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.

“Twilight” fever

By LISA GARRIGUES
UNLEASHED STAFF

Everyone’s heard of it. Everyone’s talking about it. It’s “Twilight” fever.
The long-anticipated teen vampire movie is finally out in theaters. So how does it stack up to all the hype?
I’d say the director, Catherine Hardwicke (“Thirteen,” “The Nativity Story,” “Lords of Dogtown”), did a pretty good job. For the most part, I really liked the film.
Sure, there were parts so unbelievable they made me laugh, but that’s a given. After all, it’s about vampires. I think most people will agree that if you’ve read the “Twilight” book by Stephanie Meyer, the movie will leave you slightly disappointed. But for non-book fans, the teen action/romance film proves entertaining.
For the three or four of you that haven’t been sucked into the “Twilight” craze, here’s the gist of the story:
Bella (Kristen Stewart) moves from Phoenix to the small town of Forks, a rainy logging town located on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula.
Quiet Bella soon meets the student body of Forks High School, becoming friends with Jessica Stanley (Anna Kendrick), Angela Weber (Christian Serratos), Mike Newton (Michael Welch), and Eric Yorkie (Justin Chon).
Bella, however, only has eyes for Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) who seems to despise even looking at Bella, which leaves her mystified. After a chain of events, it’s revealed that Edward and his family are vampires. Edward and Bella fall in love, despite the obvious problem of human-vampire contact.
The movie faithfully followed the book’s plot. The majority of events were included, with very little change in order. Although some details were left out, I found myself not missing them until after I left the theater. For example, there’s the Cullen family’s influence on Bella.
Another element that was missing was the suspense in the final scenes of the movie. The movie seemed to cram into one minute what took at least a chapter in Meyer’s book. Edward and Bella’s romance also progressed much more rapidly in the movie. They went from hating each other to two teens in love in virtually one scene.
The producers had their work cut out for them when it came to special effects. The vampires, which have the ability to move at a speed much faster than humans, have many scenes showing their extreme strength and swiftness. Some of these — when Edward is carrying Bella through the forest on his back, for example — appeared incredibly unreal. This look was achieved by blurring Edward’s legs while leaving the top half of both of their bodies in focus. Edward then proceeded to climb a tree — at super-speed, of course.
In one scene, when Bella is watching the Cullens play baseball, the special effects turned out really well. So well, in fact, that this was my favorite scene in the entire movie. This time, instead of solely focusing on how fast the vampires can run, multiple camera angles made for a really exciting sequence.
The supporting actors — particularly Welch, Chon and Billy Burke, who plays Bella’s dad) — added necessary humor to the film. Kendrick and Serratos made the high school scenes much more believable.
My favorite characters, however, were the Cullens. Ashley Greene played Alice’s personality exactly as it was portrayed in the book, straight down to her never-ending happiness. Jackson Rathbone, who plays Jasper, acts the part of a young vampire getting accustomed to humans brilliantly. Then, there’s Nikki Reed (Rosalie) and Kellan Lutz (Emmet) who give Bella such a cold shoulder it seems real.
Finally, Stewart and Pattinson, the stars of the movie, both have lots of potential for future films.
Overall, “Twilight” was a lot better than most movies converted from books. Was it as good as the book? Of course not, but then again most movies based on books never are. My suggestion: watch the movie in theaters if you’re a true “Twilight” fan. If you’re not, you can always rent it later.

— Lisa Garrigues is a member of the Yakima Herald-Republic’s Unleashed team. She attends Naches Valley High School.

Twilight Time

By JESSICA SERRANO
LA SALLE HIGH SCHOOL

“Breaking Dawn,” Stephanie Meyer’s fourth and final book in her forbidden love vampire series, was released early this month.

For those who have yet to enter the “Twilight,” here’s a little background.

First, the story takes place HERE. No, not Yakima, but close enough in Forks, Wash., located on the Olympic Peninsula.

Bella, the heroine, is an awkward, accident-prone girl who’s not quite comfortable in her own skin. Edward, her love interest, is not your typical teenage vampire. He’s pale, gorgeous and Read more