The Twilight saga comes to a close in Breaking Dawn: Part 2. Edward (Robert Pattinson) and Bella (Kristen Stewart) return in the fifth and final film.
In the previous film, Bella died during childbirth, but was resurrected as a vampire by her husband, Edward. Now due to a misunderstanding, the Volturi believe Edward and Bella’s daughter is an illegal, immortal child and are hunting the young family down.
Can the Cullen clan convince the Volturi of their innocence? Will there be a vampire war?
We say, “It’s the best of the bunch.”
HOWE: Seeing that I hadn’t watched any of these films (and I’m not going to torture myself by doing so now,) I thought I’d ask my daughter, Brooke, to help out reviewing TBD2.
BROOKE: I was impressed, to say the least. And yes, I cried a little at the end. It was an emotional and romantic series that I think everyone secretly wished would never conclude.
I enjoyed the Twilight films, passionately entertaining us with blood-sucking violence and the fanatic, earth-shattering relationship of Edward and Bella. Oh, don’t forget to throw in a half-human, half-vampire child making for a happily-ever-after that defies tradition and makes for a slightly unorthodox modern-day fairy tale.
TAYLOR: I’ve seen all of these films. I’m not completely sure why, but I think it has something to do with my wife. (She read the books.)
For the most part I thought the series deserved a passing grade with Kristen Stewart’s terrible acting as the feature that dragged the films down most often. However, I think she does a little better here and manages to emote from time to time.
HOWE: I was just about to say that.
BROOKE: Stewart has taken on her new vampire persona with a vengeance, and it suits her much better than the moody, helpless teenager she portrayed in the very first Twilight movie. Remember the awkward, quiet girl that met Edward in the cafeteria? Things have changed quite a lot since then. Bella has become the serious, powerful one, proving to be a better vampire than her lover.
Jacob’s role (Taylor Lautner) has grown into something much more important, and he seems to have more of a purpose now than Edward, who just stands there in this last movie with a permanent smirk on his pasty, white face. Pattinson certainly hasn’t kept up with Stewart’s performance.
HOWE: And that.
TAYLOR: I’ll admit to being slightly excited at the sight of a vampire war, but this film would have been better served by being chopped into its much more boring predecessor. This finale has a few laughs, some cute kids, and lots of… kissing, but it also has the most decapitations I’ve seen this year, so it’s a trade off. I’m gonna let slide the fact that this movie only has one act.
HOWE: It was okay.
— Brooke gives Breaking Dawn: Part Two 5 decapitated heads out of 5.
— Taylor gives it 2.5 guys in frilly shirts who can run really fast out of 5.
— Howe gives it 2 Dracula wannabes out of 5.
The feature is currently showing at the Galaxy Cinemas in Vernon.
–– Brian Taylor and Peter Howe are movie critics living in Vernon, B.C.
