The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (commonly referred to as Eclipse) is a 2010 American romantic fantasy film based on Stephenie Meyer's 2007 novel Eclipse. It is the third installment of The Twilight Saga film series, following 2008's Twilight and 2009's New Moon. Summit Entertainmentgreenlit the film in February 2009.[4] Directed by David Slade, the film stars Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner, reprising their roles as Bella Swan, Edward Cullen, and Jacob Black, respectively.[5]Melissa Rosenberg, who penned the scripts for both Twilight and New Moon, returned as screenwriter.[6]Filming began on August 17, 2009, at Vancouver Film Studios,[7] and finished in late October, with post-production began early the following month.[8]Bryce Dallas Howard was cast as Victoria, replacing Rachelle Lefevre who previously played her.
The film was released worldwide on June 30, 2010 in theatres, and became the first Twilight film to be released in IMAX.[4][9] The film has received mixed reception from critics. It held the record for biggest midnight opening in the United States and Canada in box office history, grossing an estimated $30 million,[10] until it was surpassed by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 in 2011.[10][11] The film then scored the biggest Wednesday opening in the United States and Canada history with $68,533,840 beating Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen's $62 million.[12]Eclipse has also become the film with the widest independent release, playing in over 4,416 theaters, surpassing its predecessor, The Twilight Saga: New Moon, which held the record since November 2009.[13]
Plot[edit]In Seattle, not far from Forks, Victoria still seeks vengeance on Bella for James’s death. Learning that Laurent is killed by wolves and to replace him and James, she attacks and bites Riley Biers in order to begin creating an army of newborns, who are many times stronger during their first few months than older vampires. Back in Forks, Edward Cullen and Bella Swan resume their relationship, and discuss the complications of becoming a vampire. At eighteen years old, one year older than Edward was when he became a vampire, Bella dislikes the idea of marrying so young, though Edward refuses to turn her into a vampire until they are married, his argument being that she should have a normal, human life. While Bella's father, Charlie Swan, investigates the disappearance of Riley Biers, Edward suspects his disappearance was caused by Victoria and her newborn's army, furthering his suspicions of Riley Biers' intrusion into Bella's bedroom to steal her red blouse. Bella insists that Jacob Black and the rest of the wolf pack would never harm her. Bella wants to go to Jacob's home, even though Edward expresses his dislike of Jacob and concern for her safety, but she returns unharmed. During one of her visits, Jacob confesses that he is in love with Bella, and forcefully kisses her. Furious, she punches him and sprains her hand, and Edward later threatens Jacob and tells him to only kiss her if she asks him to. Bella even revokes the invitations of Jacob and his pack members to her graduation party at the Cullen house, but when Jacob apologizes for his behavior, she forgives him and lets him and the wolf pack attend the party. Meanwhile, Alice sees a vision that the newborn army will attack Forks within the week, led by Riley Biers. Jacob, accompanied by Quil and Embry, overhear this, which leads to an alliance between the Cullens and wolf pack. Later, the Cullens and the wolves agree to a meeting place and time to train and discuss strategy against the powerful newborns. During their training Jasper explains to Bella that he was a Major in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, and he was created by a vampire named Maria to control a newborn army. He eventually realized that Maria used him to fulfill her own ambitions. He didn't know there was another way until he met Alice and joined the Cullens. Bella sees the true bond between a mated vampire pair and begins to understand Jasper better. Despite her reluctance to marry young, Bella realizes that spending eternity with Edward is more important to her than anything else and accepts his marriage proposal, along with his late mother's engagement ring. Edward and Bella camp in the mountains to hide Bella from the bloodthirsty newborns. During the night, Bella overhears a conversation between Edward and Jacob, in which they temporarily put aside their hatred towards each other. In the morning, Jacob overhears Edward and Bella discussing their engagement and is furious. Bella desperately asks Jacob to kiss her, and she realizes that she loves him. Edward learns about the kiss but is not upset, because Bella says she loves him more than Jacob. When Victoria appears, Edward kills her while Seth kills Riley. The Cullens and the wolves, meanwhile, destroy her 'army', though Jacob is injured saving Leah from a newborn. Several members of the vampire overlords, the Volturi, arrive to deal with the newborn army, and are surprised the Cullens weren't killed. They also see that the Cullens are guarding the newborn, Bree Tanner, who had refused to fight and surrendered to Carlisle. Jane briefly tortures Bree to get information, then has Felix kill her, despite the Cullens' efforts to spare her. Carlisle treats Jacob at his home, and Bella visits him to tell him that even though she loves him, she has chosen Edward. Devastated by her choice, Jacob reluctantly agrees not to come between her and Edward. Bella and Edward go to the meadow, where she tells him she has decided to do things his way: Get married, have a normal honeymoon, then be transformed into a vampire. She also explains that she never has been normal and never will be, that she's felt out of place her entire life, but when she is in Edward's world she feels stronger and complete. At the end of the story, they know they need to tell Charlie about their engagement, for which Bella is happy Edward is 'bulletproof.' Cast[edit]
Production[edit]Development[edit]
David Slade at the London premiere of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.
In early November 2008, Summit announced that they had obtained the rights to the remaining books in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series: New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn.[24] In February 2009, Summit confirmed that they would begin working on The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. On the same day, it was announced that since New Moon director Chris Weitz would be in post-production for New Moon when Eclipse began shooting, he would not be directing the third film.[25][26] Instead, the film would be helmed by director David Slade, with Melissa Rosenberg returning as screenwriter. David Slade dove right into the project, interviewing cast members individually between two and three times to discuss characters and the plot.[27] Casting[edit]Summit Entertainment revealed that they would replace Rachelle Lefevre, who played an evil vampire named Victoria, with Bryce Dallas Howard in late July 2009. They attributed the change to scheduling conflicts, and Lefevre responded by saying she was 'stunned' and 'greatly saddened' by the decision.[28] Howard had previously rejected the role of Victoria as 'too small of a part' when she was approached to play her in Twilight.[29] Silent Hill's Jodelle Ferland was cast as the newly turned vampire, Bree Tanner.[30] Other new cast members include Xavier Samuel as Riley,[31]Jack Huston as Royce King II,[32]Catalina Sandino Moreno as Maria, Julia Jones as Leah Clearwater, and Boo Boo Stewart as Seth Clearwater.[30] Actors who auditioned for the various roles were not given a script to work from. Instead, actress Kirsten Prout mentioned, 'they made the scenes exact transcripts from the book… They didn't give the screenplay out. So, the audition side was just reading a page of Twilight and reading the lines that were interspersed between the descriptions.'[33] Filming and post-production[edit]Principal photography for Eclipse began on August 17, 2009, at Vancouver Film Studios.[7][34] On August 29, photos captured Kristen Stewart, Billy Burke, and other principal actors, filming a scene with graduation caps and gowns.[35] September 2 brought Xavier Samuel together with Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson filming at a soundstage for scenes at Bella's house.[36] Director David Slade stated that they filmed a scene with a tent on September 13.[37] He also said that they filmed a kiss between Jacob and Bella on September 17.