Ok, so I’ve seen Eclipse twice now and I’ve moved from “feeling kind of meh/iffy about it” to “liked it overall.” Here is a list of things that stood out to me (originally posted this in the Twilight group on Ravelry, but I’ve kind of elaborated on them here).

(This post contains dozens of spoilers, obviously!)

Things I liked:

• The first scene with Bella and Edward. Soooo sweet! And all of their scenes together. This is the first of the three movies where I really believed them as a couple. In the other movies, they always seemed withdrawn from each other. Example: the kisses in New Moon were just blah. BLAH. Especially the reunion kiss in Italy–that one was severely lacking. But the affection in Eclipse is believable. Finally!
• Compromise, aka Leg Hitch/the proposal. I approve. In fact, I was like…just do it already, haha! It was over so quickly, though. I did like the little part where he picked her up and spun her around while they hugged. awww. It was so important that this scene be done properly, because if it hadn’t been included or had been toned down, I think Team Edward everywhere would have imploded and rioted the theaters, I don’t know. But I was happy with the scene.
• Bella & Charlie–“the talk” was hilarious. I love movie Charlie better than book Charlie, I think. Each movie just reinforces this opinion.
• Bryce Dallas Howard as Victoria 2.0–I really hate when parts get recast, but I think she did a good job. The look on her face right before she rushed Edward at the end kind of made me laugh, though. (The whole shaking/baring teeth thing…I don’t know, it was scary at first but then it looked kind of funny to me?) I do like BDH in pretty much every movie I’ve seen her in, though, so it helped that she was the new Victoria.
• The flashbacks and backstories for Rosalie and Jasper…I thought they were well done. Rosalie’s fiance oozed serious creepster, and the scene with him and his friends right before they attack Rosalie made me SO uncomfortable. I’m glad nothing was shown beyond that because I was really bothered by the implications. I know that’s from the book, but just seeing it that way really made me more sympathetic toward Rosalie. As for Jasper, I liked his flashback, but his accent kept waxing and waning and that was distracting for me. Otherwise, I liked his flashback.
• Taylor’s performance as Jacob always makes me like him better than I did from the books. I think movie Jacob is better written than book Jacob, in the sense that he’s more likable in the movies. I remember that I didn’t like Jacob until we got his POV in Breaking Dawn.
• Song placements. When I first listened to the soundtrack, I wasn’t crazy about most of the songs, but when I saw the movie, they seemed to fit nicely. I’ll probably like the soundtrack more now that I can visualize the scenes that go with them.
• The special effects looked really good, especially for the fight scene. I also thought Jacob wolf looked very realistic when he came up to Bella and she petted his head.

Things I didn’t like so much (in which I get very rambly and run-on sentence and probably incoherent):

• The wigs. Very distracting, although I noticed that Kristen’s wig looked better at times and really obvious at other times. Nikki/Rosalie’s wig wouldn’t have been so bad if they had lightened her eyebrows to match. Jasper’s wig was kind of fail, too. I thought I was going to really hate Bryce/Victoria’s wig, but I didn’t mind it so much.
• The Cullen contact lenses looked really weird in this one–almost orange at times. I wish they would’ve toned them down a bit. I was glad that they had black/hungry eyes during one scene since that was appropriate (and missing from New Moon–Edward should have had black eyes in Italy, but didn’t, and ok this is just nitpicking but this is what the fandom does).
• The epicness of the Jacob/Bella kiss. Look, I’m Team Edward, what do you expect me to say? lol That being said…I thought Kristen put more oomph into her kiss with Taylor, plus the kiss seemed to go on forever, so I was like…hmm. Interesting. I wish she would put that much effort into her kisses with Rob, so that they would be more believable. But we did get the aforementioned Leg Hitch, so I can’t complain too much!
• I guess my biggest complaint with this one, as well as the other movies, is that I feel like it’s never really and truly clear why Bella is so in love with Edward. In the books, since we’re constantly in her head and seeing from her POV, it’s obvious…but in the movies, not so much. I think that probably has to do with the script as well as Kristen’s acting–the latter of which is getting better, but I don’t know. I almost feel like, if I had never read the books and only saw the movies, that I’d be leaning more toward Team Jacob…maybe I need to re-read the books or something, because my impression of Jacob from reading Eclipse was that he’s a nice kid, but just as manipulative of Bella as Edward is–it’s just that Bella chooses Edward in the end, which makes Jacob ultimately resentful of both of them going into Breaking Dawn. But in the movie, Jacob’s flaws are really toned down, which I think explains why so many people are all, Team Jacob/Team Taylor after seeing the movies. (There is also Team Jacob Because of His Awesome Abs and Not Really Any Other Reason, which is just…never mind.) Also, as much as I like movie Jacob, I just can’t get past his pursuit of Bella being a means to an end, in context of Breaking Dawn. Because SPOILER ALERT, when Jacob is kissing Bella, I just want to yell at the screen, ‘ew that is your future mother-in-law you are kissing’ and I can’t see Eclipse in a vacuum, I just keep thinking ‘RENESMEE! this is your future!’ and ‘imprinting on a baby’ and this is why I am firmly planted on the team I’m on. And then I remind myself that this is just Twilight and I need to stop ranting about this now, so…I think I will. lol

