, the fourth installment in the series, hit theaters on November 18, 2011 at 12:01 a.m. And I was there! In line at 1 p.m. on November 17th to watch the three previous movies leading up to the midnight showing of the most anticipated movie of the year, at least for me!
I am a huge Twilight fan! I have been since 2008 when I picked up the first book and was HOOKED! I started them in August of 2008, a few months before the movie came out in November 2008. I had never heard of
Twilight and new nothing of the movie being made. I would literally stay up until midnight reading and wake up at 5 a.m. and read before heading off to work. All housework ceased to exist and all I did was read. This was about the time we had a hurricane pass through southeast Louisiana, Gustav, and I was hunting down
Eclipse as I was winding down on
New Moon. Knowing I could possibly be with out power and businesses closed for at least a week or so I could not go into this hurricane without knowing what happened next! So while most were gathering water, non-perishables and batteries, I was hunting for
Eclipse!
After the hurricane I grabbed
Breaking Dawn... and then was so sad when I finished that I didn't know what to do! So, I read them again and again... I cannot explain what it is about this series that hooked me! When I began them I was 27, almost 28, married and a mother of three (still am)! I forget that they are
vampires, its just this amazing love story to me. I loved the books so much and the movies are great, but somethings are left out or condensed down so it is a little disappointing sometimes.
Twilight the book is probably my favorite, the movies is one of my least favorite. There are so many things left out and things that were added that it just kind of made me sad. There were so many things I felt they did right and looked great, like the baseball scene being my favorite! But they left out one of my favorite scenes, the "blood typing scene" and how James was the reason Alice is a vampire, because she has no memory of how she came to be. But the movie sill conveyed the same thing and elicited the same feelings I had for the book with the movie.
I was so happy with the choices of actors selected for EVERYONE! Kristen Stewart IS
Bella Swan! I honestly don't think I could see anyone else playing her. I read one time they wanted Alexis Bledel, and all I could think was I would't be able to sit through a moving with her blandness and monotone voice. Oh... and don't get me started on Robert Pattinson, he is adorably cute and he IS my
Edward Cullen. The supporting actors chosen for
Jessica Stanley and
Mike Newton, were fabulous! They literally still every scene they are in, in ALL four movies to date!
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| From the 2008 Twilight Premiere |
New Moon the book was my least favorite, mainly because *spoiler* Edward leaves Bella! Only for her own good... but there was so much Jacob in the book and lets face it, we all want her with Edward! (I'm obviously Team Edward) But the movie was really good... just enough Jacob and they kept Edward present. Of the books made to movies, this one is the closet of them all with the exception of how Edward described being away from her as a moonless night and the vote. I wanted to see Edward destroy the flat screen!
Eclipse was a great book! I love it because you get a lot of history on the Cullen's and how Rosalie and Jasper came to be, which I really loved. The movie however put things out of order and spent to much time on Victoria and Riley, which I would rather have left that out and had more of Bella and Edward, since this was
her story. I think one of the main reasons I didn't like this one is that they changed Victoria's on us... Rachelle Lafevre was the BEST Victoria! She was a huge fan of the series before they were a major success and movie, and I didn't like them replacing her with Bryce Dallas Howard. Originally Bryce was approached for the role of Victoria for
Twilight, but turned it down. I heard it was because it wasn't a big enough movie, again speculation and I could be wrong, but if that was the case when the movie blew up she was cast. I love how all the rest are still there and present, very thankful for being able to be apart of this series. I feel they cast Rachelle out for the daughter of Ron Howard and that doesn't sit well with me. But enough of that, the movie was still good and I happy Nikki Reed and Jackson Rathbone got their chance in the franchise to be active in their roles, because they are always in the back ground.
Now, on to
Breaking Dawn Part I... I LOVED IT!!! I wanted it to start like the book, her at the gas station in her bullet proof car, but intend it came on with Jacob receiving his invitation to the wedding and running off in wolf form. That was the end of
Eclipse... But thats ok. Then it showed Charlie and Renee with their invitations. The wedding scene was absolutely amazing and beautiful!!! It was different from the book, as in the book it was an indoor wedding and the movie was outdoors, but a good different. The dress, was beautiful!!! Not what I imagined, better than what I imagined. Kristen and Rob made a beautiful Bella and Edward bride and groom. The reception was funny, listening to Emmett, Jessica, Charlie, Renee and Edward giving their speeches.
There was a nightmare sequence that was not in the book that was kind of disturbing... This movie seriously pushed the PG-13 rating it received. The honeymoon was amazing, again not what I imagined, but better than what I imagined. A lot of people booed at the "sex scene" because it kind of did fade to black, like the book, but they go back to it as flashbacks when Bella wakes up. The honeymoon ended just like the book, to an extent and it picked up with Jacob, like the book as the book is Bella, Jacob, and then Bella again. Pregnant Bella looked to me just how the book described her to be. The way Rosalie was protective of her and the baby, was also on point for the book. Some of the wolf stuff was off... and rushed or left out. The delivery... the delivery was gruesome and I had to look away. Though I feel they did the book justice, a lot of critics didn't like it. I loved how they did Bella's transformation!!! The way it showed her burning inside and then the venom running through her veins and healing her.
The imprint scene was wonderfully done! I loved how they did the sequence of her from baby to adult, it was perfect to me! the way it ended was exactly how I thought it would... to line up with the second Bella point of view from the book. Really the movie was great and I understand the reasoning of breaking it up into two separate movies. The book encompasses so much and there are really two climatic events, so they dealt with one in part one and the other will be dealt with in part two. So, if you haven't seen it, go see it and stay until the credits role... If you have seen it, what did you think???
XO Shannon
