'Twilight' lights up teen girls

Mark Trammell, Features Editor
Published On: 11/24/2008

Unless you have no contact whatsoever with a television or have been living under a rock — or a coffin — you’ve no doubt caught wind of the “Twilight” phenomenon.

Posited as filling the void left by the Harry Potter film series, which was relocated to next year, “Twilight” seems like a can’t miss, at least with the legions of teenage girls (and their moms, who should know better) who worship at the alter of creator Stephenie Meyer. Though her quadrilogy — just completed with the publication of the final entry “Breaking Dawn” this past summer — may not have grossed the multi-billions of J.K. Rowling, it’s certainly struck a chord.

Ever the intrepid reporter, I braved the murky waters of the first book in the series, “Twilight,” as preparation for seeing the movie. (Full disclosure: Yes, I am one of those people that thinks the book is nearly always better.)

Much to my surprise, the book hooked me right away, which probably has much to do with my being in the past an Anne Rice and “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer” addict, and therefore, primed at the pump to fall for this sort of thing already.

Those allusions are as good a reference point as you could ask for, having clearly been big influences on the series, but “Twilight” sets itself apart in a number of ways. Namely, it’s not quite as sexually active (at least at this point of the story) as Rice, or as tongue-in-cheek as “Buffy.” This is teen + vamp love played straight, with maximum angst, to say the least.

The story begins when the mature-for-her-age Bella (Kristen Stewart) opts to relocate to the small town of Forks, Wash., from the decidedly sunnier climes of Phoenix, Ariz., in order to give her newly remarried mom some space and avoid being a third wheel.

Moving in with her like-minded father, who also keeps mostly to himself, Bella suffers the expected fish-out-of-water growing pains, but rebounds pretty quickly, as the notoriety of being the sheriff’s daughter won’t allow her to be left alone for long. She bonds with the eager-beaver puppy dog Mike (Michael Welch, formerly of “Joan of Arcadia”); the sassy, sexy Jessica (newcomer Anna Kendrick, a star-in-the-making); and reconnects with her sweet childhood pal Jacob (Taylor Lautner, late of “My Own Worst Enemy”), among others.

However, it’s the mysterious Cullen and Hale clans that really pique her interest, with their pale skin and supermodel looks, particularly loner Edward (Robert Pattinson, a.k.a. “Cedric Diggory” from “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”). All are foster kids “adopted” by one Dr. Cullen and his wife Esme, though not in the traditional sense. As you’ve no doubt surmised by now, the crew is entirely comprised of vampires, but the beasties don’t stop there, as — spoiler alert! — there are other creatures roaming the landscape, including implied werewolves, setting the stage for a future turf war, a la the “Underworld” film series, only on a smaller scale.

The trouble begins when a crew of vamp outsiders rumbles into town and starts killing humans, including the wild card James (“O.C.” refugee Cam Gigandet) and his feral-looking girlfriend Victoria (super-sexy Rachelle Lefevre, from, amusingly enough, “Big Wolf on Campus”).

James notes Edward’s affection for Bella and a showdown between the two is a foregone conclusion. Meanwhile, Bella is still trying to wrap her head around the existence of things that actually do go bump in the night, much less being in love with one of them. The scene where she goes to meet Edward’s vamp-fam is priceless, resulting in the funniest such scenario this side of “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?,” only with Bella as the potential “Guess Who Could End Up As Dinner?”

Though the film could stand a little more levity of this sort, it’s probably wise it keeps such moments to a minimum, lest they upset those aforementioned die-hard fans. Still, there are times the film verges on parody, especially early on, as Edward tries to fight his impending feelings for Bella.

Fortunately, the film rights itself each time it verges on losing its way, which is no doubt the doings of filmmaker Catherine Hardwicke. That film’s co-star and co-scripter Nikki Reed also pops up here in near-unrecognizable blonde form as one of the vamps, the feisty, protective Rosalie Hale.

Given that the two have worked together on all but one of Hardwicke’s films, the well meaning stumble “The Nativity Story,” perhaps she should consider Reed a good luck charm, as both “Thirteen” and the entertaining “Lords of Dogtown” featured the talented actress.

Indeed, those films make Hardwicke the perfect choice for the “Twilight” series, as she has shown incredible aptitude for films that primarily feature teen boys and girls. She gets teens in a way few directors do these days. In short, she makes them feel true to life instead of feeling like some Hollywood version.

Kudos should also go to the excellent, oft-breathtaking, cinematography of Elliot Davis, an old hand at this sort of thing, thanks to one of his early flicks, the cult classic “Vamp.” (Davis also worked on all of Hardwicke’s previous films, so he may be a good luck charm in his own right, “Nativity” notwithstanding.)

The cast is everything a fan of the books could hope for, what with the strong casting of Stewart, an actress I’ve been following for some time, thanks to such guy friendly endeavors as the sci-fi hoot “Zathura,” the underrated horror flick “The Messengers,” and the true-life adventure story “Into the Wild.”

She radiates intelligence, as well as beauty, and nails the complex emotions that so many fans related to from the book. Ditto the appropriately swoon-inducing casting of Pattinson, who threatens to go off the rails at any time, performance-wise, but never quite does, no doubt because of Hardwicke’s skillful direction.

Those guys groaning at the thought of all this romance should know that there’s also a fair amount of action to be found, including an exciting climax and some nifty special effects. Not to mention featuring hotties for all tastes, what with Stewart, Reed, Lefevre, and Kendrick (who’s like her generation’s Lacey Chabert) onboard, not to mention adorable Christian Serratos as a — be still my heart — newspaper writer. The end result is a little like “The Lost Boys” from the perspective of a teenage girl, and I do mean that as a compliment.

Only time will tell if the series proves as popular as the books, but this is as close to a slam-dunk as you’re likely to find this season, that’s for sure. Word is Meyer, who has a brief cameo here in a local diner, fumbled the finale, but having not gotten that far in the series, I can only say that, either in book or film form, “Twilight” is a trip worth taking. Besides, what the naysayers don’t get, the teenage girls — and yes, even their moms — understand.