Yep, so those are my thoughts, incoherent as they may be. I definitely liked the film much more the second time I saw it. The first time, I was trying to process the differences between this and the previous two films, but the second time, I knew what to expect, so I was able to enjoy it more as a viewing experience. Also, I was pretty impressed with David Slade as the director–I had my doubts because I was worried he would play up the action too much and downplay the romance, but he didn’t do that at all. Overall, I’d say the movies keep getting better…but then I think about what the next movie is going to be, and oh dear, it’s all downhill from here, isn’t it?

I saw New Moon on opening day, and (not surprisingly) I loved it. I’m probably going to go into full-on fangirl mode like I did with the first movie, so here’s a general mish-mash of impressions I was left with. (Spoilers follow. If you haven’t finished reading the books, you’ve been warned.)

• The cinematography is so gorgeous. I cannot express to you how happy I am that this movie is NORMAL colored, not blue-green like Twilight was. ugh, that was so annoying.
• Likewise, the soundtrack this time is so much better. Most of the songs are pretty emo, but that’s the tone of the book, so they make sense. Also, that’s the type of music I seem to listen to the most, so I appreciate the soundtrack.
• Even though I’m Team Edward, I like Jacob a lot more after this movie. Taylor Lautner just *is* Jacob and really brings him to life. I’m so glad they didn’t replace him with a different actor.
• I know most people hate on Kristen Stewart’s acting, but I like her. I think she is way better in NM than in Twilight. Also, I’ve seen her in a few other movies and I’ve liked her in those, too.
• That being said, people hate on Robert Pattinson’s acting too, and I think he does just fine. His character is all tortured and suicidal for 95% of the movie, what do you expect? Although, the early school parking lot scene with Edward and Bella is cute. I like them way more when they’re acting…you know…happy and in love. As opposed to tortured, teen angst woecake. (eh, whatever. I’m just sick of people hating on the actors when they don’t exactly have the greatest dialogue to work with.)
• The way the “time passes” sequence from the book is interpreted is perfect. I really love that part of the book (just the names of the months on each page–some people think it’s stupid, but I thought it was really powerful, whatev). I was hoping they wouldn’t screw it up in the movie, and they totally didn’t. I kind of wish Bella had been crying more in those shots, but she was all zombie-fied, so I’m ok with that.
• I loved all the comedic parts! The “date” with Bella/Jacob/Mike, Jessica’s zombie tirade, Eric’s crying during Romeo & Juliet…also, Alice and Jacob’s exchange is all win.
• The wolves look so good! I’m not a big fan of CGI, but I was impressed with the wolves. Especially the part where the pack takes off running after Laurent and the ground shakes under their weight. Love it!
• One of my favorite scenes is the cliff diving sequence. The underwater shots, combined with the soundtrack, stayed with me. I think it would have been perfect if Bella’s vision of Edward hadn’t been upside down. That seemed kind of goofy. I would have liked it if he had kind of floated over to her and reached out to touch her face, and then Jacob’s arm pulls her away, or something. That would have been prettier, and more symbolic. I think. But I’m just a fan, I don’t make movies, lol.
• The Victoria/wolves sequence, backed by “Hearing Damage” by Thom Yorke, is awesome. When I first listened to the soundtrack, I wasn’t sure which scene would feature the song, but now everytime I listen to the song, I think of that sequence and it gives me the fangirl squees. Just because.
• Michael Sheen as Aro is rather awesomepants. He’s so campy and funny, but also creepy creepster when appropriate. I approve.
• The sparkling is so much better this time! No more sweaty guy Edward, haha. And even though some people seemed grossed out by Rob Pattinson’s not-too-buff appearance, I didn’t mind at all. In his defense–he looks like a normal guy. Really. Sorry to disappoint, but average guys don’t look like Taylor Lautner. That boy is buff and everything, but it’s not necessarily the look that gets me hot and bothered. Also, the boy is 17 and I can’t even go there because UM HE IS 17. (I told you I was Team Edward/Rob.)
• Alice’s vision of Vamp Bella was soooo hokey but I still loved it. She and Edward are just frolicking through the woods, la ti daaa, haha. I half expected to see baby Renesmee toddling alongside them, that would have been rather awful, no? How on earth are they going to DO that for the Breaking Dawn movie? God help us. That, and Jacob imprinting on her as a baby, I shudder to think of it all.
• I loveloveloved the cliffhanger ending. Maybe it’s a ploy for people who haven’t read the books, but I’m a sucker for those Lost-esque, QuickCutToBlack endings. As long as they make some kind of sense.
• Overall, I think Chris Weitz > Catherine Hardwicke as a director. I love Catherine for casting the two leads, but Chris just did such a better job with the aesthetics and overall tone of the film.
• In summary, yes I know most of the movie was super cheesy, but hello, it’s Twilight, not freaking Shawshank Redemption, so I’m ok with the cheese.