[38] Filming wrapped up on October 29, 2009, while post-production began in late November.[8] Slade published multiple updates on his Twitter account proclaiming that editing was going well.[39] He said the 'story and the way [they] approached the film calls for a more realistic approach.'[40] In April 2010, it was revealed that reshoots to the film were needed. Both Slade and Stephenie Meyer were present at the shoot along with the three main stars.[41] In January 2010, an early draft of the film's script was leaked on the Internet.[42] The script presumably belonged to star Jackson Rathbone, as his name was watermarked across each page.[42] Music[edit]The score for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse was composed by Howard Shore, who composed the scores for such films as The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Aviator.[43] The film's soundtrack was released on June 8, 2010, by Atlantic Records in conjunction with music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas' Chop Shop label.[44] The lead single from the soundtrack is 'Neutron Star Collision (Love Is Forever)', performed by the British band Muse.[45] On May 11, 2010, MySpace announced that the full Eclipse soundtrack listing would be unveiled starting at 8 a.m. the following morning every half-hour, totaling six hours.[46] The album debuted at #2 on Billboard 200.[47] Distribution[edit]Marketing[edit]On November 5, 2009, the American Film Market revealed the first poster for Eclipse.[48] In late February 2010, Summit Entertainment announced that the first trailer would be attached to the studio's own film, Remember Me, which also stars Robert Pattinson. On March 10, 2010, a 10-second preview of the trailer was released online,[49] followed by the release of the full trailer the next day.[50] The trailer's release coincided with the launching of the film's official website. On March 19, 2010, The Twilight Saga: New Moon was released on DVD and Blu-ray; the Walmart Ultimate Fan Edition includes a 7-minute first look at Eclipse.[51] On March 23, the second poster for the film was released.[52] The final Eclipse trailer debuted on The Oprah Winfrey Show, and in promotion for the movie, Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, and Dakota Fanning made a guest appearance on the show May 13; the audience also viewed a version of the film.[53] On June 6, 2010, a sneak peek of the film was shown at the 2010 MTV Movie Awards; that same week, more clips and TV spots were released also.[54] In order to tie in the lunar eclipse on June 26, 2010, Summit Entertainment hosted screenings of the first two films in The Twilight Saga film series in twelve cities throughout the United States. The event was streamed live from Philadelphia and San Diego, and included cast member appearances and special previews of Eclipse.[55] Nordstrom and Summit Entertainment joined together to sell a fashion collection inspired by the film, as was done for the previous installment. Created by Awake Inc., the collection is based on Ashley Greene's character, Alice, and Kristen Stewart's character, Bella. The Eclipse collection became available on June 4, 2010.[56] In a similar style to its New Moon marketing, Burger King started promoting the film on Monday, June 21, 2010. Their promotion heavily focuses on the 'Team Jacob vs. Team Edward' aspect of the film.[57] Release[edit]Tickets for Eclipse went on sale on various online movie ticket sellers on Friday, May 14, 2010.[58] The official red carpet premiere for the film was held on June 24, 2010, at the Los Angeles Nokia Theatre.[59][60] Fans had the option of lining up starting on June 21, 2010, at the Nokia Plaza in Los Angeles before changing location on June 23.[61] An official United Kingdom premiere was held in Leicester Square, London on July 1, 2010. However, Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner were not present.[62]
Eclipse on the marquee of the Northrup Theater (Syracuse, Kansas) in August 2010.
Eclipse opened in 4,416 theaters and 193 IMAX screens. With that, early predictions forecasted the film will gross anywhere from $150 million to $180 million within its first six days of release, putting the record set by The Twilight Saga: New Moon in danger of being broken.[63][64]Eclipse accounted for 82 percent of Fandango's online ticket sales, reaching the top five on May 14, 2010.[citation needed]MovieTickets.com stated that Eclipse was the top advance ticket seller on its site, with more than 50 percent of daily ticket sales.[65] The film was the top advance ticket seller as of June 2010.[66] Early ticket sales for the film also have broken records for Gold Class Cinemas, where more than 8,500 Twilight fans have reserved tickets; the Fairview, Texas location sold out their showings of Eclipse for June 30.[67] The film was re-released into theaters on September 13, 2010 in recognition of lead character Bella Swan's birthday.[68] Home media[edit]The Twilight Saga: Eclipse was released on DVD in the United States on December 4, 2010. The two-disc special-edition DVD and Blu-ray discs include special features such as: eight deleted and extended scenes, music videos by Muse and Metric from The Twilight Saga: Eclipse: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack and commentaries by Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, Stephenie Meyer and Wyck Geoffery.[69] It was released on December 1, 2010 in New Zealand and Australia. There is also a 'gift set' two-disc collector's edition which features a unique packaging and six collectible photo cards.[70] In North American DVD sales, the film has currently grossed $164,676,695 and has sold more than 9,424,505 units.[71] Reaction[edit]Box office[edit]Eclipse set a new record for the biggest midnight opening in the United States and Canada in box office history, grossing an estimated $30.1 million in over 4,000 theaters.[10] The record was formerly held by the previous film New Moon with $26.3 million in 3,514 theaters.[10] It held the record until summer 2011, when it was broken by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, which made $43.5 million.[72]Eclipse also had the highest midnight gross of the franchise until it was topped in November 2011 by its successor Breaking Dawn – Part 1 ($30.3 million).[73] The movie also surpassed Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen in total grosses for a midnight screening in IMAX. Eclipse garnered more than $1 million at 192 theaters, while Revenge of the Fallen earned $959,000,[74] until it was beaten five months later by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 with $1.4 million.[75] The film grossed $68.5 million on its opening day in the United States and Canada, becoming the biggest single-day Wednesday opening over Revenge of the Fallen's $62 million,[76] and the third-biggest single-day opening ever at the time.[12] As of 2011, the film has the third-highest opening-day gross of the series behind New Moon ($72.7 million) and Breaking Dawn – Part 1 ($72.0 million).[77] Furthermore, the film earned $9 million at various IMAX locations during its first week.[78] After six days of release in the U.S. and Canada, the film ended Independence Day with a total of $176.4 million, including $64.8 million during its first weekend.[79] In its second weekend, the film fell 51%, a better standing than its predecessors, grossing an estimated $31.7 million.[80] The film opened overseas with $16.2 million, beating records set by the film's predecessor in Russia with an estimated $3.9 million (since surpassed by Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, which earned $5 million), in Italy with an estimated $3.1 million, in the Philippines grossing $1.2 million, and in Belgium, where it grossed an estimated $1.1 million. It is the third-best opening day ever in Italy; in the Philippines, Eclipse topped Spider-Man 3 for the best opening day ever, and was the highest opening day ever in Belgium.[81] In three days, Eclipse topped the box office with $121.3 million[82] and during its first weekend, it earned $71.3 million. Overseas in its second weekend, the film grossed $70.6 million from 9,440 screens in 63 markets, a 1% drop from its first weekend. The film opened in the United Kingdom at #1, grossing $20.7 million from 523 locations (including previews), the market's biggest opening of 2010 (until Toy Story 3 surpassed it) and about $1.7 million more than New Moon grossed in its opening weekend in November 2009. The film also debuted at #1 in France, grossing $13.3 million, marking the third-largest opening in the country for a 2010 film (behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1's $20.7 million and Alice in Wonderland's $15.4 million). The film opened at number one in South Korea with $4.9 million.