Film Review: The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
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Review
I entered my viewing of the third entry of the Twilight series with severe pessimism. I had concluded from my viewing of New Moon that the success of the original film would urge the production of its sequels into continuously watered down likenesses of the edgy yet charming supernatural romance that is the first work. New Moon was two or three steps back, but I am delighted to say that Eclipse is leaps and bounds back forward.
The original work, with at its edgy flaws, still presented a cinematic work with lots of personality—a cold, desaturated palette, remarkable visual storytelling, and a charming soundtrack and score. New Moon ironed out all of these into a mass-appealing, mediocre mess. Eclipse is a reincarnation of the charisma of Twilight.
The palette, though not totally dead and devoid of saturation, is now moody and intentional. The woods are saturated, but not colored like an advertisement for a national park. The familiar tones of brown are back to convey Jacob’s warmth, though executed with more elegance than the previous film. Mostly used as a visual motif for the Cullens, the cold palette is back! Beyond the color work, this film offers moments of effective creative visuals (an army of vampires walking out of a cold lake, as just one example).
The music in this film was an absolute pleasure for my ears. While New Moon featured banger-after-banger in its soundtrack, its score lacked any sort of intention or effect. Eclipse features a nice little set of songs, while the score—my God, the score. I was gushing over the score for the entire film. Every second of orchestration was a masterwork of storytelling, I hardly needed any dialogue or visuals to understand the narrative. Every moment is a treasure of music that could (and should) be studied by any composer. (Come to find out, Howard Shore composed the score to this film—absolutely brilliant. A true master.)
The budget of this installment is not indicative of unnecessary spending; rather, it’s clear that the increase in capital allowed for a more polished work of art. The Cullens are far from their origins as a family of clowns, the “skin of a killer” sparkle has honed in its subtly, and the effects, makeup, wardrobes, etc. all feel well-executed.
The narrative is engaging. Many threads hitting one after another over the first two acts kept the film feeling full and well-paced. Even the subplot with her high school clique seem symbolic and relevant. The only lull in the film is the tent scene prior to the climatic battle—it completely kills all momentum of the movie. Still, the viewer is treated to many little pieces of different characters’ stories, providing broader context through a technique that feels punchy, engaging, and fulfilling. By the end I actually cared about most characters. (This film further highlights the shared sociopathy of both Bella and Edward.)
I cannot overstate my satisfaction in this work. Barring a few minor hiccups (that can mostly be blamed on the lawful boredom of romance dialogue), I enjoyed every bit of this film. This installment surely perpetuated the velocity of this beloved series. Bravo.
Notes
First character shown is the annoying friend… doesn’t bode well.
Right into some action. Very dark, reminiscent of a batman movie.
They’ve pumped the orchestra even more – low brass, strings, AND synths.
Stylish title card.
Beautiful shot of saturated northwestern woods, Bella and Edward in a field of lavender. I’m a sucker for a flowery field.
They’ve dialed in the sparkly skin effect and makeup.
Robert Pattinson is still handsome.
I LOVE her lavender flannel, so stylish.
Damn she’s pregnant?
Whoever plays the dad is a great actor.
Bella is mentally ill and Edward is a creep.
Are we gearing up for another banger soundtrack?
All her friends look like 25 year olds cosplaying as high schoolers.
Why the dramatic music?
Oh, Alice saw something crazy.
Edward’s makeup is still a little funny.
Maybe the dad isn’t a great actor, but he does have great dad energy.
Tee shirt quilts are awesome.
Nice return to the cool palette for the scene with the Cullens in the woods.
ICY cold palette, very nice.
I love watching vampires run like The Flash.
Edward’s famous Volvo is still kicking.
Bad boy showdown between Edward and Jacob.
Very cool cinematic shot of the road through the woods.
The posse of shirtless dudes will always be funny.
Excellent use of browns and warm tones when Bella’s around Jacob – the visual storytelling is back, baby.
“Have you imprinted on someone?” is a great first date question.
Bella’s relationship with Jacob is so much healthier than hers and Edward’s, it cannot be overstated.
Back to the cool palette for the vamp in Bella’s bedroom – nice.
A new vamp? Did the annoying guy get vamp’ed by Victoria in the opening scene?
It’s never really explained that they eat deer.
“Doesn’t he own a shirt?” – Edward, about Jacob standing shirtless on the side of the road.
