The vampire craze shows no end in sight with the highly anticipated release of the second “Twilight” installment, “The Twilight Saga: New Moon,” on Friday, Nov. 20. The movie was directed by Chris Weitz and stars Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Cam Gigandet, and Nikki Reed.
The film begins with the celebration of Bella’s (Stewart) 18th birthday at the Cullen household. The festivities quickly end when Jasper (Jackson Rathbone) attacks Bella after a paper cut causes her to bleed. The Cullen family leaves the town of Forks in order to protect Bella from any further harm. Heartbroken by Edward’s (Pattinson) abandonment, Bella falls into a deep depression. Once she discovers that she can hear Edward any time she faces danger, she begins to purposely put her safety at risk.
Bella also finds comfort in her growing relationship with childhood friend Jacob Black (Lautner). As the two bond while Jacob helps Bella restore an old motorcycle, their friendship quickly grows into attraction. However, their relationship becomes strained when Bella feels as though Jacob is keeping a secret from her. Once Bella learns the truth about Jacob, the conflict between the Quileute tribe and the Cullen family becomes apparent. An unfortunately timed phone call and a string of miscommunication leads Edward to believe that Bella has committed suicide. After Bella’s reckless behavior literally takes her over the edge, the plot begins to spiral as the main characters find themselves facing the imfamous Volturi vampires in Italy.
Although any true Twilight fans knows how the movie will conclude, the second installment is projected to have a big opening weekend. According to the LA Times, the first “Twilight” film earned an estimated $70.5 million in its opening weekend.
“The movie rang up the fourth-highest November opening weekend of all time,” LA Times writer Richard Verrier said.
Although the first Twilight movie generated a large fan base, some fans were disappointed with both the movie’s depiction of the book and the actors’ portrayal of the characters.
“The first movie was relatively disappointing compared to the book,” sophomore Alex Cova said. “I felt the first movie left out the major role of Bella’s true obsession over Edward and vice versa.”
Other Twilight fans were satisfied with the movie’s cinematic adaptation of the book and the portrayal of its characters.
“I read the book ‘Twilight’ after I watched the movie. I thought the character portrayals were pretty close to the book,” sophomore Ali Fedele said. “Overall, I think the book consisted of a more detailed story, but I think the actors stayed true to the characters’ emotions.”
Some Quinnipiac students are already preparing for the special midnight screenings on the day of the new film’s release.
“I already ordered my tickets,” sophomore Jessica Prior said. “I have been planning on going since I found out the release date.”
Post-production plans already exist for the third Twilight installment, “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.” The film’s tentative release date has been scheduled for June 30, 2010. New additions to the all-star cast include Bryce Dallas Howard, who will be replacing Rachelle Lefevre as Victoria. Numerous “Twilight” fans will continue to wait with great anticipation with the release of the third installment.
