One paw up for "New Moon"
Julianna Clay
Issue date: 11/25/09 Section: Arts & Entertainment
Critics watched with cynical skepticism and fans held their collective breath as the newest installation of Stephanie Meyer's vampire series, New Moon, hit theatres Friday. For those who have been living in an isolated fallout shelter and aren't familiar with the phenomena, Twilight is about a teenager (Bella Swan played by Kristen Stewart) who has an undying love for the undead (also known as vampires).
New Moon picks up where Twilight left off. Bella Swan is as thick as thieves with her immortal, sparkly boyfriend Edward Cullen (played by the controversially hunky Robert Pattinson) and his family (portrayed by Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Ashley Greene, Jackson Rathbone, Nikki Reed, and Kellan Lutz). That is until Bella receives a pesky, yet nearly fatal paper cut while opening presents for her eighteenth birthday. From there this Romeo and Juliet story takes an interesting twist as Edward hits the road, convinced his absence is the best way to keep Bella safe. Cue Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner).
To distract herself from the grief and pain of her recent loss, Bella grows closer to her friend Jacob and becomes a part of an emotional and tumultuous love triangle. However, Jacob is not what he seems. 'The wolf is soon out of the bag' when Bella watches him transform from bodacious babe to wild werewolf to defend her against fellow Quileute tribe members and the evil blood suckers Victoria (Rachel Lefevre) and Laurent (Edi Gathegi, who brings to mind a vampire version of Bob Marley).
This new chapter of the Twilight saga is very much a supernatural soap opera, until three quarters of the way in when Bella goes to beautiful Montepulciano, Italy to save Edward from The Volturi-a group of power-tripping dictators who rule the vampire world. New cast members Michael Sheen, who plays Aro, and Dakota Fanning, who plays Jane, contribute very impressive performances as evil and pain-loving leaders of the undead.
While the dialogue lurched along in some places, the special effects and cinematography went above and beyond the previous installment of Twilight. It included cliff diving, motorcycle stunts, and werewolf chasing vampire sequences, as well as whimsical 360-degree panoramas. Of course all of these scenes featured poignant and provoking music. Somehow Bella's angst and agony is more believable when something indie and melancholy is playing in the background, like Lykke Li's "Possibility". Other bands featured on the soundtrack include big names, such as The Killers, Death Cab for Cutie, and Muse.
Fans of the books and the first movie will not be disappointed with this adolescent fairy tale of a film. The chemistry among all three of the main characters is painfully tangible, very relatable, and reminiscent of those awkward moments in High School we all had. Although New Moon is not quite as good as the first Twilight movie, it does an adequate job of capturing the attention of-let's face it-women of all ages. After all, what could be better than copious amounts of shirtless man candy, unfulfilled love, werewolves, and a bunch of blood-sucking vampires? Two thumbs up for team Edward (or two paws up for team Jacob).
New Moon picks up where Twilight left off. Bella Swan is as thick as thieves with her immortal, sparkly boyfriend Edward Cullen (played by the controversially hunky Robert Pattinson) and his family (portrayed by Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Ashley Greene, Jackson Rathbone, Nikki Reed, and Kellan Lutz). That is until Bella receives a pesky, yet nearly fatal paper cut while opening presents for her eighteenth birthday. From there this Romeo and Juliet story takes an interesting twist as Edward hits the road, convinced his absence is the best way to keep Bella safe. Cue Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner).
To distract herself from the grief and pain of her recent loss, Bella grows closer to her friend Jacob and becomes a part of an emotional and tumultuous love triangle. However, Jacob is not what he seems. 'The wolf is soon out of the bag' when Bella watches him transform from bodacious babe to wild werewolf to defend her against fellow Quileute tribe members and the evil blood suckers Victoria (Rachel Lefevre) and Laurent (Edi Gathegi, who brings to mind a vampire version of Bob Marley).
This new chapter of the Twilight saga is very much a supernatural soap opera, until three quarters of the way in when Bella goes to beautiful Montepulciano, Italy to save Edward from The Volturi-a group of power-tripping dictators who rule the vampire world. New cast members Michael Sheen, who plays Aro, and Dakota Fanning, who plays Jane, contribute very impressive performances as evil and pain-loving leaders of the undead.
While the dialogue lurched along in some places, the special effects and cinematography went above and beyond the previous installment of Twilight. It included cliff diving, motorcycle stunts, and werewolf chasing vampire sequences, as well as whimsical 360-degree panoramas. Of course all of these scenes featured poignant and provoking music. Somehow Bella's angst and agony is more believable when something indie and melancholy is playing in the background, like Lykke Li's "Possibility". Other bands featured on the soundtrack include big names, such as The Killers, Death Cab for Cutie, and Muse.
Fans of the books and the first movie will not be disappointed with this adolescent fairy tale of a film. The chemistry among all three of the main characters is painfully tangible, very relatable, and reminiscent of those awkward moments in High School we all had. Although New Moon is not quite as good as the first Twilight movie, it does an adequate job of capturing the attention of-let's face it-women of all ages. After all, what could be better than copious amounts of shirtless man candy, unfulfilled love, werewolves, and a bunch of blood-sucking vampires? Two thumbs up for team Edward (or two paws up for team Jacob).
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