The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2

http://www.breakingdawn-themovie.com/

For my review of Breaking Dawn Part 1 (and catch up on Twilight through to Eclipse) see here. Now on to Part 2.

You will know from reading my review of BDP1 that I was and still am a big fan of the Twilight movies and books. However, as BDP2 was filmed back to back with BDP1 I couldn't help but wonder why they weren't released closer together. They made the fans wait a year and a half between New Moon and Eclipse and I understood that this was due to the other filming commitments of the cast, primarily Kristen Stewart filming The Runaways (hence her awful wig for Eclipse). But there was no such reason for the year long delay between BDP1 and BDP2 so I felt like this was dragged out unnecessarily. 

In the year between movies I started to grow tired of the whole franchise. The constant noise in the press about RPatz and KStew and their eventual break up over her affair with Rupert whats-his-face. It had nothing to do with the film and if it has all been a ruse to generate publicity then I feel sorry for those whose lives have been ruined along the way. I digress of course, this is a review and not the Twilight cast biography. What I guess I'm trying to say is that my enthusiasm for the Twilight films waned. And as such I found myself feeling less than excited at the prospect of ANOTHER Twilight film. 

Having said that, I decided to give the films one last chance to win me back and I booked me and my bestie tickets to the midnight screening for her birthday. We'd seen all the others at midnight (with the exception of the first film) so it felt like a tradition we should see through to the end.

We set off at 11.30pm having watched Breaking Dawn Part 1 in preparation. All bleary eyed and wondering if we were just too old for all this nonsense. Mingling with kids half our age trying to get into the club next door to the cinema. Buying coffee to keep us awake. We settled into our seats and awaited the final film in the Twilight saga. We knew how it ended of course as we'd read the books, but as I had heard that the filmmakers had changed the ending of Stephenie Meyer's original story to be a more fitting cinematic experience, I still didn't quite know what to expect. 

Then as the opening credits appeared, I noticed something I hadn't seen on a Twilight movie before. A Producer credit for Stephenie. This immediately made me relax a little, and pushed my excitement up a notch. If Stephanie produced the film, surely she wouldn't have allowed any of the changes to be detrimental to the story she wanted to tell?

The film starts immediately where BDP1 ends. Bella wakes from her deathbed a vampire. We see straight away that unlike other newborn vampires, she is restrained and well, still her. But without the awkwardness. We meet Renesmee again who has grown substantially considering she is only weeks old, and we learn, as we suspected from the end of BDP1, that Jacob has 'imprinted' on her. We soon find out that the Volturi, the Italian vampire clan who keep the vampire world a secret from humans, have gotten wind of Edward and Bella's immortal child and that they plan to journey to Forks to kill the Cullens once and for all. As Renesmee is not immortal, a child born of a vampire but not bitten, Edward and Bella must gather those willing to stand up to the Volturi in order to protect their daughter, and themselves, from certain death.

I won't spoil the MASSIVE twist at the end but what I will say is that even those who've read the book will be surprised at how the filmmakers have manipulated Stephenie Meyer's book in order to give the film audience something that the readers were sorely lacking. I think that they've done a wonderful job of bringing the final part of the story to the big screen and I think fans of the book and those who haven't read it will equally enjoy what the film has to offer. 

BDP2 introduces some great characters to the saga and also some great actors. I particularly enjoyed the addition of Lee Pace to the cast as I've been a fan of his since I saw him in Pushing Daisies. I must also say that the existing cast look better in this film than they have since the first Twilight. I think they finally decided to ditch the wigs which were making actors like Peter Facinelli and Elizabeth Reaser look faintly ridiculous. 

So despite my trepidation, in the end I did enjoy BDP2 and I would recommend you see it. Even if it's just to put that final nail in the vampire coffin. 8 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 15th November 2012

UK Release Date - 16th November 2012

Cast Overview:

Kristen Stewart ~ Bella Swan

Robert Pattinson ~ Edward Cullen

Taylor Lautner ~ Jacob Black

Peter Facinelli ~ Dr Carlisle Cullen

Elizabeth Reaser ~ Esme Cullen

Ashley Greene ~ Alice Cullen

Jackson Rathbone ~ Jasper Hale

Kellan Lutz ~ Emmett Cullen

Nikki Reed ~ Rosalie Hale

Billy Burke ~ Charlie Swan

Chaske Spencer ~ Sam Uley

Mackenzie Foy ~ Renesmee

Maggie Grace ~ Irina

Jamie Campbell Bower ~ Caius

Christopher Heyerdahl ~ Marcus

Michael Sheen ~ Aro

Daniel Cudmore ~ Felix

Charlie Bewley ~ Demetri

Dakota Fanning ~ Jane

Cameron Bright ~ Alec

MyAnna Buring ~ Tanya

Mia Maestro ~ Carmen

Lee Pace ~ Garrett

Noel Fisher ~ Vladimir

Julia Jones ~ Leah

Booboo Stewart ~ Seth

Director ~ Bill Condon

Writer(s) ~ Melissa Rosenberg (Screenplay) and Stephenie Meyer (Novel) 

March Overview

As I'm so behind with my reviews and want to get to the two big films I saw this month while they're still fresh in my mind, I'm going to do an overview of the films I saw in March in one post.