SIDEBAR/RANT: I guess I should add, sorry if I’m coming across as stupidly fangirl and annoying–I know the entire media is Twilight-saturated right now and if you’re not a fan, I’m sure you’re just sick of it. But those of us who are fans have fun with it, even though the writing in the books is crappy, even though the general story is ridiculous, it’s fantasy and we like it. I’m really just sick of the diehard haters. Some people can dislike the series/movies but still be amused by them, which is great. But other people are just full-on haters and I find that annoying. No one is making you read the books or watch the movies, so if you loathe them so much, just…don’t read the books again or watch any of the movies. Really easy. I keep seeing comments by people who seem genuinely OFFENDED by the series/movies, which is just ridiculous. I’m offended by plenty of things in life, but come on, really? It is a fictional series of books and movies, get over it now please. Also? The New Moon movie just made $140 million (MILLLLLION) dollars on opening weekend, so Stephenie Meyer/Summit Entertainment are probably laughing all the way to the bank right about now. New Moon is going to make eleventy million by the time its run is over, so seriously…haters to the left.

ok! That’s all I’ve got for now that I can remember…I’m going to see the movie again this week sometime (probably on Black Friday while all the crazies are shopping). I’m looking forward to seeing it again.

ok, let me preface this whole post by saying, or reiterating rather, that I am a super huge Twilight fangirl. I loved the books (though some, like the first few, more than the others). I’ve been anticipating the movie for months and if you’ve seen my daily Delicious links, it’s pretty safe to say that it has been All Twilight All the Time over here at mub.net. So, now that the disclaimer is out of the way…

Would you like the short story, or the long story?

Short story: I love, love, loved the movie.

Long story (and it’s REALLY long): is under the cut. Alert, alert! Heavy spoilers coming! You have been warned!

So, M and I got in line for the 7:30 show last night around 6:15. There was another show at 7, and we thought that the people in line were waiting for that show. Turned out that the 7 o’clock people had already been seated. So we stood in line for 45 minutes till they let us be seated at 7. My feet hurt by the time we sat down, but we were pretty close to the front of the line, so we were able to get really good seats.

I was a bit apprehensive about all the fangirls. Seriously, it was probably 90% teenage girls, with the other 10% comprised of their moms and “older” people such as myself and M (read: people of legal age, haha). The theater was SO noisy before the previews came on–I kept thinking, I am never going to another evening show like this on opening day again! I hope they aren’t going to be noisy and talking during the whole movie…oh no.

