Twilight (2008)

Featured Audience Ratings

• John M

  
  The dialogue was really really cheesy. Or it was just handled really bad. There were moments where the actual film dragged me in. Mostly based off the way it was filmed, using the Pacific Northwest, it looked good. That is two stars. I think there was just something missing.… More
  The dialogue was really really cheesy. Or it was just handled really bad. There were moments where the actual film dragged me in. Mostly based off the way it was filmed, using the Pacific Northwest, it looked good. That is two stars. I think there was just something missing. Don't get me wrong I love supernatural stuff and I like romantic teen angst crap or well I did. I mean movies like Some Kind of Wonderful I have enjoyed. BUT this just felt like a bad teen romantic drama masquerading as a vampire flick. Kristen Stewart I think has done better. For some reason she just looked uncomfortable in this role. Pattinson seemed far more comfortable in his. If anything his sometimes casual joking attitude at times made me like the movie. Stewart just seemed just along for the ride.

• Tyler K

  
  It's not cause I'm a man, it's cause this movie was just boring. More than A Game of Shadows, more than Underworld, more than... oh wait, at least it was better than that horribly boring Tomb Raider movie. I liked this movie, but it was only okay. The effects were… More
  It's not cause I'm a man, it's cause this movie was just boring. More than A Game of Shadows, more than Underworld, more than... oh wait, at least it was better than that horribly boring Tomb Raider movie. I liked this movie, but it was only okay. The effects were wonderful, and I never read the book, but I here that this adaption of it is more accurate than Harry Potter! The acting, don't get me started. How about I say it was a big failure. The story was rather hooky, and the ending was rushed. I remember James, but it felt like he was only alive for 5 minutes after his "big" role was put on display. I just thought the whole movie was 4 hours long than the actual 2 hours, and that's double time, soldier! Hehe, ROTC joke. Anyway, the movie wasn't horrible, but it wasn't amazing. End of review, might was the sequels, but it's a long shot here. I'm more interested in movie franchises like Raiders of the Lost Arc and Saw than Twilight.

• KJ P

  
  I thought that this was a well executed romantic, as Bella and Edward are two unlikely people who fall hopelessly in love with each other. This story has been told many times before, but this time around it is is with a vampire meeting a human. It put's a fresh spin on the… More
  I thought that this was a well executed romantic, as Bella and Edward are two unlikely people who fall hopelessly in love with each other. This story has been told many times before, but this time around it is is with a vampire meeting a human. It put's a fresh spin on the romantic genre, while adding in some nice cinematography and editing, but the special effects are too cheesy to take seriously at times. However, the book is well written, leading to a mediocre script here, but the story is present, and the idea is fresh. The few action scenes are fun and the end will leave you wanting more. I will recommend this film to anyone who is a fan of action or romance, but sadly, that is as far as I go. I did expect a little more!

• Michael M

  
  A brutally slow film and very dissapointing one in general. The only people who would actually like this are its devoted fan base and 10-17 year old emo/vampire girls.

