Favorite Movie of the Year?
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I've still got a few to see (Benjamin Button, Milk) but there's a good chance that my favorite movie of 2008 will be Twilight. Most of you will know that this is the movie adaption of Stephenie Meyer's young adult novel of the same name, and that it's a vampire romance. A high school vampire romance.
The movie has gotten generally good reviews, but (important social lecturing alert) I think a movie like this is automatically handicapped. While teenage-fantasy movies from a boy's perspective can be respected as classics (see: American Graffiti, Diner), the same can't be said of movies for girls. It's the whole Tiger Beat phenomenon: Girl crushes are mockable, silly, and said to be fixated on "safe" boys. Boy crushes can be portrayed as deep and meaningful (see: Candle in the Wind, Virgin Suicides), but is lusting after Marilyn Monroe or Megan Fox any less "safe"? Maybe a greater number of dumb, mediocre movies are made for girls, so they're associated with poor quality and empty adoration.
Twilight is not such a movie, though. I think it will go on to be a classic. Here are some of the things I liked best about it:
Direction: Twilight was directed by Catherine Hardwicke, and I can't imagine a better adaptation. The pacing was perfect, and Hardwicke surely set the tone for the whole production. Like Peter Jackson and Lord of the Rings, she takes the material seriously and conveys that to her actors. Hardwicke also directed Thirteen, which may be the best movie about teenagers ever made.
Acting, Part One: Kristen Stewart was cast as Bella, and she is perfect. While being beautiful, she can also look plain, which is important for this part. She is understated in her acting, which makes some of the otherwise over-the-top romantic scenes work. Example: At one point Edward Cullen (the vampire) tells her that she's in danger if she continues to be with him. A cheesier actress would furrow her brow, look longingly into his eyes, and exclaim "I don't care!" (and a cheesier director would let her). Not Kristen Stewart. She looks at him very levelly, and says the line in an almost clipped manner: "I don't care." Quick, almost like she can't trust herself to say more. This keeps the cheese factor out but still expresses underlying emotion. The only time she lets the emotion pop is after the encounter with the "bad" vampires, when she and Edward return to the car; they're tense, and he's trying to put her seatbelt on, and she angrily yells "I got it! I got it!" What makes the moment so realistic is that her voice is about 5 notes lower in pitch than it is in the rest of the movie. And isn't that the way it really happens? When you're really upset, the actual pitch of your voice changes. Kristen Stewart's greatest accomplishment, though, is not allowing Bella to be a weak or old-fashioned damsel character. Because honestly that is what the part is, that is what the plot is. But she counteracts it by making her character understated, smart, and firm and rescues the movie from a possible Ick Factor.
Acting, Part Two: Robert Pattinson is cast as Edward Cullen, and, again, he is perfect. Here are some of the tightropes Pattinson had to walk in this role: He must be handsome, but slightly odd-looking. He must act older than his year, but still like a 17-year-old. He must be a hero-character, but not ham-handed. He has to be tortured but not melodramatic. And he has to balance all these needs simultaneously through the whole performance.
Cinematography: The movie has a great look, based on a palette of grays and dull greens. Washington State looks and feels damp, dull, and menacing.
Costume: The costumes mirror the cinematography: lots of grays and greens, so understated that you actually pay no attention to the clothes at all. A lot of time the students' hair is slightly messy and humid, kind of unkempt. The characters look like and dress like high school students. Average-looking, dully clothed, perfect.
Screenplay: Above all, the screenplay is smart. It doesn't explain every little thing. It risks the viewer missing something in order to keep its head. There are moments of humor, but they never clash with the somber tone of the movie. It took me a while to realize there is not a single curse word in the script, nor a single scene of nudity. Nothing wrong with those things in their place, but a lot of times they feel like a cheap crutch in teenage movies. Twilight has nothing to lean on but its own internal strength.
So there is my review, for those obsessive enough to care. I hope I haven't overstated the case for those who haven't seen it yet. I went in with expectations of a good movie but not a great one, which can help.