[83] The film ended its box-office run in the U.S. and Canada on October 21, 2010 having grossed $300,531,751, surpassing its predecessor New Moon, which grossed $296,623,634 a few months prior, to become the highest-grossing film of the franchise and the highest-grossing romantic fantasy, werewolf, and vampire movie of all time at the American and Canadian box office.[84] It is the fourth movie of 2010 to reach $300 million and ranks 46th on the all-time chart in the United States and Canada. Compared to its predecessor overseas, it has grossed $393,047,815 against New Moon's $413,203,156. Therefore, internationally, Eclipse remains the second-highest-grossing film in the franchise with $693,579,566 against New Moon's $709,826,790.[85]Eclipse's highest-grossing markets outside North America are the UK, Ireland, and Malta ($45,709,785), Germany ($33,087,955), France and the Maghreb region ($32,987,421), Italy ($19,984,000), Brazil ($30,499,010), and Australia ($28,566,737).[86] Critical response[edit]Reviews for the film were mixed, but more favorable than New Moon. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 48% based on 241 reviews, with an average rating of 5.44/10. The website's critical consensus reads, 'Stuffed with characters and overly reliant on uninspired dialogue, Eclipse won't win The Twilight Saga many new converts, despite an improved blend of romance and action fantasy.'[87] Review aggregation website Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 reviews from film critics, the film holds a rating score of 58/100 based on 38 reviews, indicating 'mixed or average reviews'.[88] The Hollywood Reporter posted a positive review of Eclipse, saying the film 'nails it'.[89] Peter Debruge of Variety reports that the film 'finally feels more like the blockbuster this top-earning franchise deserves'.[90] Rick Bentley of McClatchy Newspapers stated the film was the best in The Twilight Saga so far, suggesting that, 'The person who should be worried is Bill Condon, the director tapped for the two-part finale, Breaking Dawn. He's got a real challenge to make movies as good as Eclipse.'[91]The New York Times'A. O. Scott praised David Slade's ability to make an entertaining film, calling it funny and better than its predecessors, but wrote that the acting has not improved much.[92] Giving the film 4.5 out of 5 stars, Betsey Sharkey from the Los Angeles Times praised David Slade's method of blending his previous works to form a funny movie. She stated, 'Eclipse eclipse[s] its predecessors.'[93] The film was also listed in 49th place by Moviefone on its list of the 50 best movies of 2010.[94] Roger Moore of the Orlando Sentinel gave the film 2.5 out of 4 stars, stating, 'The dullness of the performances really stands out when somebody like Bryce Dallas Howard, or Anna Kendrick turn up and liven up their scenes.' While calling the film 'too chatty and too long', he did compliment David Slade's directing and noted that the movie will please the fans.[95] Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune gave the film 2 out of 5 stars, stating that David Slade's pacing is 'everything like molasses running uphill'. He also criticized the characters, the actors portraying them, the big close-ups of hand-held devices, and called Howard Shore's score 'gunk'.[96] Wesley Morris from The Boston Globe stated, 'If the first two movies were 'get a room,' part three is 'get a therapist'. He said the second and third film 'repeat that discovery [in Twilight] without truly deepening it…the movies are interesting without ever being good.'[97] A mixed review said that while 'Eclipse restores some of the energy New Moon zapped out of the franchise and has enough quality performances to keep it involving', the film 'isn't quite the adrenaline-charged game-changer for love story haters that its marketing might lead you to believe. The majority of the 'action' remains protracted and not especially scintillating should-we-or-shouldn't-we conversations between the central triangle.'[98]Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film a more positive review than for the first two films in the saga, but still felt the movie was a constant, unclever conversation between the three main characters. He criticized the 'gazes' both Edward and Jacob give Bella throughout the movie, and noted that the mountain range that appears in the film looks 'like landscapes painted by that guy on TV who shows you how to paint stuff like that.' He also predicted that a lack of understanding for the film series in general would not bode well with the audience, stating, 'I doubt anyone not intimately familiar with the earlier installments could make head or tails of the opening scenes.' He gave the film 2 stars out of 4.[99] Steve Persall of the St. Peterburg Times called the movie 'just monstrously bad', and said, 'Eclipse leaves the sputtering story arc in idle, with only an uneasy truce between the vampire and werewolf clans amounting to anything new' and rating it grade C-.[100]The Guardian's columnist Peter Bradshaw gave the film a one-star rating in a review that lampooned Bella's continued abstinence, among other plot elements. Bradshaw, dubbing the series 'The epic of the unbroken duck', wrote that 'Bella Swan is starting to make Doris Day look like the nympho from hell', and concluded that 'it could be time to sharpen the wooden stake.'[101] Accolades[edit]
Sequels[edit]Summit Entertainment announced in November 2008 that they had obtained the rights to the fourth book in the Twilight series, Breaking Dawn[102] and greenlit a two film adaptation in April 2010. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 was released on November 18, 2011 and Part 2 on November 16, 2012[103][104] with Bill Condon directing, and author Stephenie Meyer co-producing.[105] See also[edit]References[edit]
External links[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Twilight_Saga:_Eclipse&oldid=895846286'
Midnight Sun is an exercise in character development that got wildly out of hand (as do many of my projects). While I was procrastinating some real editing work (I’m always at my most creative when procrastinating), I started to wonder how the first chapter of Twilight would read if it were written from Edward’s perspective. There is so much more to his side of the story than there is to Bella’s in that first chapter. After all, Bella only knows that an incredibly gorgeous boy is looking at her funny. Meanwhile, Edward is suffering through one of the most momentous days of his very long life! First there’s the shock and frustration of not being able to hear Bella’s thoughts, then the wild, monstrous reaction to her scent, followed by the incredible expenditure of self-control that it takes to not kill her… His side of Bella’s first day at Forks High School is a hundred times more exciting than her own. Though I didn’t have time to work on it right away, the idea of letting Edward have his chance to speak stuck with me. I couldn’t shake it. I found myself thinking his words in the middle of the night and jotting down phrases he would use while I was waiting in line at the post office. As soon as I finished my real work, I sat down and let Edward get his say. Writing chapter one, “First Sight,” from Edward’s point of view was an exciting experience; I actually had my pulse racing as I typed. When I finished, I was truly pleased with my creation. Here was the other side of the story that no one knew. Here was the truth of what Edward had been through. I felt like I knew my Edward even better, and I was sure his dialogue would be more insightful in future novels. The end. Exercise over. Ha ha. It wasn’t long before I was thinking about Edward in Alaska, Edward upon his return to Forks, Edward’s side of that fateful conversation in Biology… Chapter two started to write itself in my head, while I kept telling myself that I didn’t have time to write a book for fun when I had real books to write. (My mother seconded that opinion—she thinks I work too hard). But when a story demands to be written, there’s no way to resist. And the more I wrote, the more I became convinced that Edward deserved to have his story told. At first I was planning to post it all here on my website, but I changed my mind for two reasons, the most important being that Edward’s version is much longer than Bella’s—Edward over-thinks everything. I’m not even half way done, and the page count is near three hundred. The second reason that I changed my mind is a little bit silly—I just would really love to have a pretty, matching, bound version of Midnight Sun to put beside Twilight on top of my desk. So I’m going to try to have it published as a complementary novel to Twilight. It will take a while, because I can only work on it between editing stints, but I hope that someday I’ll be able to see Midnight Sun on the bookstore shelves next to Twilight, New Moon,Eclipse, and etc… (Fueling my belief that Midnight Sun is worthy of publishing is my mother’s about face—after reading the first eleven chapters, she thinks it’s magic and says I should go for it.) And here I was going to write just a short paragraph of introduction. You see what I mean about things getting out of hand? Because I just can’t wait out the years it will take to reach publication for people to begin to understand Edward, here is my original character development exercise, Edward’s version of Bella’s first day at Forks High School, the first chapter of Midnight Sun*: Adobe video editor free. Download Midnight Sun Partial Draft ,
