Saturday, June 6, 2009

The Twilight Debate Continues



"That is a pretty narrow minded opinion to think that just because someone has a different opinion than you, that there life must be boring. I would suggest reading the book, they are always better than the movie."

-Anonymous

To all those fans of "Twilight," I again ask why do you like the movie? Why do you like the book? Of course books are usually better than movies, however, the movie that I watched had no substance, no real plot, no real character development, nothing but a "love-at-first-sight" gag me with a spoon-I can't live without you from the moment I smelled your scent-I'd die if you ever left my sight for more than a day, blah, blah, blah, all under the "new" guise of vampire-ism. I can't imagine that there was a deeper level to the book, perhaps a more intriguing read than watching the movie, but still....

I get that 14 year-olds would totally and absolutely heart this movie. Generally, we have a weird view of romantic love when we're teenagers, and I do kinda/sorta get that appeal.

And I will admit, perhaps I was a little judgmental towards young mothers who can't get enough of "Twilight" when I posed the statement/question, "Is your life really that boring?" But I'm still kind of wondering. Do you view this movie as an escape from your life? Is the romantic dynamic--eh hem cough cough, sorry I think I just threw up a little in my mouth--what makes this movie way cool?

Here's your chance. Please defend your opinion. What is the appeal of either the book or movie, because I certainly don't get it. I'm not usually accused of being narrow-minded, so do, please do, expand the narrow channels of my mind. Enlighten me. Make me a believer.

Because even though this is still my opinion, Hylan said the preview for the next movie actually looks pretty good, . P.S. We basically drew the same conclusion about the movie being horrible.

CONVINCE ME! And don't just tell me to read the book(s)--I have better literature to read!!!! Tell me why you love "Twilight" so dang much.

4 comments:

heatherhite said...

Well, I guess for me it appeals to the romantic side of me but I will say that if it wasn't for the book, I probably wouldn't like it either. Even though I like the movie now (I really think it just grew on me) I was disappointed when I first saw it. It's a cult think I guess!

Anonymous said...

I'm not here to make you a believer, but I am here to say that yes, the movie was not the best movie ever made. But the reason why people love it so much, is because of the book. If you read the book, then you understand the in-between the lines things that the low-budget of Twilight (movie) was not able to convey. I agree that the second movie will probably be better since it has a substantially higher budget.

The reason why the book is great is because of the suspense that keeps you flipping the pages, wondering what will happen next. The intrigue of a forbidden fruit, why they are drawn to each other... Yes, the romance is part of it... Edward is reminded of his human nature, and what is really important in life by being near Bella. They help each other become better... There are interesting characters and plots.

Of course Stephenie Meyer got better in her writing with the sub sequential books. Most writers do. You say you want to be a believer, but you will never truly understand where Twilight Fans are coming from, why the books are NY Times bestsellers, why the movie grossed millions of dollars, unless you actually read it.

I'm not telling you that you should, especially if you have "better literature to read". Sure. But if you honestly want to know why people love "Twilight", it isn't because of the movie. It is because of the books.

Anonymous said...

I thought I would add that before I read the books, I was a bit skeptical and wasn't sure if I would really like a book about vampires. But Stephenie Meyer has a way of making it interesting, funny and intriguing in a way that I didn't think was possible with this topic. Plus, the vampires have super powers like super heroes. How freakin awesome is that. Very.

Marissa Marie said...

My sister and sister in laws loved the books, I thought they were somewhat entertaining, brain candy. But I really disliked the first movie. I thought Edward was just plain creepy, and Bella was weird for being so desperately madly in love with him.

It's cheesey in the book, but you can see the connection a lot better. Edward represents the strong protective, noble type, Bella is feminine and naive, yet fiesty. The supporting characters add interest and humor.

I wouldn't say read the books since you have such a strong negative bias already, but if you approached it with an open mind, they are very very fast reads.

I kinda think the second movie looks better too. I hope that Edward wears less lipstick and pasty white makeup. I've heard they got a better director, hopefully they have a better makeup artist!