Twilight-the ups and downs

Rating: 4/10 (24 November 2008)

Okay. I entered the theater in full knowledge of the fact that I was going to be disappointed. I was justified
The Content
This aspect was actually very good. Having read all of the books at least three times each I had a very good understanding of the plot and themes. The film left out many things, but most adaptations do. On the whole, the film managed to convey a lot of the book and made it flow very well. It included many crucial, strong direct quotes and the dialogue managed to properly tell the story. However, it was not efficiently delivered by the "actors."
The Cast
Could have been about ten THOUSAND times better. First of all, Kristin Stewart? Really? After her exceedingly flawed, mediocre performance in The Messangers, she was the cast member I was least looking forward to watching. Her deliverance in the hospital scene was terrible. I wanted to gag. Her voice wheezed, not in a cute, awkward way that might have been interpreted as her personality, but in a severe asthmatic, dungeons and dragons nerd way. She even snorted on a couple of lines she tried to say with "emotion." Also, many of the characters who were supposed to be drop-dead gorgeous looked like spring rejects from a JC Penny catalogue. They lacked strong, dominant features or even proportionate facial icons. Alice, for instance, was not a cute, pixie-like angel. Instead, she looked old enough to be the clans middle-aged mother. The cast mother, Esme, did not look loving at all, but rather like a desperate housewife who smoked too much. All of the characters were poorly represented with the exception of Jasper Cullen. He, with the least lines, delivered what was, to me, an outstanding performance. His face, while a bit comical, was alert and hyperaware whenever he was at school and managed to convey his damaged soul with an acute sensitivity. He was beautiful and regal, as the other actors/actresses should have been. Kudos.
The Cinematography
By far the worst aspect of the film. The angles, the special effects, the whole works were underdeveloped and terrible. It looked like a couple of 12-year-olds got a hold of a second-rate camcorder and some bungie cords. I think this whole catastrophe could have been avoided if the greedy producers had taken their time, instead of taking advantage of the millions of worldwide fans eagerness to see their favorite novel emulated on screen. "Gee," they thought, hands in their pocketbooks, "These lovesick teenage girls are going to come see this movie whether we take eight months or two years on it. Why not skip useless junk like proper editing and line memorization and just stick out tomorrow!?"
I was surprised, to say the least, and will not be returning to the theater to see the rest of the series. If curiosity compels me, I'll rent them for four dollars more than they're worth.