The final episode of the Twilight film series has swept the board at the Razzies awards for Hollywood's worst movies. The film 'The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2', was selected as the worst movie of last year at the spoof awards ceremony, which is traditionally held on the eve of the Academy Awards. The finale to the blockbuster supernatural romance dominated the Razzies with seven awards, including worst actress for Kristen Stewart, supporting actor for Taylor Lautner, director for Bill Condon and worst screen couple for Lautner and child co-star Mackenzie Foy. We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view.From 15p€0.18$0.18USD 0.27 a day, more exclusives, analysis and extras. Kristen Stewart, who is presenting an award at the Oscars on Sunday was not present to receive her Razzie. Stewart's worst-actress prize came for both 'Twilight' and her fairy-tale update 'Snow White and the Huntsman.' As she was not present a cardboard cut-out of the actress was brought into the press conference to accept her award. The Twilight films have made a total of $3bn (£1.9bn) at the box office. 'Twilight' movies had been well represented in Razzie nominations over the years but had not won any key awards there. Razzie voters joke that as with 'The Lord of the Rings' finale winning best picture at the Academy Awards, they were waiting for the last 'Twilight' flick on which to heap their scorn. 'I have a pet theory, which is that the box office on 'Twilight' films is very impressive, but my theory is that instead of 40 million individual girls going to see it, it's 8 million girls going to see it five times each. People who love those movies just adore them,' said Razzies founder John Wilson. 'I believe the attitude of people who really love 'Twilight' movies toward this subject is very similar to the pomposity with which the Academy Awards addresses the whole rest of the world. Our whole existence is all about making fun of pompous, so 'Twilight' really is right up our alley.' The 'Twilight' finale also won for worst screen ensemble and worst remake, rip-off or sequel. For worst picture, it beat out 'Battleship,' 'That's My Boy,' the family flick 'The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure' and Eddie Murphy's comedy flop 'A Thousand Words.' In the five 'Twilight' movies, Stewart stars as sullen teen Bella Swan, who falls for ageless vampire hunk Edward Cullen (worst-actor nominee Robert Pattinson) and finds herself at the center of a love triangle with him and her childhood pal, werewolf stud Jacob Black (Lautner). Stewart set a consistent standard of emotional stoniness throughout the 'Twilight' movies, Wilson said. 'Acting should involve having an expression on your face, and she is blank, other than the morose kind of half-Goth thing her character does,' Wilson said. 'I didn't realize Snow White and Bella were soul sisters, because of the very limited range of what she can do. I think it was Dorothy Parker who said about Katharine Hepburn that she runs the 'gamut of emotions from A to B.' Kristen Stewart is so expressionless she might as well be a brick wall.' ![]() Sandler's 'That's My Boy,' which also won the worst-screenplay Razzie, flopped at the box office and continues a gradual decline in receipts for the comic actor's movies. 'He's an enormous star who is on what I call the 'down-alator' of his career,' Wilson said. 'He's about to step off the same cliff Eddie Murphy stepped off about 10 years ago. Eddie Murphy has never come back, and Murphy is more talented.'
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (commonly referred to as Breaking Dawn: Part 1) is a 2011 American romanticfantasy film directed by Bill Condon, based on the novel Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer. Constituting the first of a two-part adaptation of the novel, the film is the fourth and penultimate installment in The Twilight Saga film series, and was followed by Breaking Dawn: Part 2 in 2012. All three main cast members, Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner, reprised their roles. Wyck Godfrey and Karen Rosenfelt served as producers of the film, along with the author of the series, Stephenie Meyer; the screenplay was written by Melissa Rosenberg, the screenwriter of the first three entries.[3] It was released in theaters on November 18, 2011,[4] and released to DVD on February 11, 2012, in the United States.[5] Although negatively reviewed by critics, the film was commercially successful, grossing over $712 million worldwide.
Plot[edit]Bella Swan is preparing for her wedding. During the reception, Jacob Black, who had angrily left town upon receiving an invitation to Bella and Edward Cullen's wedding, returns. While dancing with Jacob in the woods, away from everyone else, Bella admits that she and Edward plan to consummate their marriage on their honeymoon while she is still human. Jake becomes furious, knowing that such an act could kill her. Sam and other pack members restrain Jacob before he phases. After the wedding, the couple spends their honeymoon on Isle Esme, and they make love for the first time. The next morning, Edward realizes that Bella has numerous bruises and is upset at himself for hurting her, though Bella insists that she enjoyed the experience. Edward swears not to make love again until she becomes a vampire. Two weeks after the wedding, Bella notices her period is late. Alice and Carlisle call Bella asking if she is alright. She replied that she is not completely sure and tells them the news about her pregnancy. Edward, worried, predicts that Bella will not survive the pregnancy. He tells her that Carlisle should remove the baby. She refuses, as she wants to keep her child, and convinces Edward's sister, Rosalie, to act as her bodyguard. They fly back home to Forks, Washington. Though Bella has only been pregnant for two weeks, the baby grows very fast. Jacob rushes over to the Cullens' house. Bella, now heavily pregnant, is pale and underweight. Jacob, upset, says that they should abort it as soon as possible. Bella says that it is her choice. As her pregnancy progresses, the quality of her health declines, then, as she starts drinking human blood to satisfy the baby's vampiric thirst, improves rapidly. Edward comes to love the baby and manages to read its thoughts, learning that his child loves Bella and Edward's voice. Bella is sharing her baby names with Edward and Jacob when her backbone suddenly breaks and she collapses. They realize that Bella cannot cope with the pregnancy and the baby is suffocating, so they begin to perform a cesarean section on her. Rosalie starts the procedure, as Carlisle is out getting blood, but due to her hunger, the blood on the blade tempts her greatly. Jacob stops her as Edward picks up the blade and finishes the procedure. Bella, in agony, goes unconscious. After the surgery, Bella wakes up and sees her newborn daughter, and chooses Renesmee as the baby's name, before slowly dying. Jacob and Edward do everything they can to revive her, but nothing works. To save her life, Edward injects Bella's heart with his venom to transform her into a vampire, before biting her neck, arms, and legs. Their attempts appear to fail. Jacob then runs outside of the house to sit and cry. Seth and Leah appear and realize that Bella will not survive and tell the pack. Distraught, Jacob goes back inside and attempts to kill Renesmee, but when they look into each other's eyes, he sees all the future versions of her and decides not to kill her, imprinting her instead. When the werewolves learn of Bella's 'death', they attack the Cullens' house in an attempt to kill the baby, fearing it would become too great of a threat. Edward, Alice, and Jasper, defend their home with the help of Leah and Seth, and are later assisted by Carlisle, Esme, and Emmett. Jacob then runs outside to stop the fight and phases into his wolf form. Jacob and Sam shortly communicate with each other telepathically. Edward reads Jacob's mind, announcing that Jacob has imprinted on Renesmee, and since the wolves' most absolute law is not to harm anyone who has been imprinted on, they are forced to leave. Bella is cleaned and dressed. Edward's venom begins to work in her body; her bite marks heal, her broken back and chest repair, and her figure returns to normal. When her eyes open, they are colored blood-red. In a post-credits scene, Aro and his brothers, Marcus and Caius, receive a letter from Carlisle announcing that the Cullens have a new member of the family. Aro informs his brothers that his feud with the Cullens is not yet over, as they have something he wants. Cast[edit]