I realise that for Hunger Games fans this may be a bit of a disappointment as this means it won't get a full review. Apologies but it's for the greater good as they'd say in Hot Fuzz.

We start with the first film I saw in March - Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
Viewing Date - 4th March 2012 | UK Release Date - 17th February 2012

http://extremelyloudandincrediblyclose.warnerbros.com/dvd/

EL&IC (the full title's just too damn long) is well worth a watch no matter where you stand on the 9/11 tragedy. I personally only wanted to see it as I'm a huge Sandra Bullock fan and would pretty much see anything she did. But I was so glad that I did in this instance. My main advice is that you should not make your decision on this movie by the trailer, as the best thing about that is the use of U2's Where The Streets Have No Name - which isn't in the film, but is used to great effect in the trailer. 

The film is very different to how I expected it to be from the trailer, it's no where near as schmaltzy for one. Sandy B isn't in it that much, neither is Tom Hanks (but then you'll already have guessed that if you've seen the trailer), but they both make the most of their small roles. The movie is impressively carried by newcomer Thomas Horn who is captivating and very talented for such a youngster. 

Emotional and intriguing. 8 out of 10.

On to the next film I saw in March - This Means War
Viewing Date - 6th March 2012 | UK Release Date - 2nd March 2012

http://www.thismeanswarmovie.co.uk/

I went to see This Means War with a bunch of friends and was so incredibly nervous about impressing one of them that I couldn't really concentrate on the movie. As such I fully intended to see it again on my own or with my cinema buddy but never got around to it. 

I do recall that I enjoyed the film and can easily recommend it as a good action comedy. The three leads are all very different, not just in their characters but also in the types of roles the actors are best known for. Regardless of this, they are equally funny, charming and not afraid to get in on the action. 

One of the better action/comedies I have seen. Great for date night or to see with a bunch of friends. 8 out of 10.

The third film I saw in March was Bel Ami
Viewing Date - 14th March 2012 | UK Release Date - 9th March 2012

http://belamifilm.com/

I was meant to see this with my friend who is a big Robert Pattinson fan but she was constantly busy so I ended up seeing this on my own. Oh how I wish I'd not bothered. The film feels like it goes on forever, none of the characters are particularly likeable and it all feels like a pointless excuse for Robert Pattinson to frolic with a bunch of women. 

Normally I wouldn't be against this but he's not in the best physical shape of his life in this film and looks a bit pasty. I actually thought he looked better with his clothes on. Those who know me will know this is not something I normally say! Pattinson spends the entire film pouting and looking surly, which works well for him in Twilight but he can't get away with it in every film he does.

As the credits rolled, one of the two older women sat next to me said to her friend, 'did you understand what that was about as I didn't?' I understood it, I just wish I hadn't wasted 2 hours of my life understanding it. 4 out of 10.

The fourth film I saw in March was John Carter

Viewing Date - 18th March 2012 | UK Release Date - 9th March 2012

http://www.disney.co.uk/john-carter/

Ah, where to begin with this one. This was a date movie. That will come as a surprise for a lot of my friends who read my blog as I didn't tell anyone I was going on a date. And if I'm honest, I held much higher expectations for the date than the film. But expectations can be wrong.

Allow me to start by saying that John Carter is no where near as bad as everyone made out it was. It did not deserve to be the massive flop that it was. My first take on John Carter, prior to seeing the film, was that it would be this year's Prince Of Persia, but sadly, without Jake. And I was pretty much spot on with that theory. It had sand, a princess, a long haired, muscular hero and a bunch of bad guys. Oh and some aliens. So a bit different to Prince of Persia but not much. 

The story of how John Carter ended up on Mars was really quite well thought out. The alien war there added the action and gave our hero something to fight for. The bad guys were bad, the princess was pretty. It had all the right elements for a pre-summer blockbuster. I can only assume that it's downfall was the lack of a big name star to pull in the crowds? 

I only hope that John Carter will do better on DVD, it could appeal more as a Saturday night couch cuddler than it did as a cinema outing. I certainly enjoyed it for what it's worth. 6 out of 10. 

