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P R IN T : Backpage
Wednesday, Nov. 21,2012
Tweeniboppers wait in
‘Twilight’ for last bite of saga
AnnaAxelson
Co-Editor-in-Chief
With a snarl, a growl, an
earth shatteringly epic battle, a
whimper and a sigh, it’s finally
over: “Twilight” has met its
end.
At 12:01 a.m. Friday morn
ing, to the screaming, giggling,
star struck masses, “Twilight:
Breaking Dawn Part II” hit the
silver screen to the elation, joy
and relief of fans everywhere.
Kristen Stewart made her last
appearance as the sullen and
saccharine sweet Bella Swan.
Robert Pattinson made his
last appearance as the glittery
and brooding Edward Cullen.
Taylor Lautner made his last
appearance as the bronzed and
built Jacob Black. I for one,
couldn’t be more pleased... that
it is finally frickin’ over.
Lionsgate and Summit
Entertainment embellished and
blew out of proportion the sec
ond half of the fourth novel,
by the now household name of
Stephenie Meyer.
Right off the bat, I was a
little thrown. While I knew this
film would pick up where the
last left off, I didn’t expect it to
feel so mini-series-ish: As if we
hadn’t waited a year and a half
and were merely watching the
films back to back or perhaps
the next week or the next day -
in other words, surely not long
enough that “Breaking Dawn:
Part 1” has already begun to col-
lect dust;
There was no transition, it
just began. The others carried
the tradition of Bella’s morose
narration, whereas in this incar
nation, that anticipated simple
tone didn’t overlay a scene until
seemingly 20 to 30 minutes in.
This break in familiarity was
a sure indication that this was
not in fact the fifth film of the
series, but the second half of the
fourth film.
While at first I was confused
with the decision to split the
final arc of the story into two
parts, who could deny the box
office bang that the sly venture
would bring? This is, of course,
the part of the story where a
stake is finally driven through
the larger-than-life “Team
Edward” and “Team Jacob”
feud, proving to movie goers
(and those who didn’t actually
read the books) there in fact
never was a choice.
Spoiler alert: buff and badass
Jacob only has eyes for Edward
and Bella’s miracle spawn, an
eating, breathing, blood raven
ous child with whom he falls
madly in love with at first
squirming newborn sight. Does
this add or remove from the
glamour of the whole spiel? Eh,
if you read the books, you saw
it coming. If you didn’t, I hope
you Were disturbed.
As expected, Renesmee (the
spawn child mentioned above),-
portrayed by the adorable rela
tive newcomer Mackenzie Foy,
stole each and every scene she
was in. Cute kids have a way of
doing that in films, especially
when given divine abilities and
eerie amber contact lenses.
Luckily, Foy also con
veyed a sense of wonderment
and intelligence that was well
beyond her 12 years. It brought
a little of what I felt was lost
from her character and abilities
in the storyline of the final film.
Pattinson and Lautner deliv
ered classic performances. Both
were cocky and confident with
pretty boy lashes and matching
crooked grins. Stewart’s, char
acter Bella, at last realizing her
own beauty and ability, finally
has a chance to smile. It was
nice to see a little diversity in
the young actress’ part.
Billy Burke’s portrayal of
Charlie Swan again provided
a mix of light hearted humor
and awkward love and concern.
Carlisle Cullen, played by Peter
Facinèlli, along with Charlie,
have been my favorite charac
ters brought to life thus far, and
this finale was no exception.
—Fathers of the b r i d e "arrd
groom, Charlie and Carlisle
both have grown upon the
words originally written upon
the page for their characters
and become the voices within
the books. That’s a glorious
and rare feature now a days.
A number of other newcomers
appeared in this finale as the
Cullen family prepares for yet
another impending visit from
the ruthless Volturi, the Italian
“royal family.”
While many of thèse charac
ters were under appreciated and
diminished through big screen
production, there were a few
that still retained a glimmer of
their interest and humor like the
roaming noma.d Garrett’s (Lee
Pace) mumble “the red coats are
coming, the red coats are com
ing,” as the Volturi approached.
As the movie trailer teased,
it all led to a showdown. When
all the pretty people stood ankle
deep within an open field, set
against a backdrop of pure,
From the “Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2, ” Bella Swan (Kristen Stew
art) celebrates with her family, daughter Renesmee (Mackenzie Foy), husband
Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and friend Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner),
thoughtful o f a promising future.
untouched and untarnished
factitious paper snow in what
might have pivotal moment in
the story, serenity was inter
rupted with a staggeringly unex
pected battle that had me (and
hopefully everyone else who
muscled through the books)
wondering, “wait ... what?”
As epic as the battle was, as
sad as the losses were as they
fell defeated and as justified,
well placed and well executed
as the “oh duh!” realization of
it was, it fell flat. That particu
lar moment left me feeling like
the conclusion of the original
“Dallas” series when you learn
that it was all just a dream and
the audience feels as if it was
cheated out of something pre
cious, meaningful.
Many o f the special effects
left a lot to be desired. Details
I had hoped to see played out
were downplayed. A few scenes
felt like an afterthought, like
something plugged in without
regard to' flow. This included
the few moments before the
credits rolled that should have
wrapped the whole thing up in a
tight, neat crimson bow.
Overall, I’m not begging for
a refund, but I’m not neces
sarily satisfied either. I give it
three out of five stars, though
the gratuity of the third star
comes simply with the relief
that it is indeed complete
ly, irrevocably, finally over.
As the series has finally come
to an end, it’s time for reflec
tion. For an opinionated look
back on the complete “Twilight
Saga,” visit us online at
www.TheClackamasPrint.com.
3 OUT OF 5 STARS
From the ^ ‘Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Pari 2 ,” Bella Swan (Kristen
Stewart) prowls the woods in search o f her first vampire meal as husband
Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) teaches her to use her newly enhanced
abilities.