Mar 25, 2012
Posted by Bella in Twilight Saga | 3 Comments
The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (Two-Disc Special Edition)
- Condition: New
- Format: DVD
- AC-3; Color; Dolby; DVD; Special Edition; Subtitled; Widescreen; NTSC
It all begins… with a choice. In the third chapter of Stephenie Meyer’s phenomenal Twilight series, Bella Swan is surrounded by danger as Seattle is hit by a string of murders and an evil vampire continues her quest for revenge. In the midst of it all, Bella is forced to choose between her love, Edward Cullen, and her friend, Jacob Black—knowing that her decision may ignite the ageless struggle between vampire and werewolf.The third installment of Stephenie Meyer’s blockbuster vampire seri
List Price: $ 32.99
Price: $ 6.87
[wprebay kw=”twilight+saga” num=”6″ ebcat=”-1″] [wprebay kw=”twilight+saga” num=”7″ ebcat=”-1″]
4.5 stars, best one of the series,
I have to say I normally don’t review movies. I usually try to stick with books (haha hence my name) I also tend not to see movies that were based on books, they are never right ie: Eragon, Blood and Chocolate and yes even the Harry Potters movies were missing tons of sides stories that were in the books. I saw Twilight the day it came out and was both relieved that it was so close to the book, and frustrated because like the book it lacked action. Only the last five minutes had any fighting. The same was true in New Moon, while it followed the book closely it was only the last 10 minutes where Edward fought with the Volturi that were action packed. I have to say I really liked Eclipse. I found that with all of Stepenie Meyer’s books (especially Breaking Dawn) there was a huge build up towards the battle scenes, then it just fell apart. Yes it’s for a younger age group, but sometimes a little more fighting and action is good. Eclipse delivered good action through out the movie, especially the ‘big battle’ I found myself wishing that the screen writers would have put this much effort into the first two with the action. David Slade, the director, also did Hard Candy (amazing movie) and 30 Days of Night. I think it was brilliant to bring him in on the project and hope he stays for Breaking Dawn.
I also am glad to say that Kristen Stewert has better facial expressions in this movie. She doesn’t look like her face is frozen in only two expressions. Edward also delivers more side comments with good comedic timing. Jacob is hurt in this movie, but the interaction between all three is much less forced and more natural than the first two movies. It is without a doubt the best of the bunch. I won’t bog down this review with the plot, because obviously 99% of the people going to Eclipse have read the book at least twice. I can say though that unlike the other two movies, I actually found myself wondering what happens next, and looking forward to how Bella and Edward (and yes Jacob) would react. I’d say if you’ve been on the fence about the other two movies go see this one, if you hated the first two movies, this one is infinitely better and if you loved the first two movies, I can only say you will love this one even more.
Was this review helpful to you?
|Loved Every Minute of a Film They Finally Got Right (And Can’t Understand All the Hate),
Prior to going to the theatre, I sat down to watch the first two installments of the Twilight saga; as a habit, I try to re-watch movies whenever a sequel comes out, just to get an idea of how the series progressed and developed. And in all honesty, both contributed to my overall impression and appreciation of Eclipse.
Twilight is a movie I’ve never really had an opinion on one way or another; it wasn’t the greatest movie I’ve ever seen, but it wasn’t a complete train-wreck. Looking back at it now, I have to say that it is very painful to watch. I, personally, found this first installment to be very mediocre and primitive. Everything in it–the corny music, the blue filters, the choppiness, the transition, the plot selection–felt like a crappy teen flick. But the weakest point of this movie was the lead acting, so weak in fact, that it made the story more difficult to watch. The entire time, I could not focus on anything but the fact that Kristen Stewart kept letting her mouth hang open and scoffing/sighing with every line, while a somewhat aggressive Rob Pattinson kept awkwardly twitching and cringing as if he was in pain. There was no buildup to the romance whatsoever, and it left me wondering why Bella and Edward were even a couple. It wasn’t until I got the books for Christmas that I read the story and figured out what was supposed to happen.
New Moon was a fair improvement, coming from a director whose work I generally like. The music selection was much better and more appropriate, the graphics a bit more exciting and the color-scheme more natural. Can’t say that the transitions from every scene were done well; this movie still felt like it could be more uniform. And I absolutely loved the entire sequence in Voltera, Italy; that depiction alone is reason enough not to discount New Moon’s cinematography. But though this movie was well-shot and produced, once again, the lead acting lacked. Rob made a change, which unfortunately went in the other direction, making him too robotic and emotionless. In my mind, I started to question whether he even had any talent or was just a poor actor. It wasn’t until I saw Remember Me that I thought that he had any potential. And Kristen, who at least limited her scoffing to only two or three times, did not shed a single tear in any of the key scenes. Thankfully, her acting was balanced out by Taylor Lautner’s, who actually gave a great portrayal of Jacob.
The minute I sat down to watch Eclipse, I had high hopes that David Slade would finally give the Twilight series what it needed – some quality – and walking out at the end of the film, I was anything but disappointed. The flow of the movie was very smooth, and I was actually surprised at how fast it was coming to an end. The special effects and fighting scenes were precisely shot, and the snow-capped mountainside was breathtaking. I am not a Twi-hard, teenager, housewife or part of whatever other stereotype is used to describe people who like this series, but I absolutely loved this movie from beginning to end. In fact, for the first time, I felt like I was watching a re-make of the series with new actors and overall better cinematography.
My biggest surprise was the acting. For the first time, Rob actually nailed Edward’s personality and depicted him as he was meant to be–sensitive, caring, loving, witty, protective, etc. Every scene he did, whether angry or laid back, was spot-on and believable, all creepiness and awkwardness aside. FINALLY! And Kristen, though still not at her best, actually smiled and laughed and was fun as opposed to depressed and introverted. This improvement from both of them made all the intimate scenes feel more natural and the romance more believable. All the actors, in fact, especially Jackson Rathborne and Nikki Reed, really stepped up to the plate and played their characters well.
Although no movie will ever give a faithful adaptation of any book, Eclipse got pretty close. And though there were certain liberties taken with the plot, which I remembered well, they did not detract from the key ideas. Overall, the movie hit on all the aspects of Bella’s feelings/decisions about love, family, marriage and human life through different interactions with all the characters. Even if I hadn’t read the book, I felt like as a viewer, I had enough information to understand her struggle and ultimate choice.
I know that there is always a negative for every positive, so there are plenty of haters of this film. But despite the complaints about the substance/content of the story (which should be attributed to the novelist, not the director), I feel it’s unfair to deny that this is more mature, professionally made film that actually breathed some life into what could have otherwise been a cheesy, teen flick.
Was this review helpful to you?
|NO SPECIAL FEATURES (ONLY AUDIO COMMENTARY) ON DVD SIDE,
I am writing this on behalf of my (upset) wife. I’m sure the quality of the disc/film itself is good, but I felt that I needed to put this on here for people that might be thinking about purchasing this disc. It is a single disc with a Blu-Ray on one side and DVD on the other. It is advertised as having a 6 part documentary on both sides, but this is not the case. I did a little research and apparently you have to buy the 2 disc special edition to get that. This is seems to be unfair and very confusing. We have a PS3, but my wife watches in the bedroom where there is only a DVD player. Needless to say, it’s very frustrating that we now have to buy another copy of the disc. CHANGE THE ADVERTISING–it makes no mention of which disc does or does not have various features. Everything looks to be identical on both discs according to the box, and there is no mention of the DVD side not including the documentaries.
Was this review helpful to you?
|