Moving on to next film for March - We Bought A Zoo

Viewing Date - 21st March 2012 | UK Release Date - 16th March 2012

http://www.weboughtazoomovie.co.uk/

I went to see We Bought A Zoo on the strength of the director being Cameron Crowe. He of course directed one of my all time favourite movies, Say Anything. But he hasn't made a feature film since 2005's Elizabethtown. I went to see this movie with a varied bunch of friends, my cinema buddy, a lesbian and her mother. I think that speaks volumes about the wide audience that this film appeals to. 

Based on a true story of a young widowed man who quit his job and bought a zoo, this is one of those films that tugs at your heart strings from the word go. One thing that Cameron Crowe is great at is making his audience root for the underdog. He did it in Say Anything, brilliantly did it in Jerry Maguire and if Benjamin Mee (Matt Damon's character) isn't an underdog then I don't know who is. 

I'm sure a lot of people will think of this film as being overly sentimental due to the subject matter - Benjamin Mee being a widower and being left with two young children - but the scenes which particularly effected me where the ones surrounding an old and injured tiger, as big cats are very close to my heart. 

There were a couple of scenes in the movie I could have done without. One involves a photo album that comes to life (it's as naff as it sounds), and the end scene where Benjamin explains to his kids how he met their mother (it's corny and a little creepy). But those two scenes aside I really enjoyed the story of the family who bought a zoo, how they took on more than they could handle and how they all pull together to make it a success. 7 out of 10.

The sixth March movie - The Hunger Games

Viewing Date - 23rd March 2012 | UK Release Date - 23rd March 2012

http://www.thehungergamesmovie.com/

As I have not read The Hunger Games I was a little oblivious to it's worldwide appeal and success. On the strength of the trailer and some of the people involved, namely Jennifer Lawrence, I wanted to see the film and decided I would wait until I had done so before investing in the books.

After having seen the film I do still want to read the books, but not as avidly as I did after seeing Twilight or Harry Potter. But with Twilight and Harry Potter I wanted to read the books because I knew there would be more to read than was on screen. I knew they wouldn't have been able to fit everything from those books into a movie and I wanted more. That's not why I want to read Hunger Games. Sure I want to know how the book differs from the film, but more than anything I want to be surprised. Which I wasn't by the film.

Don't get me wrong, I liked the film. Sort of. I liked the performances, I liked the characters, I care about them and want to know what happens next. I just found the film to be a bit obvious, from the word go. *Spoiler Alert* I knew Katniss would end up in the Games (I know it was in the trailer but it was obvious even if I'd not seen that), I knew she would end up getting involved with Peeta (even if only for the cameras), I knew they would change the rules so they both survived, I knew how it would end, including how the last remaining person would die. It was all so obvious. And I hope that in the books it's a little more surprising.

I know I will anger a LOT of people with this review but it's just my opinion. I did still enjoy the film. I just would have liked something to happen that I wasn't expecting. For anyone who hasn't seen the film I recommend you do. Just don't believe the hype about it being the new Twilight. It's nothing like Twilight and I hope that if books 2 and 3 get made, it will continue to be as unique as the first movie was. 7 out of 10.

Well that's all folks, I only saw a rather measly 6 films in March. On with April...

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1

http://www.breakingdawn-themovie.com/

I can't even put into words how much I was looking forward to Breaking Dawn. As a huge fan of the Twilight books and films, I had been excited to see this in the flesh (so to speak) from the moment I started reading the book. 

Writing the review however, is something I was not looking forward to. I feel much like I did when I was faced with writing the review for Source Code, my first review of a Jake Gyllenhaal film. Being a huge fan of his, and knowing that most of my readers were aware of that fact, left me feeling like I was going to be subject to more scrutiny for that review than for most others. And in many ways I was, but I also think I managed to surprise most with how impartial and objective I was to that film and I hope to do the same here. Yes, I am a Twilight fan, but this will not automatically make me biased and a bad reviewer!

My job is also harder here than say, when I was writing the review for the last Harry Potter film, as I have not reviewed any of the previous Twilight films. Therefore I ask you to bear with me while I sum up. For those who have been living under a rock for the last six years, Twilight is the first in a series of four books and so far, four movies. Twilight tells the story of Bella Swan, a normal teenage girl who lives with her mother in Phoenix but decides to move back to her father's home town of Forks when her mother remarries. On her first day at her new school she meets Edward, who just happens to be a vampire. Edward is immediately drawn to Bella's scent and thirsts for her blood over all others, which makes it particularly trying for him when she starts to fall in love with him, and him with her. The situation is exacerbated when a group of nomad vampires come to town who are hell bent on ending Bella's life. 