• Zach B

  
  Before I start this review, allow me to take a few moments and give some background on my relationship with this series. Like everyone else at the time of this film's release, I was obsessed with the story arc and the characters. I mean, when you are in middle school, this entire… More
  Before I start this review, allow me to take a few moments and give some background on my relationship with this series. Like everyone else at the time of this film's release, I was obsessed with the story arc and the characters. I mean, when you are in middle school, this entire story was a dream towards a lot of people: finding your true love and willing to do anything to be with that person. Now, while that is the underlining idea of the story of Twilight, there has been MUCH better ways of telling the story as I have learned in my entire life as of now. So, is this a good film? A good story? The answer to all of that: eh... Okay, let me talk about the film. For me to get a good impression of this film, I had to see it a year after I saw it in a local theater in order for me to get a fresh opinion. Now, I do not know if this was intentional but this has to be one of the most hilarious films I have ever seen. Just, so much is completely idiotic and pathetic that I am wondering if the writers of this screenplay or even Stephenie Meyer even took the time to learn how teenage relationships actually work, or even how teenagers even talk. The dialogue and characters in this film are completely stereotypical that you could take these archetype characters from any other story, put them together, suck out all likability and you would get the same story. With the vampires, I have to stress one thing: there never has been a set rule on how vampires are suppose to be. Never has been, never will. So, the idea for the vampires in this film to be sparkling in the sunlight, live off of animal blood, and go to high school is not an idea that I would call stupid, but very odd. While watching this film (and reading the novel), I started to wonder why these immortals go to school over and over again, live off of animal blood, etc. The sparkling thing, while unforgivable by some vampire fans, I can deal with even though it is absurd. Personally, in my opinion, this film would of been better off if it explained why they do things that immortals would not do (why don't they live in a place of high art and kill evil humans? If that was the film, then it would of been much more enjoyable and I would of forgiven the film a bit more). The acting in this film is, to be honest, not as bad as it could be, but nothing mediocre or great. With this being the first film in the planned five film series, I would of expected the cast and crew to give strong performances to please fans and critics alike, but they must of thought that this film was going to make money already so they do not need to be top actors in their roles. I was not expecting Award Winning acting or performances that will be remembered for years to come, but this is just flat and pathetic. The only other thing I can comment on would have to be the direction. Now, Catherine Hardwicke has made some impressive films that deal with teenage problems like love, drugs, and sex before (Thirteen). After that film, she just went downhill faster then a shooting star. This is one of her more okay films, but nothing that would be inspirational. With her knowledge of teenage girls, I would of thought that she would of, at the least, given this film some more realistic qualities instead of making them flat or flatter then those of the novel. But this film does have one redeeming quality. The scenery of this film (the shots of the mountains, forests, landscapes) is beautiful to look at and, in reality, more impressive to watch then the film itself. But, you can only go so far when you make a forest and mountains the only good part of a film. As a documentary, that would of worked wonderful. But, here, it does not redeem the film. So, is this film worth watching? I will say no and here is why: it offers nothing new and what is new is nothing that people would respect or care about. Stephenie Meyer, when she wrote this novel, I will admit did have some genius in how to manipulate an entire generation of teenage girls (and some teenage guys) and vampire fanatics into falling for her tale of teenage romance. But, for this vampire lover, her story fails. And it has nothing to deal with me being a guy. Films do not judge people by their genders, but by their intelligence. With this film, it heavily undermines that with sloppy direction, bad acting, and a horrible script. Sadly, this film could of worked if they wanted it to.

• Ken S

  
  Not a good movie at all. REALLY bad direction, a REALLY bad screenplay, descent acting (given the material I'd even say good acting) and solid cinematography. But why even call these guys vampires?

• Alexander D

  
  Many good adaptations skip some of what a book has said. TWILIGHT is all too different. It skips eighty percent of the good detail Stephenie Meyer novelized, and leaves us with a stupidly fast-paced production. In case you may be unaware, this film starts off when Bella Swan, 17,… More
  Many good adaptations skip some of what a book has said. TWILIGHT is all too different. It skips eighty percent of the good detail Stephenie Meyer novelized, and leaves us with a stupidly fast-paced production. In case you may be unaware, this film starts off when Bella Swan, 17, moves to Forks, Washington with her father, a laconic police officer. When she goes to high school for the first time, she realizes something (or a few things) strange about Edward Cullen, who is in her biology class. She notices that he is making attempts to avoid her at all costs, but somehow, she also has a mysterious feeling of love for him. Then, when he saves her from being hit by a car and from being mugged, she knows there is something going on. I'd like to clear up the whole "Team Edward/Team Jacob" thing: There is absolutely no way Edward is "so hot". He has pale skin, color-changing eyes, and he's clearly bi-polar, for crying out loud! (This is advice from a MALE!) And if Robert Pattinson was "so hot", why are adolescent girls <i>just now</i> realizing it? Why weren't they lusting when they watched him in HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE. So vote "Team Jacob" (if you even want a part in that crap!). TWILIGHT has some major flaws with its acting quality. Kristen Stewart does a dull performance as Bella Swan, sometimes making it seem like she's reading off a script; and Robert Pattinson was well-chosen for a role as a vampire, but he could have done much better and made his role a lot more believable. That said, TWILIGHT is a film that not many will enjoy. It's possibly worth a try, but then again, you have a good chance of turning the TV off in the middle, saying, "If this is the best they can do, I feel sorry for them." Especially fans of the book.

