So much promise

Rating: 6/10 (20 April 2010)

So I was rather skeptical approaching the idea of ever reading this series, let alone seeing the films. Yet here I sit putting my thoughts down about such things. In any case, what I have been reaffirmed of is that that movies barely distill the essence of the story that the book gives you.
First off, I would have to agree that casting was pretty spot on. Robert Pattinson fits the role perfectly in both appearance and substance; he is not overly muscular and suited for this role (call me odd but a buff vampire just seems unbecoming since it is unnecessary given the arsenal of weapons and skills they already have).
Where my criticism, and more so disappointment, comes in is the lack of depth the movie provides. There are just too many nuances to rate it high. Character establishment was very good and accurate to the novel, but the development of them characters, especially to each other, was rushed and very superficial. The movie makes you assume a lot and imply connections based on one . The arguments between Bella and Edwaard provide so much clarity and connect them. Some of the story lines were shortened, passed over, or out of ordered.
All in all, there was a lot of promise for this movie, but it fell through. The plot was followed well, but could have been better, the characters were introduced well but not developed. Even though it is a 2hour movie, it needed to be another hour long to adequately encompass the depth of story created by Meyer. So you'll like the movie, just less if you've read the books first.