In the second book/film, New Moon, Edward decides to leave Bella in the hope that she will have a much more normal and safe life without him in it. What he doesn't know is that her best friend Jacob is about to have a life altering experience of his own which will again put Bella's life in danger, when he realises he is a werewolf. Meanwhile, Edward's sister Alice who sees visions of the future, informs Edward that she has seen Bella's death, only for the 'vision' to be revealed as one of Bella cliff diving, rather than committing suicide. But it's too late, Edward has already approached vampire royalty and all round law enforcers, The Volturi, to end his life as he cannot live without Bella. 

Book and film number three, Eclipse, sees The Volturi take more of an interest in Bella as one of the 'laws' of their world is for no human to be aware of their existence. As she does, they give Edward an ultimatum, that Bella be killed or be turned. The latter being a prospect Bella would be quite happy with, but which Edward does not want to happen. He believes that humans have a soul and that transforming Bella would take hers away. But with the wolfpack growing in numbers, the return of one of the nomads, and a visit from The Volturi fast approaching, Edward may have no choice but to turn Bella or risk losing her forever.

Which brings us to book number four, Breaking Dawn which is being split (a la the final Harry Potter book) into two films, Breaking Dawn Part 1 and Part 2. Now the cynical person in me says this is a money spinner for Summit, the production company behind the Twilight films, as Eclipse was easily as big a book as Breaking Dawn and they only felt the need to make one of those! But the fan in me is quite happy that they have split the final book as there is a LOT in it and it would have meant a lot of cutting or downsizing of important scenes. 

*The only spoilers in this review are already contained in the trailer so if you've seen that, fear not!* 
In Breaking Dawn Part 1 we open on preperations for Bella and Edward's wedding. Which as weddings go, goes pretty much without a hitch. The honeymoon however is a slightly trickier situation as Edward is much stronger than Bella. This matched with his blood lust is a combination that screams trouble. But as any normal girl would, Bella wants her honeymoon to be normal, and that means sex. What neither of them was expecting was for Bella to be expecting soon after. And so begins a race against time to save Bella before the thing inside her kills her from the inside out.


It's funny how when I reviewed Harry Potter, I had only read the first few books, and so for the later films I couldn't compare the two. Yet for Twilight, having read them all (several times over), I feel like I have to compare them to the books. And I have to say that this one remained pretty darn faithful. 


*Spoiler Alert* The one scene I was worried about was the birth scene as I wasn't sure if the film was going to end before/during that scene and even if it was intact I wasn't sure how it could be done as in the book it's very gory. It was probably the only scene in the film that I didn't feel they'd done right. That's not to say I didn't like it, it just wasn't how I'd imagined it would be. Everyone goes on about the sex in Breaking Dawn, but there really isn't any in the book, it's all just implied, whereas the birth scene is described very clearly, and it wasn't how I thought it would be. Having said that, I re-read the birth scene when I got home and was surprised at how close they kept the movie to the book. Other than one change it was pretty much word for word as it is in the book. *End Spoiler Alert* 


The wedding was beautiful and actually better than I'd imagined. The honeymoon was almost exactly as I'd pictured in my head. The one aspect that shocked me was how good the special effects/make up was in the latter stages of Bella's pregnancy. The look they went for was much more horrific than I'd imagined, and so well done. 


Some of the green screen surrounding the house looks a bit naff and the wolf telepathy scene is a bit of a bore but I don't think they could have done it another way. Overall I think Bill Condon did a great job. He's come in on the last two films, the ones which the fans are probably most protective of and most anticipated of all the Twilight films, with a cast who are already so close they're like a family, and he's had to make sure he's lived up to their expectations as well as ours. I think he's done well and I have high hopes for part 2.


The cast, well I know this will be the most scrutinised part, "Kristen can't act/Rob's wooden/Taylor just takes his shirt off and calls it acting", I've heard it all a million times. I know how much stick I'll get for this but I do actually think Kristen Stewart is a good actress, maybe she's not showcased it so much in these films, but there's no denying that she can act. And she definitely gets to do more in this film than just lust after the sparkly one. Speaking of which, Robert Pattinson also has more to do in this film than just shine, he (literally) gets his teeth into this part finally and does some fine work in the birth scene. Taylor has a few good scenes in this film and although I still don't like Jacob, I do like his portrayal of him more than I liked the character in the books.