So the previews passed, and when the Summit logo came on screen, we all knew IT WAS TIME. Some of the girls clapped and/or squealed, and I have to admit, I felt all excited inside, like a kid on Christmas morning. It was really bizarre. I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited to see a movie before, not in recent time and maybe ever.

Sidenote: I read the leaked copy of the script months ago, so I knew what most of the scenes were going to be like; however, they changed a lot since that revision of the script, thank goodness.

The first scene got the film off to a good start. We see Bella (Kristen Stewart) combined with voiceover, which allows us into her head like the book, which is narrated entirely from her perspective. Parts from the book, that would normally take several pages or even a whole chapter to describe (like the exposition), are nicely condensed in just a few minutes of the film. Let’s face it, at times Stephenie Meyer’s prose is just long-winded and in need of being put on the chopping block. I had been worried, with the medium of film and the time limit of 2 hours, that we wouldn’t get the same “feel” for the characters and story that we do from the book.

I was very pleasantly surprised.

Bella and Charlie’s relationship is really intriguing to watch. There is obvious tension and awkwardness in the book, but on screen it’s really apparent how disconnected they feel from each other when Bella initially moves to Forks. (Sidenote: Stephenie Meyer has a cameo in one of the early scenes with Bella & Charlie at the diner. Cute.) Over the course of the film, their interactions become more comfortable, and one of my favorite scenes of theirs was in the police station when Bella comforts Charlie following a death (that subplot is a means to an end which brings us to the nomad vampires).

oh yes, vampires, right! So the Cullens are introduced pretty early on in the movie, and I liked how their appearance wasn’t overly dramatic. For example, in the revision of the script I had read, it said that the Cullens walked into the cafeteria, in slow motion–I had envisioned this as a set of swinging doors opening and the whole group of them whooshing right in, like…really uber dramatic and cheesy. But that’s not how it happened. Each couple walks in first, while Jessica describes them to Bella. First Rosalie & Emmett, then Alice & Jasper, and finally Edward.

oh yes. Edward.

The fangirls literally squealed when Rob Pattinson walked onscreen, no lie. It was so funny! I thought I would be irritated by it, but it was actually kind of cute and I was glad I wasn’t alone in my giddiness.

From there, the story progressed pretty quickly to the infamous Biology lab scene. This scene played out differently than I read it in the book. When Edward catches Bella’s scent for the first time, he literally looks sick and ready to throw up or something, and it comes across as funny. I’m not sure if Rob meant for it to be funny, but the look on his face is just comical. Also, when Bella reaches over and sniffs her hair, trying to see if she stinks or something, that just pushed it over the top and I cracked up. It’s weird because in the book, the description of Edward’s reaction is so tense and angry, his eyes black with fury, that he strikes fear in Bella. In the movie, it was less like, “He looks like he wants to kill me” and more like, “What is his problem? Why is he reacting that way to me?”

I am SO glad that the pages and pages of “Edward disappeared from school for a week, I looked toward the Cullens’ table every day at lunch, only to see his chair empty, woe woe desperation woe” was reduced significantly in the film. We get the sense that Bella is confused, that she wants to confront him, but is saddened by his sudden disappearance. It’s just not “woe woe woe” like it is in the book. So when Edward does show up in Bio lab again, the story feels much faster-paced but I didn’t feel like much was being sacrificed in the adaptation. I liked how the film is more quickly paced.

Random sidenote: the film uses a lot of close-ups, and when we see close-ups of Edward’s (formerly black, now golden) eyes in Bio lab, I could totally see the outline of his contacts. I’ve worn contacts for years so it was obvious to me, slightly distracting but not overly so. The golden color looks kind of artificial (because it is, of course), but mainly during the extreme close-ups.

I have to say, I love the chemistry between Rob and Kristen. I knew it was going to be good, judging from the trailers and clips I’d seen online. They just click. Their back-and-forth banter during the mitosis scene is great, and exactly captured the spirit of that scene from the book. When they’re walking down the hall after that scene and Bella asks Edward about his eyes changing color, and he says, “It’s just the fluorescents,” and he walks down the hall…I found myself watching him just walking away; it was kind of fascinating. He walks down the hall, kind of hunched over, self-conscious and insecure–not the suave, debonair Edward from Twilight the book (Bella’s perspective)–he’s more the self-loathing, tortured Edward from Midnight Sun (Edward’s perspective). His walking away from her is a retreat, because he sees himself as a monster, a freak. He knows that Bella is starting to catch onto him, and he runs away because he is afraid. Pretty different from the “glorious/god-like/perfect Adonis” description of him from Bella’s perspective.

