Last night (Thursday) I was at a movie screening for the new Disney film Bolt (a great film by the way). On the way out of the screening, the sidewalks around the theatre looked like the front of a Barnes and Noble bookstore the night before the last Harry Potter release. Hundreds of teenagers huddled in blankets (yeah, it's actually cold here in Sacramento in November) waiting for the doors to open to the highly anticipated Twilight.
The particular Regal Theatre I was at was showing three midnight showings of the film, showings that have been sold out for quite a while.
Don't be mislead in any way- this film is quite the pop culture phenomenon.
A lot of parents are asking me, "Should I let my kids see this film?" A question I have yet to answer with just a "yes" or "no." instead, I share my concerns (like in our Youth Culture Window article and my blog about it) and then leave them with, "it's your call."
I had two people screaning the movie for our ministry so we could pass our "two cents" on to you. The first was Lynda, a youth worker who volunteers with a small group of girls at her church. Her girls were all going to see the film, so she figured that she might as well join them so they could talk about it. She has read all the books and emailed me her educated two cents at 2:54 AM last night:
Ok... lets just say that normally when I read a book, then watch the movie version, I am very disappointed. Not the case with "Twilight." I thought they did a good job of condensing it down. There were parts that were added to keep the flow going, but it was done well, I thought. I felt like I was watching cliff notes for the book. (Hope that makes sense...)
About the sensuality.... the scene where Edward has Bella tell him that he is a vampire... they talk and end up lying shoulder to shoulder, she is breathing heavy.... (the laying shoulder to shoulder wasn't the sensual part, it was the looking at each other & her just being "breathy"...) the anticipation, I guess, of what is to come of this relationship.
The "bedroom" scene : she is in bed talking to her mom when Edward shows up. He wants to kiss her, but not sure he can control himself he tries to lightly kiss her, she leans up into him for a more active kiss (that's when we see her in her underwear), then he ends up pushing her away. It seemed like it was less than a minute, you saw her in her underwear for like 20 secs.... out of place yes, super sensual, no. I thought the other scene was more sensual. They do end up laying next to each other, talking, she eventually falls asleep, and cuddles up next to him.
Todd, our movie review guy shares his two cents in his review of the film here on our movie review page. He really enjoyed the film and gave it a score of "Theatre Worthy." I love his "two cents" to parents about whether kids should see it. Here's just a snippet:
I really only found one concern: the sensuality. A very vulnerable young girl is sneaking around with a guy, lying on her bed in her underwear with him, and kissing him. The snuggling stops right there- so you decide if that’s a good message or not. (Is it good that the film has no sex? Or does the film mislead audiences that snuggling in your undies is harmless? Kids are hearing a lot of mixed messages right now. Trojan’s campaign seems to hint that sex is unavoidable and protection is the only answer. Who is right? ...or are both messages misleading?) Regardless, these are discussions that you want to have with your kids.
Good stuff!
INSERT: The film did record numbers in it's opening weekend, bringing in over $70 million.