• Phil H

  
  Not a bad vampire flick, its for young girls of course but I've seen worse. The plot is a romantic one and its kinda predictable with hints of 'Interview With the Vampire', almost a new version for a new gen, almost. You dont need to have read the book I don't… More
  Not a bad vampire flick, its for young girls of course but I've seen worse. The plot is a romantic one and its kinda predictable with hints of 'Interview With the Vampire', almost a new version for a new gen, almost. You dont need to have read the book I don't think as its pretty straight forward, the cast are all fair enough and do the film justice but don't add any kind of WOW factor whilst effects are average with the usual reliance on heavy cgi. The vampire 'family' thing felt more like an 'X-Men' type family really, the strangest scene being the baseball game sequence, never seen that idea before, as said more like comic super heroes rather than brooding vamps. It does what it says on the tin and doesn't fail in that respect, daughters and mums will love I'm sure whilst vampire fans may enjoy a newish angle but its very 'teen heartthrob' type stuff and kinda sickly.

• Unknown H

  
  Although I have read the books and see the films, Twilight's appeal still remains a mystery to me. Not only did the films standardly leave the book behind and mould characters on screen that did not match their literary counterparts, the whole thing got a little ridiculous… More
  Although I have read the books and see the films, Twilight's appeal still remains a mystery to me. Not only did the films standardly leave the book behind and mould characters on screen that did not match their literary counterparts, the whole thing got a little ridiculous towards the end. If it weren't for the hoards of teenage virgins that read these books and watch these films hoping in vein that the reason no one wants to date them is because they are infact vampires, Myer would be dead in the water where she belongs. These movies are meant for the kids table and nowhere else.

• Jeff "

  
  Twilight has got to be the film that single handedly butchered the vampire genre. Along with the series of the same name, Twilight introduced a new breed of vampire. A vampire that sparkles in the sunlight and is a total wuss. Gone are the evil, mysterious qualities that made vampires… More
  Twilight has got to be the film that single handedly butchered the vampire genre. Along with the series of the same name, Twilight introduced a new breed of vampire. A vampire that sparkles in the sunlight and is a total wuss. Gone are the evil, mysterious qualities that made vampires ghouls to be afraid of. I remember growing to vampire films such as The Lost Boys and Bram Stoker's Dracula. Those were scary, terrifying films. But not Twilight. Everything you loved about the traditional vampires is gone. Twilight is an insult to the vampire genre. Also every cast member delivers amazingly bad performances and the story is plainly absent, and paper thin. If you include the poor attempt at romance that you see on-screen, then I guess you can call that a story. But really, this is an awful film with no engaging story. The film makes you want to gouge out your eyes, and beg for your two hours back. Twilight felt like a bad joke, and it really is. This is a pointless film with awful acting (but with a cast like this, what do you expect?) If you're a fan of vampire films, don't watch this film, as there's nothing interesting that will to fans of the genre. Like I said, the film strips away everything that made vampire films great. What's left is a vampire film that can be only seen as a joke. Twilight is a film that once you've seen; you'd want to forget about. This is awful filmmaking on a new level. Director Catherine Hardwicke is one of cinema's worst directors and with Twilight she definitely proves it.

