THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN – PART 2 – The Review

We all knew that this tale had to finally come to an end, but not even the hardest of Twi-Hards knew that it would end like this!

In the final installment of THE TWILIGHT SAGA, Bella has opened her eyes to a whole new world. A vampire world. She is finally immortal, and can spend forever with her beloved Edward… or so she thinks. Although she is finally an immortal, as promised to the Voltouri, their daughter Renesmee is seen as an immortal child, which is forbidden. The Cullen family is now on a race to prove that Renesmee is the child of Bella and Edward, and that she poses no threat to any of the clans… otherwise, the Voltouri will destroy them all.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN – PART 2 proved to be the best film in the series. Although it took a risk, and deviated from the book, I think the film did a great job in wrapping up the immortal love story. The film does have its mix of silly, and even ridiculous flaws, but what do you expect? If we have learned anything from the other four films, it’s not to expect a serious movie.

SPOILER ALERT! You have been warned.

The film jumps right in, pacing itself rather nicely. I don’t really think they had much of a choice with that, considering BREAKING DAWN – PART 1 spent the entire film focusing on Bella and Edwards sex life, and the pregnancy/birth of Renesmee. In an ideal world, the two films would have given a little more room for us to get to know Renesmee, and build on the relationship between Bella and her daughter. As someone who has read the books, I realized halfway through the film that I felt like I understood their relationship because I had the back story of the books rather than feeling it build throughout the movie. I mean, rather than staging an arm wrestling contest with Emmett, they could have focused more on building Renesmee’s character. Although… good lord! I see why they felt the need to put that scene in.

Kellan Lutz… your arms… I like that… good job…

Let’s talk about the pink elephant in the room, or, should I say the freakishly horrible computer generated child?! Whose idea was that? Who brought that idea to the table? A real child would have benefitted the story more. Poor Mackenzie Foy, who plays Renesmee, was animated the majority of the film. I understand that the character grows fast, but subbing siblings of various ages, or searching for a few children that looked incredibly similar would have been a much better choice. It was distracting from the story. Still, it got down right creepy when they showed a grown up version of Renesmee standing with Jacob.They used computers to take a little girl of 11, who resembles a child of around 7 years old, and place her in a scene as a grown up with Jacob, who has imprinted on her. Obviously, nothing happens in the scene, but the whole thing doesn’t feel right. Despite the horrible CGI, which has never been their strong suit, the film took one risk that really paid off. They deviated from the book and added a fight scene.

Now, I am going to try to speak about this without giving anything away, but I did say spoiler alert above, so take this as your second, and final warning. There is no fight scene in the book. Jane (a member of the Voltouri) goes on the attack, as does Alec (again, Voltouri) , but that it pretty much it. Bella’s shield (which is her special vampire power) protects everyone, but in the movie they have limited it to Edward, and a bit to Alice. I will spare you with the minor details of the stand-off, because at the end of the day, they aren’t very important. What’s important is that they threw in this massive twist, that none of us expected, and it really paid off. It brought the film to a whole new level, and despite Aro having the scariest reaction to meeting a child that I have ever seen (or heard), the fight scene had the entire audience on the edge of their seats. When there is an established fandom, such as with the TWILIGHT books, it’s very easy to upset them when you deviate from the original tale that they have grown to love. There is an attachment to it, a feeling of ownership, of being part of the journey alongside the characters… When you mess with the content, it can cause chaos. Having said that, I did not hear a single complaint from the Twi-Hards in the theater, or in the lobby last night. I only heard rave reviews and excited shock over the added twist. Also, I don’t think the films are serious enough to pull off an ending like the one in the book. The films have a campy subtext that doesn’t seem fitting of a quieter, more refined ending. The chaos is just what the film version needed.

At the end of the day I am happy with the final product. I’d say that the films have really come a long way, but it would be more accurate to give this one the most improved player award. The film tied up any loose ends, and gave the audience the satisfaction of a complete journey. That, along with the included homage to all of the characters (not just those in the last film), really helped end things on a pleasant note.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN – PART 2 is in theaters now.

OVERALL RATING: 3.75 out of 5 stars