Captured the essence of the book

Rating: 9/10 (21 November 2008)

Let me start out by saying: Yes I have read the Twilight series, and because of this you could probably consider me somewhat bias. Before you totally disregard this review though, my boyfriend, and brother both went to the movie with me, (neither of them have read the books)and both of them had many of the same views as I did on the movie.
The movie is not exactly like the books, but this is understandable as the book is somewhere around 400 pages and the budget for this particular film was on the lower end. Having said that, I think that the result is impressive especially when the limitations are considered.
I think that they did a good job finding a middle ground to appease fans of the book, and also new viewers. They provided enough background information for people who have never read the story before, and yet they did not "Spell it out" so much that previous fans would be bored.
The special effects were kind of lacking, but this is to be lacking with the budget. Some of the scenes felt a little rushed, but this is also understandable as they managed to fit in the majority of important scenes into the movie.
The movie was a lot funnier than I was expecting, and many fans had a problem with this as the book is portrayed very dramatically. I think the humor and moments of awkwardness fit the story, as first love is often that way.
Having giving you my review, I will also add that both my boyfriend and brother enjoyed the movie. I was very surprised by how much they both liked it, as I was "given heck" over the past two weeks for dragging them to it. Upon exiting the theater though, they agreed that they would give the movie about a 4 on a scale of 1-10, and that they would be up for seeing sequels were they to be made.
In closing: The book is different than the movie. I think the movie captures the essence of the books, and does a good job at converting a book to the big screen. All I can say is: go into the theater with an open mind as I did, and I guarantee you will enjoy it that much more.