After that is the pivotal “Edward saves Bella from the van of doom” scene, which has been slightly overplayed in the trailers, but is still awesome.

I really love how Rob played Edward. I’ve read many of the critics’ reviews, and some of the comments are that he overacts, that he’s cheesy or campy. I disagree. He’s supposed to be tense all the time, because Edward is constantly resisting the urge to kill Bella and drink her blood. He’s supposed to look tortured around her, because he is.

Which brings me to Kristen’s interpretation of Bella. I think she did a really good job–Bella is such a tough character to play, not necessarily because the character is so complex, but because so many fans are emotionally invested in her as a character. Readers project themselves onto Bella, so there was no way to please all the fans with her performance. I’m bummed that so many fans are anti-Kristen, because I think she is a good actor. I don’t find her wooden at all; I think she is subtle in all the right places and emotional in others (like when she leaves Charlie’s house prior to the confrontation with James). I think Kristen had a huge challenge because of the fan reaction to her casting. So did Rob, but over time the majority of the fans grew to love (and I mean love love LOVE) him as Edward. I wish that people would pay more attention to Kristen’s performance and not write off her subtlety as bad acting, because that’s not what it is.

In the progression of the film, Bella & Edward have “light” moments, brief humor–and I loved those parts. At times the story (both in the book and film) is SO intense, but those lighter moments are a relief.

Also, many of the comic moments come from the supporting characters–Jessica is snooty but not overly so, Angela is cute, Mike is the little puppy that he is in the book, and Eric and Tyler are pretty hilarious.

Speaking of supporting characters, that brings me to Jacob (Taylor Lautner). Now, I was extremely skeptical of his playing Jacob. I just felt that he didn’t have the right look and I didn’t know how he would come across onscreen. I was surprised! Taylor has good chemistry with Kristen–though not as good as Rob’s, ahem go Team Edward –and I can’t wait to see that developed in New Moon. I think it’s going to be really fascinating to see the progression of Bella & Jacob’s relationship in the film sequel. I had been so skeptical of Taylor’s being cast as Jacob, but he played the part well. Also, as someone who has never been on Team Jacob, I think seeing that story played onscreen will give me insight into their relationship that I didn’t really connect with from just reading the books.

Back to Bella & Edward, though–I probably don’t need to say that the Port Angeles scene was fantastic. I felt that sense of panic when the four guys corner Bella and circle her, and then out of nowhere comes Edward’s Volvo…it was pure win! Then the subsequent scene in the car, and the restaurant scene–their exchanges were exciting to watch.

Something I read online prior to seeing the film, was that Rob’s song “Never Think” plays during the restaurant scene. I thought this would be distracting–hearing the actor speaking whilst simultaneously hearing him singing–but it wasn’t overpowering. It seemed like a nice fit, a good place to put his song.

The forest scene (shown extensively in trailers), the “I know what you are” scene, was almost perfect. The thing that distracted me and disappointed me the most? The meadow “reveal” scene, unfortunately.

Here’s the thing: yesterday morning I had read online that someone had posted the reveal scene on Youtube, complete with sparkling Edward! But I resisted valiantly and didn’t watch it! I really wanted to be surprised–so when I saw Edward sparkle for the first time in the theater, I was rather disappointed. In the book, he is described as sparkling like diamonds–and I imagined it as sunlight hitting the facets of a diamond, shooting sparkles and color in every direction. I know, I know–the whole concept of the Great Vampire Sunlight Sparkle is kind of ridiculous and there was basically no way to pull it off successfully. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be–various reviews had described it as “sweating profusely,” “human disco ball,” and “excessive glitter lotion,” but it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. It did seem kind of cheesy, though, and was disappointing.

