As expected, the events kick off straight after the
conclusion of Part 1 with newly
transformed vampire, Bella (Kristen Stewart), recovering and trying to adjust
to her new set of skills and desires. Her baby, Renesmee, is healthy and
growing fast, protected and cared for by Jacob (Taylor Lautner), who “imprinted”
her and as a result is bound to her side. Bella and Edward (Robert Pattinson) are
living with the Cullens, Edward’s family, who have welcomed Bella and Renesmee
into their clan.
Though she ages fast and is the spawn of a vampire and
a human, Renesmee was conceived and delivered while Bella was still in human
form, and is not the immortal child (an illegal infant created by two vampires)
as the ruling Volturi (led by Michael Sheen and Dakota Fanning) are led
to believe. Fearing the worst the Cullen clan gather allies from around
the world who can attest to Renesmee’s human qualities and stop a war.
There are many problems with Part 2 on both an entertainment level (which is something that Part 1 even managed to deliver) and a filmmaking level. We have the myriad of minor characters who are introduced with the intention of playing a key role (Alistair, a reluctant colleague, is one) and are then sort-of explored and completely forgotten about, and the distracting inclusion of green screen and the abysmal CGI (especially the technology used to render the age and appearance of Renesmee). For a franchise that has made as much money as this has, it is still surprising to see such sub-par visuals (though the wolves looked much better here than in Part 1).
We also have the introduction of potentially
interesting ideas that fail to be explored. Bella’s struggle to control her
newfound urges and come to terms with her strengths could have been one - but
she has the former under wraps in mere minutes, and in utterly ridiculous
fashion, and the latter is conveyed through a dumb montage that has Bella
winning an arm wrestle and punching apart a boulder. There are many wasted
opportunities to actually explore features of vampire lore in any real depth.
But that’s not what the target audience is here for, its about the romance of
watching this formerly normal young girl fight for everything she has been
privileged to – even if it is a husband who has become useless since becoming a
father (he’s just ‘there’ for most of the film), a creepy looking child and a
ridiculously over lit house.
The wooden acting (but to be honest, Stewart and
Lautner have certainly been worse) and awful dialogue has always been a distinct
feature of this franchise. It is Pattinson who gets the raw deal here. The joke
is on him and he spends most of the time at Bella’s hip with a cheeky grin on
his face that feels dangerously close to ruining the take.
But where Part
2 really suffers is in its narrative, or lack thereof. This is an immensely
boring film. There is no dramatic impact or mounting tension, despite the
feeling that we are headed for an inevitable conflict, and several claims that
joining the Cullens was an extremely dangerous decision.
For 100 minutes we literally watch nothing interesting
happen. A lengthy recruitment drive takes up a large portion of time, and the rest
is spent introducing exposition to unsubtly explain everything and lengthy
exchanges that feature little more than the characters standing around and
smiling at one another. While Part 1
featured what surely be the most boring wedding ever filmed, this one features the
most prolonged pre-battle. The two sides are standing hundreds of yards apart,
yet talk in a normal tone and when Edward is summoned to approach the Volturi
we feel like we watch every one of his steps there.
I didn't so much as hate Breaking Dawn Part 2, though the fact that it is more dreadful than
its predecessor evokes stunned disbelief, but found it a near-insufferable
bore. This is not a film made for me, I get it, but fans 'may' be satisfied. I
feel like the big events - the marriage, the baby, Bella’s transformation and
the final battle - are individually significant and probably quite
engaging in the novels, but with the story barely possessing a
pulse in between these events, the material feels stretched
thin. Even when the climactic battle does come, and it is probably the most exciting
part of any of the films, what follows is sure to disappoint anyone
unacquainted with the novels. This was the least satisfying of my
Twilight experiences by a substantial margin. There is no justification,
beyond money, to split this final book into two films. Ultimately, I am
just thankful this toxic franchise is over.
My Rating: 1/2 Star
And thus demolished haha! *crumble crumble*
ReplyDeleteI guess it didn't live up to the books then? Or were the books not that great either?
I haven't read the novels, but from my understanding they are pretty awful. This is a terrible film, anyway.
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