Like Buffy the Vampire Slayer before it, Twilight appeals to its key demographic – by keeping it in the classroom.
The film tells the story of Bella, an overly sulky teenager whose two passions in life seem to be the macabre and her own internal monologues.
Naturally, when a pale, mysterious and moody boy walks – in slow motion of course – into the school canteen, an awkward love story begins.
With its setting and characters, Twilight plays right into the hands of its teenage fans but will appeal to most cinema-goers as it is fairly well directed and has a compelling story.
But don’t expect a Lost Boys clone. All humour and quirky charm has been replaced with adolescent sighs and frowns.
That said, the vampire love story offers a decent subtext about doomed teenage relationships – whether fighting against raging hormones or vampiric urges they tend to end in the same way – disaster.
The film did have a few problems though, most notably, the stunts. Whenever a vampire jumps, it is achingly obvious the actor is on a wire, slightly shattering the illusion.
The pacing too is a bit iffy with the edge-of-your-seat stuff only coming into play in the last half hour.
Also, true to the novel but slightly odd, when vampires are exposed to sunlight in the film they sparkle rather than burst into flames!
But forgive its flaws and you’ll find a film with real bite here.
