The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn- Part 2
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Billy Burke, Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Ashley Greene, Maggie Grace, Michael Sheen, Dakota Fanning, Cameron Bright, Mackenzie Foy
Directed by: Bill Condon
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Drama, Romance, Fantasy
2012

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: After the birth of their daughter (Mackenzie Foy), Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward (Robert Pattinson) must create an alliance of friends to combat the displeasure of the Volturi.

Review:

Tim: With every passing Twilight movie, I've grown slightly more tired of the franchise. With The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn- Part 2, we're finally at the end. I have to say that I'm rather glad all the fuss is over. I didn't hate any of these movies, but I have to admit I have grown tired of them. I did feel some excitement about seeing this film, because it represented the culmination of all these films. However, that excitement was just set up for disappointment. If you want to look at how to break a final novel into two distinct movies and ensure the second one is epic beyond belief, look at Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. This film followed a different course- mainly, delivering an average finale.

I wasn't overly impressed with this film. The best part of it is undoubtedly that the story ends- we understand how all these characters conclude their story. After investing a lot of time in these five films, it feels good to have the conclusion in the books. I admit I was at least decently intrigued by these characters, so I enjoyed the process of seeing their stories wrap up. That is part of the strength of a finale, and that part of this movie was fun.

I was pretty disappointed with the overall story. It just felt anticlimactic to me. Part of this is the fault of the movie, but part of it goes to the disappointing final book (I'm guessing? I haven't read any of them). The biggest complaint I have is with the final battle (slight Spoilers ahead, I suppose). For a while, I actually thought it was turning out to be a fairly epic conclusion. And then, the movie pulls one of those awful fake-outs, which I just hate, hate, hate. A movie should never ask you to invest in something emotionally, and then punish you for that investment. That scene and that moment completely ruined the end of the film for me. I get why it was done, but it just ended this entire franchise and story on a cheap note for me. It was really, really disappointing.

The cast is about as average as they have always been. Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner gave their same average performances. When you look at a franchise like Harry Potter, it's amazing to see the development of each of those actors. I know we're working on a shorter time frame here, but I felt like our big trio of actors didn't grow or evolve much at all. I've always liked the supporting players here, and it was nice to see Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Michael Sheen, Dakota Fanning, and all the others in their roles one last time. No one really stood out to me at all, but it was fun seeing them regardless.

I'm really not going to be overly negative about this movie. I know there are a lot of Twilight haters out there, but I've never been one of them. I admitted to liking the first two films, and the last three were at least decent. I wanted this to be a huge, climactic finale, but it just left me disappointing. I suppose many people will love this "love story that lasts forever", but it left me feeling underwhelmed. I certainly did not hate The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn- Part 2, but it was not the finale the fans deserved. It is an average movie, but no one can claim this franchise ended on a particularly high note.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Twilight, The Twilight Saga: New Moon, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn- Part 1