A fun film for fans and non-fans alike.

Rating: 10/10 (25 November 2008)

I loved this movie, granted I'm a very loyal fan of Stephenie Meyer and have read the Twilight series as well as "The Host" which was an excellent novel as well. I went into this movie planning to grade it on several key points.
The first being adaption quality. I feel that they did an excellent job of bringing the pages of the story to life, going as far as to actually use whole passages of dialog. The atmosphere was exactly the way i saw it as I read the "Twilight" way back in 2005 when it was first released. Everything about the sets and story pleased me as a movie goer. I did find that the relationship between Edward and Bella was slightly rushed and found that, while this was understandable because of the confines of the movies length, it took away from the extreme bond they were portraying towards the end of the film when the crisis involving James takes place.
Secondly I looked at casting and was for the most part blown away. the Cullens were casted wonderfully and of course Bella and her parents were perfect as well. the only character that I don't care for is that of Jacob and this is not due to his acting ability, but mainly because he doesn't fit the picture I painted in my head when reading the book. This however, is my own personal issue, so moving on...
Finally I waited for the end of the film to arrive. i knew to expect some form of cliff hanger and I must say I have mixed feelings about the one that was presented to me. I loved the way Victoria was shown watching them from above at the prom, however i do worry that they are planning to move up her story line and that bugs me. I would like to see the films run in line with the novels, not branch off now that the first one has established the characters. Also, while I loved the look of the tear smeared mascara(did I even spell that right?) on Victoria, I don't think vampires cry do they? lol Over-all i found that the film lived up to my expectations, if not surpassing them on certain respects. While it certainly won't please every audience member, there are more than enough references to the book to please the hard core fans and general readers alike. The cast is great and the effects are above average for this type of teen fare. Quick note, you can find an author cameo at the diner the second time Bella and Charlie are there. the camera starts on her as she is presented her meal, a salad.