Production[edit]Development[edit]Talks for a Breaking Dawn film started after Summit Entertainment approved the second and third adaptations of the franchise, and scheduled the two films to be released six months apart.[6]Wyck Godfrey, producer of the previous films in the series, stated in mid-2009 that they had every intention to make the film version of Breaking Dawn,[7] but Stephenie Meyer, author of the series, explained on her website's Breaking Dawn FAQ that if an adaptation were to be created, it would have to be split into two films because 'The book is just so long!', saying that she would have made the book shorter if it were possible.[8] She also believed it to be impossible to make a film due to Renesmee, writing that an actress could not play her because she is a baby that has complete awareness, 'The one thing that I've never seen is a CGI human being who truly looks real'; however, she did acknowledge the film might be possible due to the quickly-advancing technologies.[8] Moreover, because of the mature and explicit nature of the Breaking Dawn book, fans and critics questioned if the studio would be able to keep a PG-13 rating, noting that the movie should not be rated R for the ever-growing fan base.[9] In March 2010, Variety reported that Summit Entertainment was considering splitting the 754-page book into two films, along the same lines as Warner Bros.' Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.[10] Since under contract for only four films, the status of Stewart's, Pattinson's, and Lautner's contracts were in question, making the possibility of a split unlikely.[10] Producer Wyck Godfrey stated that all three main cast members were signed onto one Breaking Dawn film.[3]
I got very nervous. There were, like, 15 people. I had never really auditioned or gone into a job interview in that way since maybe 1988 or '87. I guess I was unprepared for it. […] In this case, they wanted me to talk about their project, which really needed to follow very closely the book […] I was talking about the book, and really all I was saying was, 'OK, this is great, let's go to it.' That was the pitch. I think they're used to something else. They're used to, for those of you who might audition for film jobs, a 40-minute dissertation with perhaps visual aids and a pep talk about how fantastic this project is going to be. I just didn't know how to do that.
In March 2010, it was announced that Summit was searching for Academy Award-nominated directors to helm the project, with names like Sofia Coppola, Gus Van Sant, and Bill Condon rumored to have been approached to direct.[11] On April 28, 2010, Summit announced that Bill Condon, who directed Dreamgirls, would direct Breaking Dawn; Wyck Godfrey, Karen Rosenfelt, and author Stephenie Meyer would be producing the film. 'I'm very excited to get the chance to bring the climax of this saga to life on-screen. As fans of the series know, this is a one-of-a-kind book—and we're hoping to create an equally unique cinematic experience', said Bill Condon.[12] Condon spoke about Summit approaching him saying, 'The very nice folks at Summit… they sent me the novel. I loved it. I quickly imprinted on the material'.[13] Another reason Condon cited was the desire to collaborate with Stewart.[14] Gus Van Sant later explained that Robert Pattinson mentioning him as the ideal director for Breaking Dawn was what made him audition for the job and described the audition as 'very nerve-wracking'. However, after Condon was hired, Sant suggested that the reason behind not getting hired was his style and way of auditioning being different from what the executive producers were used to.[15] In June, Summit officially confirmed that a two-part adaptation of the fourth book would start filming in November.[16][17] The first part was released on November 18, 2011, and the second part's release date is set for November 16, 2012.[18] The Twilight Saga also helped motivate Rosenberg into launching a female-centric production company, Tall Girls Productions: 'The charter of it, if there is one, would be to create some strong roles for women… the female Batman, the female Tony Soprano.' She explained that, despite the fact of the many hours of hard work ahead of her, it is what she wants to do.[19] After confirming one film, Summit had been keeping their eye on a fifth installment.[4] In May 2010, Billy Burke and Peter Facinelli were the only cast actors who were confirmed for both parts of Breaking Dawn, while other cast members such as Ashley Greene and Kellan Lutz were still in negotiations for a second part. If the actors holding Summit back from making an official announcement did not reach an agreement with them, the studio would not have minded recasting their roles, as was done in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse with Bryce Dallas Howard's character, Victoria.[4] However, in June 2010, Summit officially confirmed that a two-part adaptation of the fourth book would start production and it was made clear that all major actors, including the three lead roles, the Cullen family, and Charlie Swan, would return for both parts. Actresses Christie Burke, Rachel St. Gelais, Sierra Pitkin, and Eliza Faria play Renesmee at her various ages in the film.[20] Pre-production[edit]Since the first film was released, fans and critics speculated whether Breaking Dawn would be adapted into a film considering the adult nature of the book. In March 2010, Rosenberg spoke about adapting the book saying, 'It's the big one, it's gonna be a big challenge, and I guarantee you that not all of the fans will be happy, and I guarantee you some of them will be. You have to give up the ideal of making everybody happy, it's just not gonna happen, but you hope you make the majority happy. Again, for that last book it is about taking that specific character Bella on her journey. It's a big journey, it's a massive change for her, and you hope to realize that.'[21] One of the scenes that aroused the speculations that the film would be rated R is the infamous graphic birth scene in the novel. In August, Rosenberg addressed such speculations saying, 'On the fan site, on Facebook, all the comments are 'It has to be R rated! You have to show the childbirth! Gore and guts and sex!' For me it's actually more interesting to not see it. You know, you can do childbirth without seeing childbirth … it doesn't mean it's any less evocative of an experience.'[22] Producer Wyck Godfrey addressed those speculations further saying, 'it would be a crime against our audience to go R-rated' as the core fans of the series are below 18 years old, but insisted that the film is based on a mature book, so more progress and sophistication are needed.[23] To compromise the necessary sophistication in adapting such a mature book and the need for maintaining a PG-13 rating, Rosenberg stated that the scene would be shown from Bella's point of view.[24] Godfrey described it saying, 'She is looking through the haze, experiencing pain and everything rushing around her. We only see what she sees'.[23]
You start with, and you end with, what is the emotional journey for these characters. That is the most important thing to capture, that is the only thing to capture. Everything else is up for grabs, but you must take these characters on the same emotional journey that they took in the book, and hence take the audience on the same emotional journey that they took in the book and that's the goal, you hope that you achieve that.
