. The scene is humorous and tense.
Dr. Carlisle Cullen, Edward’s adopted father, played by actor Peter Facinelli, was Smith’s favorite.
“My favorite character was the doctor Cullen because his acting really did bring the character to life,” he said.

— Jessica Serrano is a member of the Yakima Herald-Republic’s Unleashed team. She attends La Salle High School.