This has disturbed and stumped me for weeks, but I'm grappling with why I am obsessed with Twilight. I mean weirdly, disturbingly tied to the series.
From my last Twilight-related post, I was able to wait until the following Friday before I got Eclipse. I finished it before I went to bed Friday night. I got Breaking Dawn on Saturday night and finished it before dinner Sunday.
I also watched the Twilight movie the following Monday night. The first viewing didn't wow me. (AKJ also reviewed if you want another POV). It felt like the movie was one note - tortured. I liked the casting and agreed with AKJ on it, although I didn't think Rosalie was pretty enough and it disturbed me that Edward had 5 o' clock shadow the whole time. Dude's a vampire, come on.
The movie improved on second viewing. And third. And, um, fourth. Eclipe and Breaking Dawn were good the third time too. What is wrong with me?
Stephanie Meyer could not have written a book more tuned to high school girls who read this kind of book if she had calculated it. I don't know if it was conscious, but the heroine is what all of us felt we were then.
And that's really the major part of the problem. Bella is my high school self brought to life in a novel - awkward and uncoordinated, self-conscious, easily embarrassed. I, too, thought I found the perfect man in high school, someone who seemed perfectly sensitive and attractive and mysterious. Of course, he turned out to be complete ass hat. Part of the lure is to see what life could be like with magic and wonder as a given. When the pain of adolescence gives way to happiness greater than you could ever have known. A world where the result of that first attempt at trust is a love greater than imagination.
So I'm tied to a series of books that took my life and glorified it and injected magic and perfection and subtracted out all of the mundane crap (isn't it so much easier that the Cullens are wealthy beyond belief?). Where the guy turns out to be the guy you imagined, not a totally self-absorbed dickwad. Where everything works itself out and your in-laws are your best friends and everyone will die to protect you. Where you end up getting everything you ever wished for and more that you didn't even think to ask.
Yeah, maybe not such a mystery, I guess.
7 comments:
I haven't yet re-watched Twilight (or bought it) because I liked the books so much better, but maybe I should watch it again. I agree about the Bella thing- that woman has female teenage angst down to the smallest detail. Especially for those of us who weren't the popular, cool kids, but not complete outcast geeks either. I even had a "Jacob" friend.
(And um, Have you read the Midnight Sun draft yet? If not, you can find it on Meyer's website. It's Twilight via Edward's POV.)
Speaking of vamp stories, anyone sucked in (hahaha) to "True Blood" on Cinemax yet? Just me with my lack of other programming? hm? Seriously interesting show. Vampires out in the open now claiming rights abuses, discrimination etc. All made possible by the invention of synthetic blood you can purchase at your local 7-11 so no need to kill people (but of course they still do and, of course, some folks are totally into the occasional vampire bite). Of course, lots of forbidden love stories etc.
Oh, and forgot that vamp blood is also sold as a drug as well. Yet another fun dimension. (Vamps being hunted to drain them and make a nice profit.)
Diplo -- you have to read the source books for that show, which in my family we call "The Vamp Crack." It's the only thing besides Stephen Fry that's ever been purchased in hardcover, because someone JUST COULD NOT WAIT.
oooh - It goes by the same name?
Hm - wonder what the Chinese will think if I order a bunch of vamp books at one time.
Hmm, I've never read or seen those books but I could probably get pretty absorbed by that myself. Looking back though HS wasn't all that bad, but I'd never want to relive it. Well, except for the fact that I got to see my friends every day....
Ok, I bought the first Vamp Crack book in order to break my Vamp Heroin Twilight habit. There is no more Twilight to be had, I have read everything available. I'll let you know how it goes...
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