Melissa Rosenberg, writer of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, about adapting the book to film[21] In June, Rosenberg stated in an interview that the decision on where to split the film had not been decided, as she was still in the drafting stage of the scripts.[19] 'I think it comes down to Bella as human and Bella as vampire', she said, hinting at a potential splitting point. She thought that Condon would probably disagree with the statement, explaining that the decision is ultimately up to him.[19] Later in January 2011, Godfrey confirmed that the Part 1 will cover the wedding, honeymoon, pregnancy and birth and ends just before her transformation into a vampire as the filmmakers wanted to 'take the audience through the emotional part of Bella's journey as she becomes a vampire'. Part 2 will follow her transformation, the 'first exhilarating moments' of her vampire life[25] and the final confrontation with the Volturi. Godfrey also confirmed that Part 1 will follow the book's storyline as it breaks away from Bella and switches into Jacob's perspective. 'There is a sense that as Bella and the Cullens (Edward's makeshift vampire clan) deal with her pregnancy, the world is still turning outside with Jacob', he explains.[23] However, in March 2011, Meyer said in interview with USA Today that Part 1 will end when Bella opens her eyes as a vampire.[25] By August, Rosenberg said that the scripts for Part 1 and 2 were 75 to 85 percent completed. She found the greatest challenge in writing the scripts to be the final sequence of Part 2: 'The final battle sequence is a big challenge because it lasts 25 pages', she said. 'It's almost an entire three-act story in and of itself. You have to track [keep it all in one setting] hundreds of characters. It's an enormous challenge to choreograph on the page and for Bill [Condon] to choreograph on the stage.' She had written various drafts of the scene but, at that, hadn't revised or discussed them with Condon yet. She said, 'That's the next big hurdle to sit down with the stunt coordinator and create the ballet. It's a lot of work. I'm exhausted, but we're intent on making them the best scripts yet.' Godfrey called Part 2 'an action film in terms of life-and-death stakes' and said that in Part 1 'there are the pangs of newlywed tension that occur that are relatable even in a fantasy film. Marriage is not quite the experience that they thought it was.' Condon thought of Part 1 'as a real companion piece to Catherine Hardwicke's movie'. Condon explains, 'Like, everything that got set up there gets resolved here. I think you'll find that there are stylistic and other nods to that film.' Godfrey considered releasing the second film in 3D to differentiate between the time before and after Bella becomes a vampire,[17] an idea originally proposed for Eclipse, but said that the decision is up to Condon. However, he said that if the second film were to be released in 3D, he would like to shoot it with the proper equipment in 'real' 3D as was done with Avatar (2009), not convert it into 3D in post-production as was done with Clash of the Titans (2010).[26] Filming[edit]In order to keep the budget on both parts of Breaking Dawn reasonable, even though it is substantially greater than the previous installments in the series, much of the film was shot in and around Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Celtic Studios in Baton Rouge. Shooting in Louisiana provided larger tax credits, which a small studio like Summit Entertainment would find favorable.[4] Summit announced in a press release on July 9, 2010, that filming was to take place in Baton Rouge, Ucluelet, and Vancouver, with the wedding being shot in Squamish.[27] (Also shot in near by Pemberton, British Columbia.[28]) Both parts will be shot back-to-back as one project.[17] The film will attempt to keep its PG-13 rating, and it will not feature any of the gruesome scenes from the novel[29][30] with Kristen Stewart confirming that the birth scene wasn't as grotesque as described in the book and that she didn't 'puke up blood', though director Bill Condon said that they shot everything as 'powerful and potent as they could'. Though there were many reports of the cast in Whistler, British Columbia, none of the actual filming took place in Whistler itself, but to the north and south of the town in nearby Pemberton (north) & Squamish (south). The Stars were housed in Whistler at 4 and 5 star hotels, the crew in Squamish & Pemberton.[28][31] Filming officially began on November 1, 2010 in Brazil, with locations in Rio de Janeiro and Paraty, Rio de Janeiro.[32] The first scenes were shot in the Lapa District in Rio de Janeiro for one night. A long city block was rented for shooting, and Summit Entertainment paid residents 50 to 500 reais (30 to 300 U.S. dollars) to not allow paparazzi or fans to overlook filming from their windows. Moreover, owners of bars and restaurants were paid 10,000 and 20,000 reais (6,000 to 12,000 U.S. dollars) to stay closed for the evening to eliminate noise and provide a clear street.[33] Shooting then moved to Paraty, Rio de Janeiro where the honeymoon scenes were shot. According to Paraty's Tourism Office, filming took place in the Taquari area, near an unidentified waterfall and at Mamangua Bay where a mansion is located.[34] It rained on every day of shooting.[13] In late November, shooting moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana where most of the indoor scenes were shot on a sound stage[13] and in a house. Stewart had to wear heavy make-up to look thin and ghastly to show Bella through a phase of pregnancy where the baby starts breaking her bones.[35] The birth scene took two nights to shoot[13] after the cast had a long conversation with Meyer, a midwife and a doctor to discuss the mechanics of the scene,[36] particularly to decide the area where Edward should place his mouth to bite into Bella's placenta if this situation could ever occur in real life.[35] An animatronic baby was used to film a few scenes of newborn Rensemee.[37] The cast and crew spent two months of the filming process shooting in a green-screen room on fake snow. Reportedly, a few scenes were also shot in Arsenal Park using green screens.[38] In late February and early March, filming of most of the exterior shots, along with Bella's vampire scenes, occurred in Canada.[13] The film's first shooting location in Canada was Vancouver. However, the cast and crew were evacuated from the set due to the tsunami advisories resulting from the 9.0-magnitude earthquake that hit Japan on March 11, 2011.[39] Toni Atterbury, a spokeswoman for the film, said that 'the crew was moved to higher ground' as a safety precaution and 'the shoot was delayed for a few hours, but the day's work was accomplished'.[40] Therefore, filming relocated to Squamish, British Columbia, but a few scenes were shot in the Orpheum theater in Vancouver with the Vancouver police covering all the entrances of the theater.[41] The wedding scene in Part 1 was the last scene the cast and crew shot.[36] It was also shot under tight security. A helicopter hovered above the set, off-duty police officers surrounded the location, and sheets and umbrellas were used to protect the set from aerial shots being taken.[42] Stewart spoke about the wedding at Comic-Con, describing it as 'insane'. She went on to say that it was 'secret service style. The crew was incredibly inconvenienced. No cell phone, etc. They wanted to keep the dress secret.'[13] Concerning the wedding dress, Stewart was locked in a room wearing a Volturi cloak to cover the dress.[13] Stewart further talked about filming the scene, saying 'I wanted to run down the aisle. I was literally pulling away from Billy Burke. Now it's a trip to watch the wedding scenes. It was so volatile and emotional—I was being such a crazy person.'[36] Condon spoke about it saying, 'The last scene we filmed was the dance scene between Jacob and Bella at the wedding. The last shot is Jacob leaving. I called 'Cut!' and then Kristen yelled, 'Jacob!' and hiked her dress up and started running after him into the woods, saying, 'Come back! Don't leave!'[36] Filming wrapped—for most of the cast—on April 15, 2011, ending the franchise's three years of production since March 2008.[citation needed] However, on April 22, what is believed to be additional scenes that will fit into the honeymoon sequence were filmed on Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands in the Caribbean,[43] which was officially the last day of shooting.[43] The crew, Stewart and Pattinson were shooting in the sea all day long, then went out for cocktails on the beach and watched the sunrise.[43] On the subject of the final day and her final moment as Bella, Stewart stated, 'After that scene, my true final scene, I felt like I could shoot up into the night sky and every pore of my body would shoot light. I felt lighter than I've ever felt in my life.'