Twilight (2008)

Editor's Note High school romance is difficult enough to navigate when both people are human. But for 17-year-old Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart, INTO THE WILD) and Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson, HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE), Edward's life as a vampire complicates things even more. At first, when Bella moves from sunny Phoenix to the rainiest corner of Washington State, she isn't sure where she fits in at her new high school. Then she meets Edward, an ethereal beauty of a boy whose unnatural speed and strength lead Bella to the conclusion that her new crush is one of the undead. Suddenly, Bella's boring life is transformed; she's surrounded by love and danger in equal parts, thanks to the hunger of Edward and others of his kind. TWILIGHT is based on the first book in the addictive series by author Stephenie Meyer. Director Catherine Hardwicke (THIRTEEN) certainly knows her audience, which is primarily the teenage girls who worship the book and its characters. There are plenty of swoonworthy shots of Pattinson's perfectly pale Edward, and his romance with Stewart's nicely acted Bella will cause many a sigh among the devoted fans. While TWILIGHT is primarily a love story in the ROMEO AND JULIET mold, there's also plenty of action and horror to be found. Blood flows (this is a vampire movie, after all), but the small amount of gore shouldn't be too much for the squeamish viewers--and it might even draw a boy or two to the screen. The film's record-breaking box office take alone is proof that the film's appeal isn't limited to screaming teen girls.

	Jackson Rathbone
	Nikki Reed
	Robert Pattinson
	Cam Gigandet
	Sarah Clarke
	Billy Burke
	Elizabeth Reaser
	Peter Facinelli
	Kristen Stewart
	Anna Kendrick
	Justin Chon
	Mark Morgan - Producer
	Michele Imperato Stabile - Executive Producer
	Elliot Davis - Director of Photography
	Carter Burwell - Composer
	Guy Oseary - Executive Producer
	Stephenie Meyer - Source Writer
	Mark Lord - Screenwriter
	Melissa Rosenberg - Screenwriter
	Marty Bowen - Executive Producer
	Karen Rosenfelt - Executive Producer
	Greg Mooradian - Producer
	Catherine Hardwicke - Director

Los Angeles Times
"The film succeeds...because it treats high school emotions with unwavering, uncompromising seriousness." 11/21/2008

Entertainment Weekly
"[A] cloudburst mood piece filled with stormy skies, rippling hormones, and understated visual effects....Hardwicke stirs this teen pulp to a pleasing simmer." -- Grade: B 11/28/2008 p.58

Rolling Stone
"Props to Kristin Stewart, 18, and Robert Pattinson, 22, for playing this uncool-girl-meets-undead-boy with genuine romantic ardor. They're both terrific." 12/11/2008 p.101

Chicago Sun-Times
"The movie is lush and beautiful, and the actors are well-chosen....TWILIGHT will mesmerize its target audience..." 11/19/2008

Empire
4 stars out of 5 -- "[The backdrop] is truly breathtaking....The lead performance too is strong....Despite the presence of vampires, TWILIGHT is a romance, not a horror..." 01/01/2009 74

Total Film
3 stars out of 5 -- "Based on the first in the colossally popular series of novels by Stephanie Meyer, TWILIGHT is an unbridled fantasy for adolescent girls..." 01/01/2009 p.50