Your teen or tween daughter may be preparing to see “Twilight: Eclipse” seventeen times this weekend no matter what the critics say about the film. The rest of us, however, are curious to know what grown ups who are not in love with Edward and or Jacob think of this third installment in the mega-popular series.
RottenTomatoes.com sums it up like so: “Stuffed with characters and overly reliant on uninspired dialogue, Eclipse won’t win The Twilight Saga many new converts, despite an improved blend of romance and action fantasy.”
Having seen the last two movies, and the trailers for this installment, that sounds about right to this determinedly “Twilight”-neutral movie fan. The critics seem to agree that this installment, while not Shakespeare, takes what’s good about the series and makes the best of it. Negative reviews, about 49% of “Top Critics” according to Rotten Tomatoes, mostly seem to hate the series on principle. Those willing to watch “Eclipse” with open eyes and open minds appear to have found an entertaining flick that satisfies fans and at the very least won’t appall the regular movie goer. Bill Goodykoontz of the Arizona Republic put it best: “What elevates Eclipse above the previous “Twilight” films is that it doesn’t take itself so seriously, and Slade doesn’t allow his stars to.”
Stephen Witty of the Newark Star Ledger says, “Although Eclipse isn’t a great film on its own, it’s pretty much the Twilight movie fans have been waiting for.” While Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times is a bit more enthusiastic – one suspects Ms. Sharkey of being a bit of a “Twi-hard” - “The kiss of the vampire is cooler, the werewolf is hotter, the battles are bigger and the choices are, as everyone with a pulse (and a few without) knows by now, life-changing.”
Even A.O. Scott, of the the New York Times concedes. ”A more robustly entertaining film than either of its predecessors.”
So, for all of you about to be dragged to into the world of “Twilight” for the weekend, have no fear. It should at least be fun.