Something else I didn’t like? Basically all the special effects. The vampires’ super speed looked cheesy, like TV show special effects (read: low budget). I understand that the film was made on a lower budget by Hollywood standards, but the speed and not-quite-Spiderman-esque tree climbing weren’t my favorite moments from the film.

That being said, there is one moment when Edward takes Bella way up in a tree (following the infamous “You’d better hold on tight, spidermonkey” comment–which some fans hate since it’s not in the book, but I didn’t mind), when she says, “This isn’t real…this kind of stuff just doesn’t exist,” to which he replies, “It does in my world.” We then see various shots of them climbing the tree, looking out at the view, talking…and the camera pans out wide, and we see them become tiny spots in the treetop. That was a beautiful shot.

ok, so–I’m skipping over slight things, like Bella’s introduction to the Cullens and the vampire baseball scene–which were fine but completely overshadowed in my mind by the EPIC KISSING SCENE. haha. So I know that the original version was shot differently–a wide shot of the two of them on Bella’s bed, which Stephenie Meyer considered too racy for her taste, so Catherine Hardwicke (the director) cut it to close-ups. ok…fine. That being said, the kissing scene was so good, our theater practically combusted, LOL. No really–there is such a buildup to the kiss in that scene, from Edward’s “Be very still…don’t move…don’t move!” to the actual kiss itself. (See previous comments about Rob & Kristen’s chemistry.)

It was kind of a buzzkill when the bad vampires showed up, but the film continued to move at a fast pace. The epic ballet studio fight scene was pretty good–when James breaks Bella’s leg and Edward swoops in and tackles him, I may have yelled, “Kick his ass, Edward!!” um…yeah. lol

The part of the scene that was most intense, for me, is when Edward has to suck out the venom from Bella’s arm. That was REALLY intense. More so than I expected. The look on Edward’s face is…crazed?…and spot on. During that scene, there is a montage of flashbacks, while Bella is basically dying…but then Edward pulls her back from the brink, and Bella’s voiceover is perfect: “Death is easy…peaceful. Life…is harder.” And then she wakes up in the hospital. That part was fantastic.

Sidenote: Rob’s song “Let Me Sign” is played during the venom sucking (that sounds really odd, but you get the picture) and it seemed an appropriate place for the song.

Bella’s reaction in the hospital after the confrontation with James is amazing. She basically freaks out when Edward hints at the idea that she would be safer without him in her life. At that moment, she is Bella from New Moon, and I could already see the seeds of her downward spiral being planted at that moment.

It was a brief shift, then to the scene before they go to prom. The tension between Edward & Charlie was all win. And then the scene with the three of them, when Bella walks downstairs in her prom dress (and walking cast!) was so perfect.

The prom scenes were, for lack of a better word, rather magical. I love, love, loved hearing Iron & Wine playing while they danced under the gazebo, though it was a little too convenient how the other couples just happened to leave as the song and scene went on, leaving Bella & Edward alone. The moment when Edward tips Bella back, as if to bite her neck but really to kiss her gently, was rather beautiful.

Also, there is an awesome staredown between Edward & Jacob toward the end of the movie, during the prom scene–it was like a showdown, haha! Loved it!

The film is absolutely being set up for New Moon. The interaction toward the end between Edward & Jacob is foreshadowing the rivalry that we’ll see for the rest of the series. Also, we get a hint of Edward’s growing possessiveness over Bella. When Edward sees Bella & Jacob talking at prom, he steps in and ushers her away, saying, “I leave you alone for two minutes, and the wolves descend.” Comical in a way, but I definitely got a sense of that overly protective, possessive Edward we really see in later books. It was an odd mix of endearing mixed with creepy.

Something I thought was really poignant was the fan reaction before, during, and following the film–but mainly during. Whenever Edward spoke one of the key lines from the book–”You are my life now,” “So the lion fell in love with the lamb,” and even just, “Hello…my name is Edward Cullen,” the fans (myself included!) had this palpable reaction, this cross between excitement and just plain silliness. But beyond that, there was the reaction whenever Bella & Edward had the slightest physical contact–the kisses, to be sure–but the more subtle things, like his arm around her the day they “go public” at school, the moment in the forest when he sort of pins her against a boulder (it’s very slight), and other subtleties like that. I guess it was just amazing to me that, in an age of so much oversexualization, that teenagers swoon over the touch of a hand, a gaze, a kiss.