“Paul’s been hoovering the grub” why is this werewolf kid using British vernacular?
I’ll happily take some native American werewolf lore.
Ancient native American werewolves vs theatre kid.
The score is way less Star Wars-y.
Guy’s head cracking apart like it’s ceramic was a cool effect.
The Cullens have so much personality, I’m glad they’re back.
Breeding an army of vampires is an epic plot.
Boring romance scene with Edward and Bella in bed, but not nearly as boring as the romance scenes in New Moon.
Another GREAT transition shot of the mountains against the lake.
Good on Jacob for just being honest about his feelings, holy shit.
FANTASTIC score while Jacob pours his heart out, though a bit creepy to steal a kiss like that.
Emmett is growing on me, he’s charming.
I am empathetic to Rosalie’s motives.
I’m not sure why Bella is so shocked when she explains that she doesn’t want to be a vampire, she explained it when she voted against Bella becoming a vampire in New Moon.
“I was in love with the idea of love.” is a simple but elegant line.
Rosalie’s backstory is amazing.
The score continues to impress.
The Volturi are fucking sick.
Jane is an awesome character, reminds me of Alia Atreides.
This film has so many parallel threads, the graduation scene is nice.
I love a dramatic high school party scene.
I LOVE MUSE. There better be a Muse sound in the final two films.
Jacob is man enough to apologize. 110% team Jacob.
Why are Tayler Lautner’s line deliveries so bad in the dramatic briefing room scene?
Vampires and werewolves establishing a truce and training together to defeat an army of evil vampires is so fantastical.
It’s a nice piece of lore that newborns are super powerful.
Epic training montage with GREAT music.
Still can’t get over that they’re just wolves and not lycanthropes. I’m not sure which would be funnier.
The wolves didn’t train at all? They just watched a bunch of vampires fight each other?
It’s nice that we’re getting backstories for the various Cullens.
Jasper is a cowboy vampire.
Nice oboe in the score! God the score is good.
If Jasper became a vampire during the civil war then why is he the only one that freaked out over Bella’s scent in the first two movies? He’s older than Edward AND Rosalie? Why didn’t they lose control?
Alice and Jasper are the actual goals in this series.
Jasper has a history with Victoria?
Why is Jacob always shirtless?
It’s so boring when Bella and Jacob talk at each other.
It’s like they didn’t know Jasper’s backstory until this movie and they suddenly gave him a southwestern accent.
“The talk” scene felt genuinely awkward, nice.
The Clair de Lune is a nice callback.
Are they gonna bang?
Can vampires get boners if their hearts don’t pump blood?
This relationship is so unhealthy.
Edward is so manipulative.
That’s a big ass ring.
Getting down on one knee is so campy.
Victoria is only slightly less manipulative than Edward.
And damn, she is manipulative.
Beautiful wintery forest.
I’m pumped for a big vampire fight.
BEAUTIFUL score in the pre-fight buildup.
Vampire army walking through a cold lake and emerging out of the water is a striking visual.
“I am hotter than you” is a funny line.
Jacob cucking Edward is funny, too.
I was ready for a big vamp fight, the tent scene has killed all momentum.
Edward and Jacob talking to each other is so fucking boring.
Holy shit the tent scene obliterated the momentum of the film.
Holy shit I need a vampire fight watching these three figure out their whiny love triangle is torture.
I don’t fully understand why she asked Jacob to kiss her. I think she and Edward match each other in their levels of sociopathy.
FINALLY a big vampire fight.
I love how their heads smash like lightbulbs, such a cool effect.
Nice contrast of Victoria’s hair against the snow.
Score continues to be excellent during the face-off with Riley.
I thought vampires had to be burned to really be killed, are they going to have a giant bonfire with all the bodies at the end?
Trying to remember “don’t go for the obvious kill” and how that will come up.
Nice parallel with Bella to the ancient chief’s wife.
Victoria was really dry, she lit up instantly.
There IS a big bonfire of bodies.
I wonder what happened to the little girl that the Cullen mom and dad were eyeballing?
Jane is a scary character.
Hilarious that the Volturi live by the motto “everybody gets one”.
Return of the brown tones that convey Jacob’s warmth.
Score continues to impress.
Hell yeah, return of the lavender field.
Emotional scene at the end here is kind of boring. At least the score is still good.
AMAZING opening track for the credits – Metric is too good.
Just looked it up – the score was composed by Howard Shore. Brilliant.