• Adam K

  
  What can you say about "Twilight"? I don't like to rant, but with this film it is hard not to. The acting is poor, the script is terrible, the camera work lousy, the atmosphere awful, the story irritating. Overall the film comes together perfectly to make it an awful,… More
  What can you say about "Twilight"? I don't like to rant, but with this film it is hard not to. The acting is poor, the script is terrible, the camera work lousy, the atmosphere awful, the story irritating. Overall the film comes together perfectly to make it an awful, awful watch. Despite the screaming girls flocking to see every new edition, I advise you, no I warn you not to watch this film. Unless of course you watch it, take notes and then review it, but the film fails in every aspect. In three words, poor, poor and poor. The film fails to impress, even for the tiniest moment and is a good example of how bad a film can be. ' Half A Star

• Anthony L

  
  It's fair to say that I've never been in the target audience for Twilight and I'm certainly never going to be. I'll be nice though. The direction was impressive and the soundtrack was brilliant but... The acting was awful, the script was bizarre (and also awful),… More
  It's fair to say that I've never been in the target audience for Twilight and I'm certainly never going to be. I'll be nice though. The direction was impressive and the soundtrack was brilliant but... The acting was awful, the script was bizarre (and also awful), the story didn't grab me and Kristen Stewart is dead behind the eyes. I did like the bit where he gave her a 100mph piggy-back ride though!

• Bethany M

  
  I can't help but be a massive Twilight fan. I love how you can't choose which team to be on as they are both incredibly beautiful and brave as one another. Gives your eyes some wonderful sights with extremely gorgeous men and the acting wasn't that bad. The film makes… More
  I can't help but be a massive Twilight fan. I love how you can't choose which team to be on as they are both incredibly beautiful and brave as one another. Gives your eyes some wonderful sights with extremely gorgeous men and the acting wasn't that bad. The film makes you quite happy and makes you believe in the quote 'Nothing is impossible.' I think Robert Pattison portrays a brilliant Edward and Kristen Stewarts awkwardness plays to her advantage. If you're a big fan of the books, I don't think you'll be dissapointed with the film adaptation.

• Brad W

  
  Cheesy and dumb, but the soundtrack was superb. Patterson is a good actor as he proved in Harry Potter 4, but when will he leave these dumb teen romances. The plot is boring and simple. The characters need to watch Underworld or Blade a little bit more. I sure hope the series gets… More
  Cheesy and dumb, but the soundtrack was superb. Patterson is a good actor as he proved in Harry Potter 4, but when will he leave these dumb teen romances. The plot is boring and simple. The characters need to watch Underworld or Blade a little bit more. I sure hope the series gets better after the major improvement in Eclipse, cause this version sucked.

• Marc L

  
  This movie is a perfect example of what I like to call "the balance". It's not as bad as it's haters proclaim it to be, but it's not as good as it's fanbase proclaims it to be. It was okay, and if it were on TV, I might watch it depending on what mood… More
  This movie is a perfect example of what I like to call "the balance". It's not as bad as it's haters proclaim it to be, but it's not as good as it's fanbase proclaims it to be. It was okay, and if it were on TV, I might watch it depending on what mood I'm in. Of course, there was definatley some bad. Stephanie Meyer totally butchered vampire legend when she stated that vampires sparkle in the sun. That scene goes down as one of the worst all time. Also, the fight scenes should have been longer. There were a few scenes I like to call "Big Lipped Aligator Scenes", named after the Nostalgia Critic's "Big Lipped Aligator Moments" These scenes are completely unnecesary and have no point in the movie. They seem to be there just to add more minutes too the movie. Don;t get me wrong though, there was definatley some good. Most of the acting was pretty good. Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson actually did a very good and believebale job. They even nailed the emotional scenes.The villains were pretty menacing too, for a chick flick I also like the plot. I know it's cliche and has been used so many times before, but it just seems to work here. I just like the whole idea of a vampire in love with a human who knows they can;t be together (Could have switched the genders though. Haha)I also loved the visuals. Overrall, this isn't my favorite movie, but it's alright. A average film that I could watch and enjoy when bored.

• erika b

  
  this film kept me on the edge of my seat. really good film. IT was lacking a real plot and missing the sence of love and acting was ok . It was still a really good flim.

