#263: Twilight

Release Date: November 21st, 2008

Format: Streaming (HBO)

Written by: Melissa Rosenberg

Directed by: Catherine Hardwicke

2 Stars

I’ll admit, I’ve never been a young teenage girl. Hence, I might not be the target audience for Twilight, the 2008 film written by Melissa Rosenberg and directed by Catherine Hardwicke, adapted from Stephanie Meyer’s enormously popular series of novels about vampires living in the Pacific Northwest.

Am I moved emotionally when Robert Pattinson’s Edward Cullen looks passionately at Kristen Stewart’s Bella Swan, with his flawless alabaster skin and chiseled jawline? No, not really. 

But I am intrigued. What a strange, immersive movie this is. 

Twilight was a massive mainstream hit ($412 million at the box office against a $37 million budget), yet it quickly seemed destined to settle into its current status as a beloved cult classic. Sure it made a bunch of money, but its legacy will be that of an ironic, memed, Millennial tongue-in-cheek masterpiece. 

Like I said, I don’t think it’s that good, but it does immerse you. There’s some value in that. The movie’s setting is a blue-tinted rainforest, full of pale, pouty-lipped protagonists who all speak at 0.75 speed, and they are captivating (and unintentionally funny, too). 

I’m not sure I will watch the rest of the series, but I’m not certain. Maybe like Bella, I’ll dream of Edward tonight and be compelled to know more.