Pleasant surprise with spot-on casting

Rating: 8/10 (17 December 2008)

Let's be honest - it was never going to be a dramatic masterpiece. The best thing about the books is the erotic frisson between Bella and Edward and the wry i-can't-believe-he's-not-human humour. They manage to capture this perfectly in the film.
I have read the books and despite how very bad the writing is I thoroughly enjoyed them. I went to see the movie with a very guy-guy who hasn't gone near the books and he really enjoyed it! He thought that the tension between Bella and Edward was very real and convincing and he laughed in all the right places. I think it's true that it's actually meant to be quite funny - there's a deliberate kitsch kind of element to their love and Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson really nail it.
Altogether a very worthwhile viewing experience, if only to watch Robert Pattinson wearing a variety of very nice jackets. Any red-blooded woman would be seriously hard-pressed not to gasp when he walks into the cafeteria...