• Jens S

  
  Since you should never talk about things you don't know, it was time to give this a honest chance. And what do you say, as long as the film is a high school comedy it works surprisingly well. But then Pattinson enters the scene, acting really wooden as cold-blooded vampire teen… More
  Since you should never talk about things you don't know, it was time to give this a honest chance. And what do you say, as long as the film is a high school comedy it works surprisingly well. But then Pattinson enters the scene, acting really wooden as cold-blooded vampire teen and responsible for a few unintentional laughs, especially when he's going up the trees like a cartoon character or saying incredibly cheesy things. The dialogs get worse with each minute of the film and once Edward starts to glitter like a brothel door there is no holding back the laughter anymore. The vampire baseball game is ridiculous, the bad guy a joke and the Mormon message of purity is stuffed down kids' throats. How this could turn so popular is a riddle to me.

• Matt G

  
  Not as bad as some may say. I'm not a twi-hard, but this movie was undeniably entertaining. It was pretty slow though. Grade: C-

• Robert C

  
  First I have to say...I'm normally a sucker (no pun intended) for a vampire story. Especially when a story / film puts a new twist (Let The RIght One In, 30 Days Of Night, The Blade Trilogy, The Underworld Trilogy) on the age old tale of the undead cursed to walk the earth for… More
  First I have to say...I'm normally a sucker (no pun intended) for a vampire story. Especially when a story / film puts a new twist (Let The RIght One In, 30 Days Of Night, The Blade Trilogy, The Underworld Trilogy) on the age old tale of the undead cursed to walk the earth for eternity in search of blood. Sadly, this was not the case here. Now, I realize that I'm FAR from the target audience for this film and / or series of books. But a friend loaned us a copy of the film and (as I mentioned)...I'm a sucker for a blood sucker! Plus I like to be able to speak / write about a film based on having actually seen it and not on a preconceived idea or what others have said about it. Unfortunately, aside from some really beautiful cinematography work there isn't much I could say about this film that wouldn't whip the legions of pre-teen, teen and single young adult fans into a rabid hyperventilating rage. : P So I will just make these few points: I can only assume that the books are written in a much better way then this film was. I'm sure the books were more successful in filling the great voids of nothingness with written words, deep thoughts and teen angst, then this film was able to do. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. The inconsistent "pale vampire face" make-up was REALLY distracting and (most of the time) very poorly done and seemingly only applied to the actors faces?. Why would you create a "vampire family" (to help you blend in with the human community), that consists of a Mom, Dad, Brothers & Sisters who all appear to be seemingly within 5 years in age of each other? Why not just say you are all siblings who's parents had died? Not very cunning for vampires. On a positive note: Kristen Stewart is definately one to watch. I have been impressed by her work in several films prior to this. And think that she has the potential to become a really great actress. I hope she is given that opportunity. Robert Pattinson goes from looking like the "dreamy doe eyed teen vampire" to some sort of "slightly mongoloid glazed over halfwit" in any given scene. I've read that he has no particular fondness for this role or these stories, so I took that into consideration while watching his mediocre acting here. But what it comes down to is dollars not sense. After all...how can millions of screaming, crying, clawing fans be wrong? : /

• Flutie A

  
  After picking up a copy of Twilight: Eclipse a few weeks ago ($5 on Blu-ray & DVD), I felt I had held off watching this long enough, but surprisingly I actually enjoyed it much more than I ever expected. The portions of the book I had read were realized pretty accurately, and I… More
  After picking up a copy of Twilight: Eclipse a few weeks ago ($5 on Blu-ray & DVD), I felt I had held off watching this long enough, but surprisingly I actually enjoyed it much more than I ever expected. The portions of the book I had read were realized pretty accurately, and I think that helped...I'll still refuse to see the final 2 during their opening weekends, but I am interested to see where the series goes once I get my hands on a DVD copy of New Moon.

Read all 20 featured audience ratings