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Twilight "PG-13"

Reviewed by Hayley Leibson

(Hayley is 14 years old and in ninth grade at Redwood High School)

“Twilight”. The word if spoken will make any teen girl scream. Stephenie Meyer, the genius writer behind the “Twilight” series has created a phenomenon. Most say the series is more desirable than Harry Potter, and if you read the book you would understand why. I was infatuated with it after the first page, and have been highly awaiting “Twilight” on the big screen. I had followed the path of the book becoming a movie ever since Summit Entertainment was interested in bringing the story to the big screen.

The plot is set in a dark city called Malaria that once used to be a sunny farmland until constant dark rain clouds took over the skies. Farming was impossible so the King suggested they make evil inventions instead and threaten the world for money. Besides the regular citizens, there were two kinds of people who developed – the Igors (they even have a school to learn how to slur and pull switches) and the mad scientists.

I was very excited to see the movie, but was terrified it would be a foul interpretation of the novel and would try to recreate the intense emotions caused by the book. The book was a few hundred pages long and would have to be crammed into a two-hour movie. I was on edge that I would be disappointed and that the standards I held for the characters would never be met. My friend and I were anticipating our entrance to see the advanced screening of Twilight. We were both shaking. Our hands were numb as we dug our fingernails into each others arms. We both new that this was it. Our wait was over.

The story is about a normal teen girl named Isabella Swan (Kristen Stewart) who moves from Phoenix, Arizona to live with her father in the rainy town of Forks, Washington. When she starts her junior year in Forks High School she becomes intrigued by the dazzlingly gorgeous Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson). Edward is unlike any other boy she has ever met: his piercing yellow eyes see straight into her soul. Soon they are both swept up in a passionate and unorthodox romance filled with perils. Edward can stop a car with his bare hands, run faster than a cheetah, and he has not aged since 1901. Edward is a vampire, along with his family. They only drink animal blood, or as Edward calls it: they are vegetarians. He had been waiting nine decades for Bella; his soul mate. The closer Edward gets to Bella the harder it is for him to resist killing her for her blood. They get into a real pickle when three bloodthirsty vampires come to Forks and make Bella their target. The larger question posed by the book and movie is: When you can live forever, what do you live for?

After seeing the movie, I realized how like every other “Twilighter”' I had set unrealistic expectations for the film. Was it as marvelous as the book? No, but it unquestionably made me scream, laugh, bawl, and kept my eyes fixated on the screen. It did not disappoint the die-hard “Twilight” fan. My favorite scene in the movie from the book is when the Cullen’ played baseball during a thunderstorm. The special effects used during this scene in the movie were spectacular. The way the camera angles were shot seemed to enhance the awesome experience. Some scenes in the book were left out, but the story line of the brilliant romance between a teen and a vampire was beautifully preserved and presented. It was an extraordinarily fabulous movie, I am still in shock. The actors were very talented and played the roles fittingly. It is a must-see film for any teen girl, and for anyone who has a thirst for an action-packed romance movie. I would give “Twilight” three scoops.