I think that’s part of why the books, and now the film, have so much appeal–there is a type of innocence, a pureness to this kind of love, that people crave because it is so rarely seen. That’s not to say that Bella & Edward’s relationship doesn’t progress and become more intense, even more physical–but the buildup, the sexual tension, really is electric. And sort of rare and paradoxically, kind of pure at the same time. Their love is so many different things, but it’s really–in its concentrated form–pure and true.

I will say, though, that I really believe that the film was made first for the fans of the books. I don’t think that most people who haven’t read the books, and don’t love the books, will enjoy the film. M enjoyed it, but then he already knew the basic story since I had told him about it. I think that, if I hadn’t known the books already, parts of the film would have confused me, not connected. That being said, I can understand why so many critics dislike the film. But regardless of that, I think the majority of fans will enjoy it. I’m sure there will be people who hate it on a Breaking Dawn level, but I think for the most part the fan response will be positive. I THINK. lol

So, in summary…I really loved the film and thought it did justice to the book. I thought it trimmed excess where necessary, added some much-needed elements like more humor, and truly captured the essence of the book, the best things about the Bella & Edward story. I cannot wait for the sequels, but in the meantime, I plan to go back to the theater and see Twilight at least one more time–possibly more!

oh man…and now it is occurring to me that I sound like such a Twi-hard, haha. I think I’ve come to take these books, and now the film, so seriously, when the books were originally described to me as “mental popcorn”–so um, yeah, apparently the intensity of the story has made ME all intense. Great.

1. Three films you rented recently?
- Thirteen. But it sat unopened on my dresser for a few days, so I figured that was a sign I really didn’t want to watch it, so I sent it back to Netflix, lol.
- Premonition. This film got horrible reviews but I liked it, so bugger all the critics! 4/5 stars.
- Because I Said So. This was ok, I didn’t think it was very funny and it tried to have that warm/fuzzy feeling at the end but it didn’t really work on me. 2/5 stars.

2. Are you into any crafts other than knitting?
I just mentioned on my previous post that I’m probably going to get back into cross stitch. I used to do it quite a bit when I was younger (before I learned to knit, pre yarn-staged free time coup). Also, I plan on learning crochet properly (meaning how to make something other than a single chain), if I ever get round to it.

3. Any New Stash or Notions Acquisitions?
Absolutely no new yarn, as I’m yarn buying sober currently…today I plan on picking up a cross stitch pattern book and some fabric/floss, though. I’ll have to post photos later.

4. What Are You Listening To?
Well, here’s where I would post my Last.fm profile, if my Audioscobbler were working but the server was down yesterday so none of my submissions went through. How many tunes could an Audioscrobbler scrobble if an Audioscrobbler could scrobble tunes? hehe. I think the last few songs I…um…evaluated *cough cough* were “The Pretender” by Foo Fighters, “The Story” by Brandi Carlile, and “Almost Lover” by A Fine Frenzy.

5. Name Five Things On Your Knitting Wishlist?
Yarn yarn yarn yarn yarn? haha no really:
- Knit Picks Harmony Wood DPN Set. I have problems with their nickel dpn finish peeling off (uber sweaty hands + nickel coating = not good). I think the rainbowlicious finish is kind of weird, and I’m surprised that the majority of knitters seem to really love it so far–at least from the photos. I’m more interested in the strength of the wood and no metal peeling. I’ve snapped bamboo dpns before and that does NOT feel good! (Imagine stabbing yourself with the grain of a toothpick or BBQ skewer.) I have a set of Brittany Birch dpns and they’re quite strong; they feel very sturdy while knitting, as opposed to bamboo, which tend to warp for me over time, so I’m optimistic about the KP Harmony dpns.
- Knitting Classic Style. Every time I see this in Barnes & Noble I flip through it and oogle the photos. I can see myself knitting several of the patterns, which is normally my gauge for deciding whether to buy the book or not. I’m trying to discipline myself and wait till B&N sends me another 10 or 15% off coupon because I KNOW they’re going to send me one either this week or next week…and darnit, I CAN exercise self-control. Hopefully. Probably. lol
- Knitting Circles Around Socks. I’m a dpn devotee, but I want to see what all the fuss is about with knitting socks on circs. Not only this, but I *really* want to avoid Second Sock Syndrome and this book teaches knitting two socks at the same time.
- Wollmeise sock yarn. It’s that syndrome where it seems every other knitter in the universe has some and/or has knit with it *except* for you and you want to find out what all the hype is about. Surely I can acquire this someday…if I can score Vesper sock yarn, I can get myself some Wollmeise, right? right!
- The Raven Series yarn from Blue Moon Fiber Arts. I’m already an STR fan, but I’m an Edgar *freak.* Want to see my action figure? How about my stuffie Poe? I seriously need to find some pattern that looks like bird wings and knit some Edgar socks, those would truly be socks that rock!

