The Twilight Saga: Eclipse is like last’s year’s The Twilight Saga: New Moon on steroids. Everything that was slightly good in that film becomes better. There’s slightly more intentional humor, less of protagonist Bella Swan moping, and some mostly well-done (if slightly redundant at times) set pieces. But the aspect of the The Twilight Saga I hate the most—the advocating for the possession of a woman under the guise of “love”—is taken to an excruciating level. I know that this review can’t dissuade fans from seeing the movie. I know that I’ve made my problems with the subtext clear in my reviews of the first two films. So what I’d like to do this time out is struggle with why the fans love this series and what had them cheering at the end of the movie.
Bella (Kristen Stewart) wants to become a vampire so she can be with Edward (Robert Pattinson) forever. She’s willing to leave behind everyone else in her life because that “love” is so strong. For the record, this is what people in cults do. Edward makes weak-willed attempts to convince her not to change, but at no point does he flat out say “No.” Instead, he puts the condition on her that she has to first marry him before he’ll turn her into a soulless creature who will love blood even more than she loves Edward. Is it really so bad that Stewart would love Edward until the end of her life? Eternity is an awfully long time and I suspect a relationship like this can only work if the people never change emotionally. I suppose it would be nice if we could be frozen in time forever, but the wonderful thing about life is that we grow and experience new things. The Cullen Clan is stuck in a cycle. They keep going to high schools, they keep moving to new towns, and remain aloof in order to hide their vampirism from the living.
But if Bella chooses to remain human, then she can be with the werewolf Jacob (Taylor Lautner) because the notion of being single is apparently an anathema to her. Bella also has feelings for Jacob because Jacob says she does. When his character wasn’t brooding, Lautner was one of the few good things in New Moon. In Eclipse he’s one of the worst. Jacob comes on like an abusive boyfriend who tells Bella what she’s feeling. When he tries to kiss her, she punches him in the face only to break her hand (that’ll teach her to refuse a man’s advances!). Jacob spends the movie treating Bella like crap or getting into a pissing contest with Edward. The only point the werewolf and vampire agree on is that Bella can’t defend herself so they have to do it.
To be fair, Bella can’t do much against an oncoming threat of an angry army of freshly created vampires come to kill her and the Cullens. Victoria (originally played by Rachelle Lefevre but recast with Bryce Dallas Howard in the role) is still sore about Edward killing her boyfriend James in the first movie and so she marshals an “army” (it’s about fifteen vamps) to descend on the town of Forks and take out Bella and the Cullens. Outmatched, the Cullens are forced to turn the sworn enemies of the vampires, the werewolves. Stripped down to its bare elements a revenge tale that turns into a war which unites age-old enemies is a solid premise. And on a technical level, director David Slade has made the best the best Twilight movie yet. The action scenes are—for the most part—well executed and look convincing.
Unfortunately, these scenes exist in the Twilight universe of mostly unlikable characters and its grotesque depiction of “romance”. The extent to which Bella is depicted as helpless is hilarious/disturbing/depressing. All she can do to aide against Victoria’s 15-vampire-army is to act as bait. When part of protecting Bella calls for Jacob to mask her in his werewolf sent, he needs to carry her for some inexplicable reason. She’s not even allowed to walk on her own. Oh, and every time he carries her, he’s shirtless. At least Eclipse has the courtesy to crack a joke about it.
Detached from the depressingly terrible Edward-Bella-Jacob love-triangle, Bella isn’t a completely awful character. She’s certainly better than her psychotic post-breakup dementia of New Moon, but that’s due in large part to her stepping away from the “love” drama and interacting with her parents. The point of those scenes is to demonstrate what Bella will lose once she becomes a vampire, but they show a far better life for her. It’s a life of independence where she goes to college and becomes her own woman. But Bella knows it’s better to throw it all away for Edward.
