It is time for round three as The Twilight Saga: Eclipse attempts to make up for the two abysmal entries that preceded it in this series. Amazingly, this third movie does represent a bit of improvement over the first two films. Perhaps it was because of low expectations, or maybe it was because the film finally introduced some real conflict and resolutions. Regardless of the reason, this movie was not as difficult to sit through as the previous ones. That being said, many of the same old problems still remain. Being better than the first two movies does not automatically make this a good movie.
It is time for round three as The Twilight Saga: Eclipse attempts to make up for the two abysmal entries that preceded it in this series. Amazingly, this third movie does represent a bit of improvement over the first two films. Perhaps it was because of low expectations, or maybe it was because the film finally introduced some real conflict and resolutions. Regardless of the reason, this movie was not as difficult to sit through as the previous ones. That being said, many of the same old problems still remain. Being better than the first two movies does not automatically make this a good movie.
This entry picks up where the last one left off. Bella is still torn between the two young men competing for her affections. On one side, she has Edward, the vampire, and on the other is the werewolf, Jacob. Bella wants Edward to make her a vampire like him so they can be together forever, but she cannot ignore Jacob’s big muscles and his inability to wear a shirt. This is old news, though. It has been ongoing for two movies before this. The new developments for this film involve Victoria, one of the evil vampires from the first film, building an army of new vampires to kill Bella. Do not count on this movie to help you if you, like me, cannot remember why the bad vampires were after Bella in the first place. It does not really matter. What does matter is that an incoming army of vampires gives Edward and Jacob reason to put aside their rivalry and join forces.
The tension and action are very welcome in this otherwise sleepy series, but those scenes are few and far between. The majority of the movie focuses solely on the love triangle. Fans of the previous films can rejoice, for the same cringe-inducing, simplistic dialogue returns. Does Jacob really think he can win Bella’s heart just by telling her he loves her over and over again? Is Bella really so naive that she believes feeling awkward and out of place as a teenager is reason to end her human life and become a vampire? There is ample opportunity to ponder these questions as Bella, Edward, and Jacob have these same conversations about a dozen times each.
Apparently, the final book in the series is being split into two movies. Everything wraps up so neatly by the end of this film, though, that it is difficult to imagine that there is enough material to actually fill two films. Having not read the books, I am left to assume that the last one focuses on the Volturi, the secret hooded vampire council introduced in the second film. They do show up for two scenes in the third movie. They appear just long enough to take off their hoods, make a few vaguely threatening remarks to our heroes and leave. If that is what we can expect from Twilight 4 and 5, Eclipse may just turn out to be the best movie in the series.
The minor improvements found in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse have most likely come too late. Of course fans of the books and previous movies will love it, but anyone else has probably already given up on the series. It is just as well. The film is not good enough to convert any new fans. “Better than the first two” would not make for an effective tagline, but in the end it is all this movie can truly promise.
