If you dont know whether you like the Twilight films yet, its unlikely youre going to try to find out now, but if youre on the edge, you may find Eclipse more fun than you expected. As the films initial performance in the States showed, the franchise has a ridiculously loyal following, which gave it a near record opening day (second only to New Moon), but the following day the gross dropped by two-thirds, meaning that while it still made plenty of cash, its a core of fanatics that drives the series popularity.
Thankfully though, as a film in its own right Eclipse tries to deal with some of the earlier movies shortcomings (which are far better than the theyre given credit for, but rather flawed), and while its unlikely to convert new fans, it is pretty entertaining. The main thing that threatened to stymie the Twilight movies, is that while the love triangle between human Bella, vampire Edward and werewolf Jacob (as many have noted, the films have a sort of bizarre sexuality, where a teen girl must choose between necrophilia and bestiality) is absolutely central, theres actually very little movement possible on that.
The passion between Bella and Edward was set so early and so deeply that everything would crash down if they tried to mess with it too much, while Jacobs love is destined never to be reciprocated. As a result another movie which largely just revolved around them mooning over each other and not actually doing all that much, threatened to be a trip too far (Bellas phantom Edwards in New Moon really did stretch things to breaking point, but thats author Stephenie Meyers fault more than the films). While there is a lot of that (what else did you expect?), Eclipse also adds in more plot, and gives time to some of the other characters, which helps expand the Twilight world and ensure that the insular broodings of the teens feels like its more than just about their own self-involvement this time around.
The slightly sprawling story sees the core trio dealing with the decisions made in New Moon most notably that after graduation Bella will become a vampire. Neither Edward nor Jacob want this, but shes determined, although as the film goes on starts to see things a little differently. Meanwhile an army of newborn bloodsuckers has started to amass in Seattle, which may have something to do with vengeful vampire Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard), who’s still pissed off that the Cullens killed her boyfriend in the first film. This causes the Cullens and the werewolves to broker an uneasy alliance, which of course mean plenty more love triangle mooning. Of course, having been introduced in New Moon, the Volturi are bound to turn up at some point, to see whether, as promised, Bella has been turned.
One of the issues with New Moon was that while it was very talky, not a huge amount actually happened, but here theres more room for things to breath, so that we get to see, for example, some of the backstory of the Cullen clan, which, to be honest, is often more interest than Bella and Edward in the present day. Everyone still spends more time talking about things than actually doing anything, but director David Slade wisely chooses to ensure there are enough slick action set-pieces to keep things moving along very nicely, and it certainly feels more visceral this time, bringing out the darkness of the story, which was slightly obscured in the first two films. Eclipse also tries to add in a bit of humour, which while slightly clunky is a welcome relief from the OTT seriousness of the first two movie.
Bella is still a complete wet blanket, partly due to the fact Kirsten Stewart can only seem to manage one emotion, so that while the plot tries to give her more to do and expand her characters maturity, she still comes across as a whiny little girl. However the film does manage to bring out another side of Jacob and Edward, showing a little more depth and self-awareness, so they dont just come across as a couple of guys who really need to get over themselves.
Of course all the expected is there too. Jacob is incapable of keeping his shirt on, Bella and Edward look at each other passionately and moodily, Edward is conflicted about everything, and despite a little humour its still immensely self-important, but Eclipse is undoubtedly the Twilight movie that works best as a movie in its own right. It wont convert haters (who do seem to loath Twilight more on principle than because any of the films have actually been all that bad), but those on the verges of the phenomenon may find that with a quicker pace, as well as more humour and action, theyll enjoy Eclipse more than they expected.
Overall Verdict: As a film, its probably the best of the Twilight saga, expanding the series scope, as well as offering a quicker pace, and a better sense of both the light and the dark sides of the story.
Reviewer: Phil Caine