As I asked in my New Moon review, what is appealing about Edward Cullen? What are his interests? What makes him special beyond his physical attractiveness and complete devotion to the equally vapid Bella? It doesn’t help that Pattinson’s performance consists of furrowing his brow and cracking a brief smile to remind us that he’s happy around Bella (when she’s not in mortal danger). His sexual abstinence is also curious. When Bella tries to make a move, he pulls away and basically calls her a slut as he explains that back when he was alive things were less “complicated” and courtship was more prolonged and people only had sex after marriage. Edward’s willing to give up his life to protect Bella, but when she wants to be physically intimate with him, he refuses. While I can respect abstinence, I find it unnerving in Twlight because it sends a message that a woman’s sexual desire is somehow undesirable and incompatible with love.
I honestly ask all Twilight fans who read this website one question: why do you like this? As to the movie itself, I would say it’s the least terrible one so far. I can’t stand the subtext, but on a technical level it surpasses Twilight (which upon further review is worse than I originally thought) and New Moon. The movie is filled with other problems including the atrocious soundtrack and the forced inclusion of the Volturi who do almost nothing, but these are minor missteps compared to The Twilight Saga‘s outright hatred of feminism. Even if the great Bill Condon manages to craft a technically sound movie, there’s nothing anyone can do to conquer the horrible subtext.
Rating: D+
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Matt, your hatred is like a fine wine. Thank you.
I totally agree. The reason I googled ‘twilight eclipse boring’ whilst watching it I came up with this forum. I just wanted to know what all the fuss is about. I started to watch this saga 3 weeks ago because of the hype. I don’t get it???? This 3rd instalment is boring me to pieces! New Moon wasn’t bad but it’s just pointless. The first movie left me wondering….what’s this about?what am I supposed to think about it?of someone asked me what it’s about I just wouldn’t know how to explain. It’s like it’s set on a stage. I’m still dumbstruck by its popularity.
Sir I tip my hat to you.
Matt for the most part I always dislike your reviews. You just a little to cynical for my taste. But for this once, I can agree with you. This movie, like most movies directed to teenage girls, are crap!
I generally agree that the subtext of Twilight is creepy. I don't like the series. However, the thing that makes it attractive and romantic for many, I believe, is exactly the “old school” non-feminist aspect of the tale you find so puzzling. Most women want to be fought over and to have a chaste male pursue them with chivalric intent rather than be “independent” in a feminist sense (which usually means that men don't have the burden of actually committing to women, period.) The vampirism and cultic overtones are disturbing, but the appeal of series is all too obvious. It's Gothic Romance all over again…
I really don't understand the appeal of these movies.
I've only seen NEW MOON, and as much as I wanted to hate it, I didn't. It's just not a good movie. I'm sure ECLIPSE is the same. And what's so wrong about sending the message to young girls that they should wait to have sex? I know it's 2010 but not everyone is a freak.
I've seen far worse movies than the Twilight saga. But to be fair, it's success does boggle the mind. I mean, I get why they like it, but they are still bad movies.
I reserve my hatred for the success of the TRANSFORMERS saga.
I'm more
while i actually like your writing style, i find it very annoying that 1. you write an article about something you didn't do any research on and 2. you are not smart enough to figure things out, so i'm disappointed in you as an author and can't take anything serious. i read the books, have to wait for the movie, but have seen the trailers.
commenters number one and two, men who haven't seen the movie and think their opinion is important: it's bull.
nr 4 – spot on. i know it's hard to understand for men nowadays, since many of them only care about having sex and are menthally not able how to treat a woman right. ladies, if you have found your edward, make sure you hold on to him, there are so few.
what's so complicated about that? yeah, the movie is the best of the three but still not a good movie, yeah, the actors can or can't act, script/directing sucks, whatever…
but to not get the idea of carrying bella so that she doesn't leave her track and smell since the bad vamps took a sniff at her blouse, that shows how much you did not pay attention to the movie, and then you dare to comment on it. that makes you, matt, look kind of stupid, i mean, come on.
The reason Edward won't have sex with her is because he's going to hurt her. You need to pick up the damn book before you go on making all these false accusations.
