Had I seen the blockbuster version of Twilight before reading the saga I might have formed a more negative opinion of the world's most beloved couple. While I commend the cast and crew's efforts to bring this modern-day classic to life on the big screen, sometimes a story is better off left alone inside the binding of a hardcover manuscript.
Stephanie Meyer is a master at making the unbelievable seem...well, not so hard to believe after all. A lion falls in love with a lamb. What is not romantic about that concept? That a godlike vampire would choose a fragile human being to be his soulmate is not what a culture who places all its empasis on outward beauty would expect in a young adult novel. However, it is what we all secretly hope for since everyone wants to believe that love will find you no matter what you look like. Meyer's budding relationship between her leading man and lady had fans cheering from the first page onward - a romance that is doomed to fail takes root anyway and blossoms into "always and forever." For that reason alone, Twilight won our hearts.
You know how it is totally wrong, and yet completely right!?
If only Hollywood could portray that brand of uncomplciated devotion. All the high-tech cinematography in the world can't trump that. When I am watching two people declare their feelings for one another, whether in a theater or in real life, I don't want to just hear their words. I want to experience their passion. I need to know they mean it. Listening to Kristen Stewart quipp Bella's famous line, "I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him," wasn't enough to convince me.
Her voice was flat, devoid of emotion.
And Robert Pattinson wasn't much better. Where was the struggle of yearning to be with the very person he couldn't wait to devour? It must have been going on somewhere in his character's head; too bad the audience didn't get a taste of his turmoil. Too bad neither actor breathed life into their roles. I so badly wished I could fall in love with Edward and Bella all over again as I sat there crunching popcorn under my feet. Trouble was, there was no point in doing so.
If an actor leaves his or her Oscar-worthy performance outside the door of the auditions, why should I waste my applause? What a let-down.
"What a stupid lamb. What a sick, masochistic lion." That was the only scene from the entire movie that stuck with me because those words basically sum up the relationship between vampire and human. Strangely though, I got the feeling that Robert and Kristen were not only referring to their characters when they said their lines. I wonder if they knew that their performance in this film would be so disppointing...stupid...sick...
Maybe it is simply impossible to do justice to an author and her creations when they were already perfect to begin with.
So am I still a fan of Edward Cullen and Isabella Swan? Absolutely. Was their big-screen debut worth my 10 dollars? I wouldn't have missed it for the world. Did it live up to my expectations? Not exactly. Am I going to stick with the series? You bet!
After all, my imagination will fill in the gaps, which even a team of filmmaking experts can easily forget.
Bella