[44] Pattinson thought the day was 'amazing'[43] and commented, 'I then asked myself why we didn't do this in those four years. Every difficult moment just vanished.' Costume design[edit]In October 2010, it was announced that Michael Wilkinson would be the film's costume designer.[45] However, Bella's wedding dress was designed by someone other than Wilkinson. Meyer's description of the dress was 'a simpler style than the frillier Edwardian stuff. …Elegant white satin, cut on the bias, with long sleeves.'[46] At first, Zac Posen was rumored to be the designer of Bella's wedding dress; however, these rumors proved false when Posen tweeted: 'Heard the Bella/Twilight rumor and it's just that. I design for real women like Kristen Stewart and Anna Kendrick'.[47] In April 2011, Summit announced that Carolina Herrera is the designer of the dress.[48] Stewart described the dress as very tight, but still liked it and thought that 'it was very pretty'.[49] Meyer told USA Today that the dress was 'an interesting mix' and has a 'vintage feel, but at the same time, there's an edge to it'.[25] Concerning Alice's bridesmaid dress, its designer remains unknown, however it was presumably designed by Wilkinson. Ashley Greene described the dress as 'magical and beautiful' and spoke about the design process, saying, 'We wanted to have all the bridesmaids fit together and also have their own identity. So, we took a little bit of Alice's past and put it into her dress.'[50] Corsets were added to all the cast's wedding dresses, but were removed during filming because the cast felt uncomfortable wearing them while dancing.[50] Alfred Angelo has been named the exclusive and official licensed manufacturer of Bella's bridal gown. The gown will be a replica of Bella's wedding dress and marketed under the brand Twilight Bridal by Alfred Angelo. It will be revealed in late November 2011, following the release of Part 1, and will be available in Alfred Angelo Signature Stores and independent retailers worldwide.[51] Post-production[edit]In October 2010, Condon announced that Oscar-winning visual effects supervisor John Bruno, along with his team, would helm the visual effects for Breaking Dawn, including the effects necessary to show Renesmee in her various stages of life in Part 2.[45] Later in February, Adam Howard was added to the Breaking Dawn visual effects team to help create the visual effects for Renesmee, due to his notable work on a similar issue in The Social Network.[52] Condon revealed that Mackenzie Foy's face and expressions will be placed digitally on the bodies of the other actresses playing the same character through her various stages of life.[53] Condon spoke about the process saying, 'Sometimes it was hard because the other actresses were actually just there. It was always going to be just Mackenzie's expressions and things like that, so it was a very specific technical thing that even I was learning as we did it. But I have to say, they were real troopers these girls.'[53] Furthermore, special effects were also used to illustrate the invisible powers and forces between the vampires in the final battle sequence of Part 2.[14] Montreal-based Modus FX created subtle CG effects for Part 1. It created stylized effects to emphasize the supernatural capabilities of the main characters without making them too obvious or noticeable.[54] A team of 12 artists spent six weeks working on the film. Shots included creating the belly of a pregnant Bella, removing a wrist brace Stewart was wearing in the wedding scene due to an injury, and a variety of subtle cosmetic refinements. Bella's pregnancy was a challenge for Modus; the production team wanted the baby to kick and move around inside her belly, so the artists and cinematographer had to match the camera moves, the lighting, even the film grain, along with the subtleties of Stewart's skin.[54] On the subject, CG supervisor Martin Pelletier said, For this project, we had to be really quick in terms of turn around. We made use of very complex lighting from the set, adding 3D layers, and a matchmove of her stomach, to make her look pregnant. We took our time at the start to get the recipe right and that paid off in efficiency once we got going. We were soon able to turn around several shots each day.[54] During the wedding scene, the camera pans around Pattinson and Stewart. Due to a minor wrist injury Stewart had, she was wearing a brace on the day of the shoot. Therefore, Modus was required to create a CG model of the hand and then carefully craft a rig to create natural motions. Once that was finished, every minute movement of the hand had to be matched exactly.[54] The rotational panning shot totals 300 frames and called for elaborate camera and object tracking. Modus used subsurface scattering to accurately capture the partial translucence of her skin to make it look more authentic. Pelletier explained that 'tracking was particularly challenging, because when they were shooting it, they weren't thinking about it as an effects shot. There was no camera metadata for the sequence.' The solution was to do a series of careful manual adjustments until the light sources were correctly replicated on the set.[54] In July, Condon said that the first cut of Part 1 would be finished in a few weeks, but the visual effects were still in development.[14] Godfrey later stated that they were 'very close to locking picture on part one', and that its running time is equal to Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse, therefore approximately two hours.[14] A few weeks later, Godfrey announced that he had seen numerous cuts of the film and called it 'incredibly powerful already. …It definitely captures what the book captures.' Concerning the subject of the MPAA rating, Godfrey said that the studio does not 'have any word yet on the rating', but insisted that it is going to be rated PG-13.[14] Condon discussed the matter further saying, 'I think it's a good challenge because the thing that makes something R is literally showing it and if you give yourself that rule: I'm not gonna show, it's not going to be frontal nudity, no one wants that', and added, 'we're not going to, again, show splattering blood against the walls but it's gonna be very visceral. It actually becomes a fun challenge to make sure you feel like you have the same experience without having to watch something clinical. I think it makes it better.'[53] Music[edit]On January 14, 2011, it was announced that Carter Burwell, composer of the first film in the series, will be returning to score both parts of the final installment.[55] The score of Part 1 was recorded in Abbey Road Studios, London in early September. Alexandre Desplat and Howard Shore, the composers of New Moon and Eclipse, respectively, happened to be in London at the time of the recording session and stopped by to visit Burwell.[56] The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: Part 1: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack was released on November 8, 2011.[57] In July, Condon said that they are still under negotiations for the soundtrack and have 15 songs to choose from, but no deals have been signed with any artists. He also hinted that there's a good chance that the cast's musically-inclined members would feature on the soundtrack, which leaves chance to Robert Pattinson, Jackson Rathbone, Booboo Stewart, and Jamie Campbell Bower. American rock band Evanescence expressed interest in landing a song on the Breaking Dawn soundtrack. Will Hunt, the drummer of the band, said, 'I've been screaming for [new song] 'My Heart Is Broken' to land in that, because I think it would fit the story so well.' The lead singer of the band, Amy Lee, agreed, adding, 'I think that would be awesome, actually.' Also notable is the fact that the band had attempted to land songs on the soundtrack of Twilight, but Summit did not approve of the songs they presented.[58] This is the first soundtrack not to feature a song from the band Muse. On September 22, 2011, it was confirmed that the lead single of the soundtrack is a song by American pop singer Bruno Mars called 'It Will Rain' to be released exclusively on iTunes on September 27.[59] Marketing[edit]Promotion[edit]
(Left to right) Lautner, Stewart and Pattinson at 2011 Comic-Con to promote the film
