Reviewed By: Emanuel Caros

Not bad.  Not bad at all.  The newest installment of The Twilight Saga, Eclipse, is surprisingly not nearly as bad as might be expected.  In fact, it's rather good.  While the teeny-bopper hype surrounding it could turn off most intelligent theater-goers, this isn't just for the mindless.  

New-to-the-series director David Slade (the incredible Hard Candy, and 30 Days of Night) disappoints.  While his previous work has been lauded for their stylistic beauty and dark themes, minute glimpses of that are seen here.  Having not seen the first two installments, I have nothing to compare the 3rd film to, but it is clear that Slade made sure to accentuate the creepiness of the Volturi, and the rawness of vampire on vampire violence.  But the director didn't bring along his established penchant for using films over the camera lens to create a hazy fog of color dependent on the mood of the scene.  This is possibly a side-effect of dealing with the producers of a mega-money summer blockbuster, but regardless, Slade's more artsy approach could've bunny-hopped the film out of the tween fan base.

A major surprise was the acting abilities of 2/3 of the lead actors.  Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart definitely hold their own, with Pattinson really impressing and showing potential for future roles.  As much grief as she gets, Stewart really plays the "afflicted" role well; one that is typically very difficult to convey effectively on-screen.  But then Disney dream boat Taylor Lautner comes into frame, and hampers the entire film.  As a Hollywood hopeful, I would at times get in front of the mirror and act out scenes from my favorite movies; and everytime, while my recitation of the lines was ok, something was missing: the natural convincingness and ability to take over a different persona.  That is exactly how Lautner's entire performance was.  Stock expressions carried him through anger and grief.  If he was sad, he scrunched up his nose and winced his eyes.  Any pondering was preceded by calculated head turns and stares to the sky.  While his six-pack is ridiculous for a 17-year old kid, I'd hope that wouldn't be enough for a leading role in a major film series, but apparently thats not the case.  

The film has a good, fairly complex story that doesn't need viewings of the previous films to catch onto.  Aside from the awkward abstinence message, and gratuitious makeout sessions, The Twilight Sage: Eclipse is a pretty good summer flick.  


6/10