“carrying bella so that she doesn't leave her track and smell since the bad vamps took a sniff at her blouse”
I have nothing to add except WTF
i agree with fuck you comment read the books you will be surprised how so different and good they are then read midnight sun on the stephenie meyer web site then you might understand why so many people get it, and why people who dont usually read now read which carnt be that bad.and its not just teenagers that like it as most reviews state the saga goes across the generations
but it's a film review, not a book review. If you need to have read the book to understand the film, then it's a failure of a film.
i knew that somebody would bring that argument up, but fuckyou is wrong on that. for a film review you don't neccessarely need to know the book. and you are right, it would be a failure if people didn't get the story. but i read a ton of reviews now, to kind of prepare myself, since i have to wait for two more weeks to see it. it seems to be the case that with eclipse people have no problem to understand the story. only the author matt goldberg seems to have a hard time following. sniffing her scent, i know lol, but it is what it is
If you want people to take your comment seriously do not end your comment with a response you would expect from a really annoying thirteen year old.
“if you have found your edward, make sure you hold on to him, there are so few.”
Yes, because a creepy stalker boyfriend with little to no personality is better then a guy who just wants to get into your pants. Hello! Their both very negative relationships!
It's OK Jen, I'm just trying to hold onto my youth.
half a score for you. both kind of negative, but ed would let her go if she was fed up with him and j is more stable. however, it's fictional and i don't see the need to compare as if it was real. i just pointed out that number 4 said true things. and 13 year olds for sure don't say what i said, they are too young to know.
Aw, Half a score for little old me, I am so scared! Give me a break!
And since it looks like we keeping score, you pretty much compared the fictional relationship as if it was real life when you feed us that really dumb “if you have found your edward…” line!
BTW; you would be surprised to find out exactly how much a 13 year old with morals knows.
The appeal? I'll give it a shot:
An alienated Plain Jane moves to a podunk town where she's suddenly hawt by comparison to the locals and two impossibly hawt immortal God Boys fight over her while, feigning complete innocence, she mercilessly pits them against each other and emotionally tortures the slightly less hawt one.
I may not like it, but it shouldn't be any big mystery why 14-year old girls and emotionally stunted women eat it up.
Being a woman, having friends who are Twihards, having read the books, I've got to raise my glass to you.
The subtext in these books is horrible. I began thinking that it was just another Austen soft-porn with vampires, but at least Austen had strong, interesting Heroines. I am a concerned and confused as to why so many woman are obsessed by this, from tweens to soccer-mums. I mean sure, there are two gorgeous lead men, half of whom are shirtless 90% of the time, but surely that's not enough to cover the gaping hole left by a half shell of a main character. I don't know, maybe it is just soft-porn, replacing the hot milk-man with a vampire.
But I guess the subtext makes sense when you learn the author is a mormon. I'm all about respecting people's belief, but you only have to read a tiny bit on it's history and you know it's absolutely ridiculous.
To end my rant, I'm not some feminist nutter, but I have to say the one good thing about this “saga” is the many reviews from men who complain about the lack of a strong female character. At least we've got someone to back us up.
pills26…FYI, don't bash religion if you don't actually know anything about what the beliefs, morals, or lifestyles taught are. You only show your ignorance when you judge an entire people by one persons horrible attempt at authorship and storytelling (which we all must remember is all twilgiht is, a persons attempt at storytelling, nothing more.)
For a simple, poorly-written story, the Twilight saga certainly pushes a lot of our cultural buttons. The ridiculousness of the premise serves to demonstrate how far we (I guess some of us anyway) have come. I am a middle-aged mother of two teens (a boy and a girl) who read all four books in one week. I don't want my kids to read them until they can read between the lines and understand how the fantasy of an all-powerful protector is attractive, but not compatible with sanity. My husband has no interest in reading the books and is actually rather repulsed by the story.
I appreciated the reviewer's comment about Twilight suggesting that a woman's sexual desire is incompatible with love. This raises one element of the anti-feminism aspect of the story. Another element being if a woman wants anything that resembles protection or comfort in a relationship with a male, she must be willing to be under his management.
I was fascinated by the dynamics of the wolf pack. But then again, the one female wolf was the downer in that crowd. Consider as well that the only real injury incurred by a wolf was when Jacob had to help the female wolf, Leah, because she couldn't carry her own weight! The message: power is misplaced with women. As a matter of fact, the only powerful women in the story are Victoria and Jane. No surprise they are both evil tools.