Did this post make sense?

Next up in my queue is The Holiday, mainly because my second boyfriend Jude Law is in it. I downgraded my Netflix account to the unlimited one-at-a-time, $9.99/mo plan because I never really used my three-at-a-time plan and I was actually losing money like that. And I really need to find a job before/if I upgrade again.

Speaking of jobs! More job hunting took place today. First thing this morning, I hopped on my laptop and searched openings. I faxed my resume to another publishing company for another proofreader position (just like yesterday), and then I emailed a local law firm about a clerical position. Not the most interesting of possibilities, but I’m not complaining. Got to start somewhere! I’m sure I’ll be doing more applying tomorrow…and the rest of the week…

I am trying SO SO SO stinking hard not to buy more yarn. You have no idea. I’ve been controlling myself, but it’s really tough! I always knew I was addicted, but good grief. The other day, I was on kpixie.com and I saw that they’re now carrying casein needles, which I’ve been wanting to try for years (literally), so I ordered a set of size 2s. But I didn’t want to pay shipping for just one item (ahem), so I also ordered the Wicked pattern. But I did not buy any yarn! And spent less than $20 on my order. That’s not too bad, right?

I really just need to finish what’s on my needles right now (this and this), but my stupid knitting ADD keeps hopping around my brain, and possibly my yarn stash and laptop as well, kind of like a wee demon leprechaun that taunts me, saying, BUY MORE YARN! YOU KNOW YOU WANT MORE YARN!

And which reminds me, St. Patrick’s Day was this weekend, wasn’t it? I didn’t do anything at all to celebrate. Unless you count the Bananas Foster dessert I had on Saturday, which was sooooo yummy and which contained rum. I’d never tasted rum before. Still haven’t, technically, since it was cooked down and I didn’t actually drink it or anything. But oh my, if you’ve never had Bananas Foster, go taste some. It’s really good.

btw, can this post be any more random?

That is all.

So keep the movie recommendations coming because that’s two-for-two so far on the comedies! Say no to depressing movies! (At least until my divorce is finalized.)

Speaking of movies, I watched SherryBaby. YUCK. I did not like this movie at all. Maggie Gyllenhaal was good, though I could have done without seeing her topless that many times, ahem. And the story was just sad and depressing and I really, really need to stop renting depressing movies! lol So if you have any suggestions for nice, funny, HAPPY films, please share.

- The film was beautiful to look at, all acting aside. I mean, the acting was decent but even if it had been horrible, you could have just put the volume on mute and simply looked at everything. The costumes, cinematography, set design…it’s all really beautiful.

- Good grief, were there enough cakes and pastries?! Not even halfway through the film, I began craving cake. Seriously.

- Kirsten Dunst was okay in the role of Marie. She’s not really one of my favorite actresses, and I could easily picture other actresses in the role.

- It’s a little nit-picky, but the use of American accents (mainly Kirsten/Marie) was distracting for me. I know from watching the special features that the director (Sophia Coppola) did not intend to make a strict biography, but still. It was distracting because the characters were less historical and more artistically licensed, if that makes sense, lol. (Yes, I know that was the point but it just bugged me!)

- I didn’t really mind the use of modern music throughout the film; it reminded me of Moulin Rouge (which I lovelovelove, of course), but I don’t know that it really helped the film, either.

- Lastly, I wasn’t really satisfied with the ending. I’ll leave it at that in case you haven’t seen it yet!