I think fans of the books and previous films will love it. Those who think Twilight is for girls should probably avoid. It's not perfect but it's very faithful to the source material. 8 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 18th November 2011

UK Release Date - 18th November 2011

Cast Overview:

Kristen Stewart ~ Bella Swan

Robert Pattinson ~ Edward Cullen

Taylor Lautner ~ Jacob Black

Gil Birmingham ~ Billy Black

Billy Burke ~ Charlie Swan

Sarah Clarke ~ Renee

Ashley Greene ~ Alice Cullen

Jackson Rathbone ~ Jasper Hale

Peter Facinelli ~ Dr Carlisle Cullen

Elizabeth Reaser ~ Esme Cullen

Kellan Lutz ~ Emmett Cullen

Nikki Reed ~ Rosalie Hale

Anna Kendrick ~ Jessica

Christian Serratos ~ Angela

Justin Chon ~ Eric

Michael Welch ~ Mike

Michael Sheen ~ Aro

Christopher Heyerdahl ~ Marcus

Jamie Campbell Bower ~ Caius

Charlie Bewley ~ Demetri

Daniel Cudmore ~ Felix

Mia Maestro ~ Carmen

Maggie Grace ~ Irina

MyAnna Buring ~ Tanya

Booboo Stewart ~ Seth Clearwater

Julia Jones ~ Leah Clearwater

Alex Rice ~ Sue Clearwater

Kiowa Gordon ~ Embry

Tyson Houseman ~ Quil

Chaske Spencer ~ Sam Uley

Bronson Pelletier ~ Jared

Alex Meraz ~ Paul

Tinsel Korey ~ Emily

Director ~ Bill Condon

Writer(s) ~ Melissa Rosenberg (Screenplay) and Stephenie Meyer (Novel)

Water For Elephants

http://www.waterforelephants.com/

If you follow me on Tumblr (or facebook or twitter) you'll know that I was really looking forward to seeing Water For Elephants. It was one of only four films that I listed as 'Looking forward to seeing in May' along with Something Borrowed, Pirates 4 and The Hangover Part 2.

The last trailer released moved me almost to the point of tears, then one of my closest friends told me it was like Titanic at the circus. All of this combined made me think that Water For Elephants was going to require a LOT of tissues and become this years weepie equivalent of The Notebook.

The story is told via reflection of Jacob Jankowski (Hal Holbrook) on his life as a younger man (Robert Pattinson) and how he inadvertently ended up joining the circus when his parents died. We're told that the circus he joined, The Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth, was renowned for being the most famous circus disaster of all time. The story continues to tell how Jacob became the vet for the travelling circus and in turn shows how he befriended the latest aquisition to the circus of Rosie the elephant, and how he fell in love with the ringmasters wife, Marlena (Reese Witherspoon).

As is usually the way with films we're really looking forward to, they inevitably don't live up to our expectations. I don't want to ruin the film for anyone so if you haven't seen it and you'd like to, please skip to the end of the spoiler alert. 

*spoiler alert*

The thing that I felt severely let down by was the so called 'most famous circus disaster of all time'. Both the trailer and the opening sequence of the film tell us about this disaster. It's really not. I was expecting some kind of animal stampede, heavy casualties. Someone else I know was expecting a fire. Yes, the animals are let loose but there is only one casualty and that's the one person you want to be killed anyway. Where's the disaster? More importantly, where's the tragedy? 

In my opinion you can't have a tragic love story (especially not on the scale of Titanic) without a death. Here, the main couple live happily ever after. There's nothing tragic about that. Sorry if I seem a little morbid. I'm not saying I wanted them to die, more that I'd been expecting it. I was convinced from the first trailer that Marlena would die in the 'circus disaster'. I was wrong. 

*end of spoiler alert*

Having said all of that, I did think the film was beautifully shot and acted and I completely fell in love with Tai who played Rosie the elephant. She is brilliant, beautiful and completely amazing. The feats she performs are jaw dropping - no computer wizardry, check out Reese and Robert on the Graham Norton show (bbc iplayer http://tinyurl.com/3qogazp) to see for yourself - but even more impressive are her quiet moments, the scene with her and Jacob in the train carrage is breathtaking. 

So overall I liked Water For Elephants and would recommend seeing it, I would just try to put thoughts of the 'most famous circus disaster of all time' out of your head and expect something a little less grand. 7.5 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 5th May 2011

UK Release Date - 4th May 2011

Cast Overview:

Reese Witherspoon ~ Marlena

Robert Pattinson ~ Jacob

Christoph Waltz ~ August

Paul Schneider ~ Charlie

Jim Norton ~ Camel

Mark Povinelli ~ Kinko/Walter

Hal Holbrook ~ Old Jacob Jankowski

Director ~ Francis Lawrence

Writer(s) ~ Richard LaGravenese (Screenplay) and Sara Gruen (Novel)