More action and fantasy - but is that so good?

Rating: 7/10 (29 November 2009)

Bella Swan (Stewart) struggles to adapt to life after Edward (Pattinson) leaves for her own safety and soon she is spending time with Jacob (Lautner) who is a werewolf.
There is a certain credibility with watching this film if you are not a teenage girl. For one the appreciation of love and lust intermixed with the foundations of friendship are all maturely depicted in Stephanie Meyer's book so you are looking for a good adaptation of mature emotions. There is however sadness on the stereotypical portrayal of viewers for these twilight films; teenage girls watch for the sheer factor of Pattinson and Lautner. But the refusal to watch a film based on the fan base is frankly ridiculous.
The sequel to the globally popular Twilight has already spurned millions in cash and even broken The Dark Knight's record for biggest opening day, but does the money guarantee satisfaction? The old saying of the film is never as good as the book is absent here as there is plenty more action to be enjoyed. However the generation of emotion from the book never fully comes across on film. The critics jumped on the lack of action in the first and this picture tries to make amends and does so with a passion of action.
This is the main reason the film is to be enjoyed. The brief but well directed trial bike sequence on the appropriate wet roads is good and the cliff diving sequence adds a spice of darkness and passion to the feelings of Bella. The wolves generate a feeling of spice and action, in good sync when Laurent emerges. In general the film has a livelier outburst and the sequences of action and fighting are far better than the brief scenes in Twilight. Therefore this should be appreciated by a wider audience as we still have the love.
The book had the action sequences and this film justifies them well enough to satisfy the twi-hards. Balancing the action and dialogue was well portrayed as well.
However this film has a few major flaws. For one the general feeling is never quite accurate. We can not really associate with Bella during her tough parts of separation. The constant inclusion of a ghostly Edward giving advice does not benefit the supposed feeling of isolation. And perhaps the initial love and companionship the two main characters had in the first film feels irrelevant in the grand scheme of proceedings here.
The soundtrack boasts new artists all over and we can never have appropriate silence to reflect the mood. Chris Weitz must be quite green as if he isn't shooting a pair of branches or trees he is shooting a hard to view werewolf.
However this is a good fun film. Jacob is a better character than Edward owing to his more adventurous personality which adds another dimension of love. The action is far better and though the feeling of love isn't as high as the first this is a worthy watch.