-
I've still got a few to see (Benjamin Button, Milk) but there's a good chance that my favorite movie of 2008 will be Twilight. Most of you will know that this is the movie adaption of Stephenie Meyer's young adult novel of the same name, and that it's a vampire romance. A high school vampire romance.
The movie has gotten generally good reviews, but (important social lecturing alert) I think a movie like this is automatically handicapped. While teenage-fantasy movies from a boy's perspective can be respected as classics (see: American Graffiti, Diner), the same can't be said of movies for girls. It's the whole Tiger Beat phenomenon: Girl crushes are mockable, silly, and said to be fixated on "safe" boys. Boy crushes can be portrayed as deep and meaningful (see: Candle in the Wind, Virgin Suicides), but is lusting after Marilyn Monroe or Megan Fox any less "safe"? Maybe a greater number of dumb, mediocre movies are made for girls, so they're associated with poor quality and empty adoration.
Twilight is not such a movie, though. I think it will go on to be a classic. Here are some of the things I liked best about it:
Direction: Twilight was directed by Catherine Hardwicke, and I can't imagine a better adaptation. The pacing was perfect, and Hardwicke surely set the tone for the whole production. Like Peter Jackson and Lord of the Rings, she takes the material seriously and conveys that to her actors. Hardwicke also directed Thirteen, which may be the best movie about teenagers ever made.
Acting, Part One: Kristen Stewart was cast as Bella, and she is perfect. While being beautiful, she can also look plain, which is important for this part. She is understated in her acting, which makes some of the otherwise over-the-top romantic scenes work. Example: At one point Edward Cullen (the vampire) tells her that she's in danger if she continues to be with him. A cheesier actress would furrow her brow, look longingly into his eyes, and exclaim "I don't care!" (and a cheesier director would let her). Not Kristen Stewart. She looks at him very levelly, and says the line in an almost clipped manner: "I don't care." Quick, almost like she can't trust herself to say more. This keeps the cheese factor out but still expresses underlying emotion. The only time she lets the emotion pop is after the encounter with the "bad" vampires, when she and Edward return to the car; they're tense, and he's trying to put her seatbelt on, and she angrily yells "I got it! I got it!" What makes the moment so realistic is that her voice is about 5 notes lower in pitch than it is in the rest of the movie. And isn't that the way it really happens? When you're really upset, the actual pitch of your voice changes. Kristen Stewart's greatest accomplishment, though, is not allowing Bella to be a weak or old-fashioned damsel character. Because honestly that is what the part is, that is what the plot is. But she counteracts it by making her character understated, smart, and firm and rescues the movie from a possible Ick Factor.
Acting, Part Two: Robert Pattinson is cast as Edward Cullen, and, again, he is perfect. Here are some of the tightropes Pattinson had to walk in this role: He must be handsome, but slightly odd-looking. He must act older than his year, but still like a 17-year-old. He must be a hero-character, but not ham-handed. He has to be tortured but not melodramatic. And he has to balance all these needs simultaneously through the whole performance.
Cinematography: The movie has a great look, based on a palette of grays and dull greens. Washington State looks and feels damp, dull, and menacing.
Costume: The costumes mirror the cinematography: lots of grays and greens, so understated that you actually pay no attention to the clothes at all. A lot of time the students' hair is slightly messy and humid, kind of unkempt. The characters look like and dress like high school students. Average-looking, dully clothed, perfect.
Screenplay: Above all, the screenplay is smart. It doesn't explain every little thing. It risks the viewer missing something in order to keep its head. There are moments of humor, but they never clash with the somber tone of the movie. It took me a while to realize there is not a single curse word in the script, nor a single scene of nudity. Nothing wrong with those things in their place, but a lot of times they feel like a cheap crutch in teenage movies. Twilight has nothing to lean on but its own internal strength.
So there is my review, for those obsessive enough to care. I hope I haven't overstated the case for those who haven't seen it yet. I went in with expectations of a good movie but not a great one, which can help.
-
posted by Anonymous at
5:06 PM
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