It was great, I expected more though.
I am a complete twihard, I am absolutely obsessed, and I really wanted to like this film. But, strictly critically, I prefered New Moon. Eclipse has a horrible screen play and is not sycronized with the script. They are both way off from the book, and though it tries to be funny, those attempst creeped me out. The screen play was so off and went way too fast with so many unecessary scenes and not nearly enough diolouge.The sets were terribly reconstructed from the previous two films, and the new set that were introduced, such as the forest in which the tent scene took place, were just as awful. Being a twihard, I have to say that the tent scene is one of the most highly anticipated scenes in the novels. I have never been more disappointed in my life. The set of the snowy forest was a scan turned into a set made of aluminum trees and foam rocks, this looked absolutely ridiculous on screen. This was the biggest disapointment for twihards. Now, the acting and fights that take place on this set, are so incredibly unrealistic and unbelieveable, considering most of it was not done with stunt doubles or 2nd Unit. The effects were almost as disapointing as this atrocious set, the CGI wolves were anicipated the be way better and realistic than New Moon, that didn't happen. The wolves looked awful, and its not just because I am devoted to Team Edward. Also, while the opening scenes of the film were decent, the ending was terrible and you are left with a “What just happened?!” The trailers, TV spots, clips and featurettes, lead you to believe the film is epicaly action packed and romantic. The truth is they sacrificed the true elements of the novel for what they called “action.” And the result is almost non-existant creepy triangle with no promenance what so ever for the element that is supposed to be driving the film as well as the rest of the series. Bella's character is a whiny little girl, while Edward's is an over obsessive jealous boyfriend, and Jacob just ties the circle with his jerk attitude and not at all funny catch phrases and comments. So, in conclusion, I counted the days right down to the hours to the realease of The Twilight Saga Eclipse, but I was left disapointed and angry.
And just so you know, all you Team Jacobers out there, he really does need to wear a shirt, ther are some of us who are disgusted by that sight. He only wore a shirt 4 times in the entire film for crying out loud! And Jacob has a creepy dirty beard going on, and boy, that is one thing he cannot rock! Team Edward all the way!!!
Collider's reviews are filled up with spoilers, you people should be careful with that. I love your website, but I think your reviews suck.
These movies do suck because you pretty much have to read the books to be a fan. I really like the books and me and my girlfriends go see the movie together and have a good time. I would never take my husband to see the movies or ask him to read the books (surprising lots of women do) because I'm not an idiot and I realize that the books and movies are WAY over the top! And no guy is going to like it (well no guy that I know). But I do have to stand up for the series a little bit by saying that Summit has hired HORRIBLE people to do these films. David Slade was the first person to semi get it right. This series gets overwhelming attention because of the books and NOT the movies and believe all of us fans have been very let down but we still go see the movies because we have hope that someone will actually get it right.
http://MovePix.com — Watch Full Eclipse Movie in High Quality
just throwin this out there but why is it only the first to commenters comments the ones that dont matter that should kind of mean that none of these comments matter including yours.i agree that there may be a lot of sex hungry men but at the same time there is also a lot of sex hungry women.the reason you dont find the men who will treat you right is because you women only seem to be attracticted to the ones that dont.then later on you complain about how they suck and never treat you right.you dont want nice guys you always want assholes so thats what u get.the nice guy never wins.then women will be all like “no way i love nice guys” which is bull because they never give hm a chance to begin with not even a glance.
i agree that the books may be better they always are.im not saying i read twilight but if i did im know id like it bettr then the movie at least thered be more explenation and meaning to the actions characters did
quins comment was spot on. The movie was such a let down the books are way better. Breaking dawn is my favourite out of the saga so I am really hoping that they don't ruin it like they did with eclipse. Eclipse was so boring. The book had alot of good stuff in it (although I didn't like Jacob in it I thought he was really annouying) and the people who made the movie just wasted a good story.
