“The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1” is a fan's film from beginning to end.
I am stating that not as a bad thing, but as a matter of fact.
When a film is shot for a core audience of fans, then that audience experiences a shared exuberance at seeing their favorite characters come alive on screen. It is this "shared experience" the viewer takes with them, not necessarily a memory of a great film.
This is true for any fan of any genre... the Star Trek fans, Harry Potter fans, James Bond fans – the list can go on.
So what “Twilight” fans are feeling isn’t new.
Also, when a film like this is released, it will mostly be seen by fans of the books and other movies and not necessarily the majority of the general public. A smaller group, consisting of the simply curious and those who are dragged along by a significant other, will also see it.
So I feel I have to review "Breaking Dawn part 1" with all that in mind.
So here we go... Overall, the film does its job of entertaining its audience and stays pretty close to the book’s vision. The audience I sat with was mostly women who have read all of the novels and some of them told me the film kept them entranced for the most part.
And just as a “Harry Potter” movie has certain elements fans expect (Harry’s scar, flying brooms, incantations, etc), this installment has everything expected in a “Twilight” movie - including longing looks, shirtless hunks, angst, rivalries, hard glances, great clothes... and even a few chuckles as a “you’re in on the joke” wink to all the “Twi-Hard” fans from producer and writer Stephanie Meyer.
There were a few problems for “Twilight” lovers as the story unfolded on screen. The biggest is the drawn out and graphic “honeymoon” scene, which I found to be a bit over the top for a PG-13 film.
The second is the gratuitous and bloody “birth” scene, which went on far too long.
I pointed those out because in discussing the film (after the screening) with actual Twilight fans and “Twilight Moms” attending, it was these two scenes that seemed to bother them the most.
Again, as I said, “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn part 1” is “fan film” and needs to be reviewed as such.
So, for the fans the film gets a B and is rated PG-13.
