Review: The Twilight Saga: Eclipse

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Twilight Eclipse

While viewing online photos of Twilight-themed bedrooms earlier this week, I was a bit apprehensive about seeing the latest installment of the film series that's been anxiously awaited by hardcore fans. Walls covered with posters, full-size cutouts of Edward and patchwork quilts with scenes from the film were a bit disturbing, especially for the person who was obviously in her forties. However, a wall covered with images of Bella, Jake, and Edward struck a chord -- I was that pre-teen, with pictures of David Cassidy and Donny Osmond torn from the pages of Tiger Beat magazine. It was a humbling moment, and a prelude to my experience watching The Twilight Saga: EclipseEclipse is the most mature and palatable of the three romantic fantasy films so far. Melissa Rosenberg returns again as screenwriter, but it's director David Slade (Hard Candy, 30 Days of Night) who strips away much of the prior films' campiness and poorly-executed special effects and delivers an entertaining film.

Eclipse begins with an attack on a dark and ominous night in Seattle that sets a sinister tone to forthcoming events. A series of unexplained deaths and disappearances causes concern amongst the Cullen family. Even more disturbing is that the vampire Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard) has been prowling nearby to seek her revenge on Edward for killing her mate. Star-crossed lovers Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) and Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) are reunited -- she is determined for him to turn her into a vampire, so they can never be parted. Edward is reluctant to do so, but sets a stipulation that she's not too keen on.

Meanwhile, Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) remains estranged from Bella because he is both jealous and furious of her relationship with a "Cold One." We learn more about the history and the conflict between the vampires and the Quileute tribe of shapeshifters. Bella's decision to be turned along with Victoria's attempt to kill her in revenge fuels the conflict and jeopardizes the precarious pact between vampires and werewolves.

Eclipse stays true to its source material by introducing and filling in the stories of several characters, which is a gamble for Slade that pays off most of the time and adds depth. Jackson Rathbone (Dread, The Last Airbender) delivers a solid performance as adopted Cullen family member Jasper Hale née Whitlock, a Texan who joined the Confederate States Army in 1861 to serve in the Civil War. Jasper teaches the werewolves and vampires fighting techniques to defend themselves against newborn vampires. Through flashbacks, we discover he'd been turned after the Civil War by the vampire Maria, who was intent on creating a newborn vampire army to gain control in Mexico.

Taylor Lautner as Jacob Black outperforms Pattinson, and not just because he's hotblooded and shirtless again -- although Pattinson delivers one of the funniest self-aware lines of the film at his expense. A heartfelt talk between the two rivals seems so much more genuine than dialogue from the earlier Twilight films and the relentless brooding is a little less rampant. However, Pattinson comes across throughout most Eclipse as so stoic and frozen that it's plausible he would shatter if struck by the stronger Volturi coven. Peter Facinelli as Dr. Carlisle Cullen demonstrates the other end of the spectrum, of being able to retain some of the "human" qualities from his original life as he continues to heal the wounded. Billy Burke reprises his enduring role as Bella's father Charlie, who struggles with the typical difficulties of a single parent raising a teenager.

Ashley Greene returns to her refreshingly entertaining role as Alice Cullen. Greene brings a unique quality to this character, which shouldn't be surprising after her impressive performance in Skateland, which premiered at SXSW 2010. Kristen Stewart as Bella has improved and matured as an actress, but it could definitely be argued more effectively by checking out her hard-ass performance as Joan Jett in The Runaways. Bella's indecisiveness and detachment from other characters alienates more mature viewers. Ironically, the backstory of Rosalie Hale (Nikki Reed) engages the audience more than Stewart, in a character who previously appeared to have nothing but hatred for Bella. Rosalie reveals her envy for Bella's opportunity to live life as a human, since she herself had that choice taken from her as shown through flashbacks.

The remainder of the Eclipse cast portraying secondary characters don't contribute much to the film. Dakota Fanning is the most miscast actress in this series as Jane, a member of the Volturi clan and royalty. I'm dumbfounded as to why Slade wasn't able to get more from Fanning, especially after her controversial performance as Cherie Currie in The Runaways alongside Stewart. The newborn vampire army and Quileute tribe members are mostly set dressing, including Seth (BooBoo Stewart), who spends more time onscreen in his wolf form than human. Sadly, the enchanting Elizabeth Reaser has very little dialogue as Esme, mother of the Cullen family.

Slade brings the camera in closer in Eclipse than either of the prior Twilight films and succeeds in pulling the audience into the action. Whether a close shot of two lovers in an intimate embrace or the terror of Riley Biers (Xavier Samuel) being stalked in the opening scene by a creature of the night, the cinematography engages viewers. The special effects are improved from the last film, and the chase and fight scenes are more interesting and less laughable than before. The dialogue is greatly improved, with some humorous moments obviously written in a self-aware tribute to the campiness that plagued the earlier films.

Unfortunately, the work of Slade and Rosenberg isn't enough to overcome the weaknesses of the source material from author Stephenie Meyer, as I was reminded by some of the dialogue. At least Bella appears to finally be making her own choices, despite the concerns of Charlie, Edward and Jacob. At the end, the Twilight saga is still about a damsel in distress being protected by supernatural males. This realization won't prevent Eclipse from breaking the records of Twilight and New Moon, and may also draw in new viewers. I will admit that I enjoyed Eclipse the most out of all the Twilight saga films so far -- read my less forgiving New Moon review -- but it's not on my "must-see" recommendations for the year.