Your critique appears to be somewhat vacuous. Have you entirely missed the internal turmoil of teenage angst & indecision. Did you miss the contrast of how Edward (being hundreds of years old) is allowing Bella to make up her own mind, versus ~ the more adolescent Jacob, who clearly is grappling with the difficulties and frustrations of adolescence, as well as in communicating his feelings appropriately. Edward, knowing the consequences his 'life' presents, doesn't want Bella to suffer in the transition. Did you miss the part in the first movie where Edward indicates that despite feasting on animals, that he still craves human blood and, that intimacy could arouse the killer within which may prove to be lethal to Bella. So, when Bella wishes to 'live' a little before she 'dies', Edward maintains abstinence not only to protect her life but also because he holds to the more virtuous or chaste conventions of his time; which unfortunately are so easily discarded in today's world. Perhaps more emotional due to his youth, still Jacob shows growth and maturity. 'Shirtless' represents the warmth & life of the Wolves; Jacob carrying Bella is so that her scent won't be trackable on the ground, hence, the army is less likely to find her. Other characters, as well as the Cullen Clan, are fleshed out and with Bella at the center, the two arch enemies learn to work together. The characters are not stagnant, but little hints are given toward what may lie ahead in the future.
Areas DESPARATELY in need of improvement:
1. A more realistic look to the army's frozen dismemberments
(less plastic);
2. HAIR: The hairstylist needs REPLACING. Hair and make-up
need SERIOUS attention.
*Bella’s wigs/hairpiece ALWAYS looks fake at her hairline.
Bella looked good in only one scene ~ where she was wearing
a maroon hoodie; makeup AND lighting was good in this
scene only.
*Dr. Carlisle Cullen’s hair looks like a BAD dye job?
*Jasper’s hair is supposed to be a honey-blond, yet the range
has been from dirty- to strawberry-blonde; and from a
shorter, hip style to one that’s more in keeping with his
Confederate officer’s character, –for the 3rd movie.
3. MAKEUP:
*Bella’s eyebrow shape changes from scene to scene, and her makeup always looked a bit pastey (She’s supposed to look ‘human’’.
*The lesser,characters: high school girls’ makeup looked like they had just come in from a hard night of partying.
*What happened to using the glittery shot of ice crystals on Edward's face ~ there was but a 'blip' of this.
COSTUMES: The Wolves’ fur looked like just a knotch above what one might buy in a fabric warehouse; and, their facial expressions were just bordering on cartoonish. This could have been so much more impressive. The animators (CGI) folks need to spend some QUALITY time observing wolf or dog expressions and »pack » posturing. CHOREOGRAPHY: The choreography of the running, flight and fight scenes need to be mixed up a bit with some of the acrobatics/hiding, etc. shown in previous movies.
A clear demonstration to differentiate the fighting styles of the immature, newly-created army, versus the experienced vampires was an opportunity missed. –Showing the mannerisms or development/growth.
They gave you the history of the characters, yet this fell flat when it came to orchestrating and implementing how the characters would contribute their individual histories to the big fight. Jasper’s elegant display of mannerisms befitting a confident Confederate Officer,–stylized walk/inspection of the troops, –as shown in the training session scene—didn’t carry over to the big fight scene. This was lost and a BIG opportunity was missed–which could have shown the contrast of the wolf-pack style of hunting, and HOW the two forces became a cohesive unit. Another opportunity was missed…as well as yours in that of properly critiquing a movie.
they covered this in the first film, JUG-HEAD!
Ahh, but remember, at least Twilight HAS a female werewolf. It was actually the first I'd ever seen (and only the second I've come across so far in literature; I've also found another in folklore, making a total of three female werewolves, one of those being in Twilight).
Mmmh, Victoria and Jane… I do love them! Brilliant characters, they are…
i think the only reason i still watch the movies is cause i want to know what happens to Jacob-he's my favorite character in the series and i am mildly curious what happens to the others too.
yes, everyone has said it – it's soap opera garbage but the thing about soap operas are – they're addictive. it somehow never satisfies you so once you get hooked you . . . you know. . . tune to it until it ends.
I love the movie. As much as I love the lead casts as well.
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