The teaser poster of Breaking Dawn was released on May 24.[60] After giving fans a sneak peek on June 2, MTV released the first official teaser trailer on June 5, the night of the MTV Movie Awards. It was released online shortly before the awards show began and then made its television debut during the broadcast.[61] On July 21, Summit held a sold-out Comic-Con panel in Hall H, which held 6,500 fans, promoting Part 1. Condon, Stewart, Pattinson and Lautner attended the panel and answered the fans' questions along with showing them exclusive clips from the film. Cast members arrived early in the morning and signed autographs and posters for the midnight-camping fans and Summit booths offered them Breaking Dawn: Part 1 character trading cards.[62] Breaking Dawn: Part 1 footage was screened in Empire Movie Con in the UK on August 13.[63] In addition, Alfred Angelo will host a private screening of Part 1 for forty-nine selected fans on November 15 and another screening for twenty friends two days later via sweepstakes.[64] Leaks[edit]Twilight Full VersionWhen the filming started on November 7, 2010 in the Lapa District and Paraty, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, leaked set photos and footage videos surfaced online.[65]Summit Entertainment responded to the leaks by removing the photos and videos from YouTube, fansites and gossip websites. On January 13, 2011, scans of a still of Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson in one of their honeymoon scenes in an Entertainment Weekly article ran online, prior to the magazine's official release of the still.[66] On March 31 and April 1, 2011, a mass leak of a 14-second video and numerous low-quality stills hit the Internet resulting to enthusiastic fan reaction and speculations that the film wouldn't be able to maintain a PG-13 rating.[67]Summit Entertainment released an official statement in response to the leaks saying: As some of you may know, pictures and screen grabs of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn as a work in progress have leaked on the internet. We are extremely proud of this film and also extremely heartbroken to see it out there at this stage. The film and these images are not yet ready or in their proper context. They were illegally obtained and their early dissemination is deeply upsetting to the actors, the filmmakers and Summit who are working so hard to bring these movies to fruition to you in November 2011 and November 2012. Please, for those who are posting, stop. And please, though the temptation is high, don't view or pass on these images. Wait for the film in its beautiful, finished entirety to thrill you. Sincerely, Stephenie Meyer, Bill Condon, Wyck Godfrey and Summit Entertainment.[68] Additionally, the first teaser trailer leaked online hours before its debut at the MTV Movie Awards.[69] Lawsuit[edit]On August 1, 2011, Summit released a press release announcing the identification of some of the alleged people responsible for the leak of images and video from Breaking Dawn on March 31 and April 1 and the decision to take legal action. Summit claimed that the leak came from Posadas, Argentina, but due to the possibility that other people might be involved in the leak, the investigation is still ongoing. The only person Summit named was a woman called Daiana Santia, resident in Posadas, allegedly being involved in the group that stole the images and footage.[70] Civil action has been filed in the U.S. and Argentina, while criminal action has also been filed in Argentina.[70] Summit hired law firm Keats McFarland & Wilson LLP to search four continents, North America, South America, Europe and Australia, to find the other people behind the leak.[70] On the other hand, Santia hosted a press conference in her town and denied Summit's claims. She claimed that she only saw the images 'while surfing the Internet'[71] and didn't send them to anyone. She also stated that she didn't log in anywhere to see them and denies having the technical knowledge of hacking, specifically saying that she 'in no way be considered a 'hacker' because [she] has no computer skills other than simple user level'.[72] Her attorney confirmed that Santia and her family are considering a counterclaim against Summit due to defamation of character and continual harassment by the film's producers who kept requesting that she would let them check her computer to see if she still has the images on her hard disk, although she refused more than once claiming that she is innocent and her computer contains personal items. Her attorney called the situation 'a harm to privacy and personal right'.[72] Summit's official response to the press conference said, 'First and most important this is NOT about greed or the Studio wanting to bully a woman from a small town in Argentina—rather, it is about stolen material that is private and sensitive which was obtained by illegally accessing private/secure servers as well as personal email accounts.' Summit gave details about the case stating that the studio has been in contact with Santia since May 2011, but 'with no resolution or further good faith efforts on their part, thus the only alternative left was to pursue legal action to ascertain that Ms. Santia no longer holds the images and video in any shape or form'.[73]In the response, Summit announced the following claims: Specifically on June 8, 2011, Ms. Santia confessed in the presence of her attorney that she accessed servers and email accounts via a systematic attack—stealing photographs, unfinished images and video footage over several months. Additionally there is indisputable evidence linking her directly to IP addresses that were used in the unauthorized access. Her actions appear to be premeditated and not done on a whim, but rather using technology and tactics that require thought as well as time and skill. Because Ms. Santia decided that she does not want to cooperate, Summit has been unable to settle this matter privately with Ms. Santia and her representatives in Argentina.[73] Home media[edit]According to the entertainment site MovieWeb, the DVD and Blu-ray Disc for Part 1 was made available to purchase on February 11, 2012. Both editions include bonus features such as Bella and Edward's wedding video, fast-forwarding to favorite scenes, audio commentary with director Bill Condon, and a 6-part 'Making Of' documentary.[74] The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray by Universal Studios.[75] In North American DVD sales, Part 1 has currently grossed $94,845,346 and has sold more than 5,234,876 units.[76] An 'extended version' was released on March 2, 2013; this version features an additional seven minutes of footage, making the film 124 minutes, including eight additional scenes, two missing scenes, and three alternate scenes.[77] Reception[edit]Box office[edit]The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 grossed $281,287,133 in North America and $430,884,723 in other countries, bringing its worldwide total to $712,171,856.[2] It earned a franchise-best $291.0 million on its worldwide opening weekend, marking the tenth-largest worldwide opening of all time.[78][79] It reached $500 million worldwide in 12 days, a record time for the franchise.[80] It ranks as the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2011 worldwide and the second-highest-grossing film of the franchise.[81] The film is also currently the fiftieth-highest-grossing film of all time. North America[edit]Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (which opened on November 18, 2011 in 4,061 theaters) was projected to reap at least $140 million in its opening weekend.[82] The film earned $30.25 million in midnight showings, which was the second-highest midnight gross ever, at the time, behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 ($43.5 million) as well as the highest midnight gross of the franchise, until it was surpassed by The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2's gross of $30.4 million.[83] On its opening day, the movie topped the box office with $71.6 million (including midnight showings), which is the fifth-highest opening[84] and single-day[85] gross of all time.[86] On its opening weekend, Breaking Dawn – Part 1 claimed first place with $138.1 million, which was the second-highest opening weekend of the film series, at the time, behind New Moon ($142.8 million),[87] as well as the fourth-highest November opening ever behind The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, New Moon, and Breaking Dawn – Part 2.[88] It is also the tenth-highest opening weekend of all time.[89] The movie also had the second-best opening weekend of 2011 in North America behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 ($169.2 million).[90] It retained first place on its second three-day weekend, declining 70% to $41.9 million, and earned $61.8 million over the five-day Thanksgiving weekend.[91]Breaking Dawn – Part 1 remained No. 1 for a third weekend, marking the best third-weekend gross for a Twilight film ($16.5 million)[92] and the second film of 2011 to top the weekend box office three times, along with The Help.[93] Closing on February 23, 2012, with $281.3 miilion, it is the third-highest-grossing movie of 2011.[94] It is also the fourth-highest-grossing film in the series, only ahead of the first film ($192.8 million).[81] Markets outside North America[edit]The film earned $8.9 million in its first two days from five markets.[95][96] By the end of its first weekend, it earned $152.9 million at about 9,950 locations in 54 markets, which was a new franchise high. Its biggest debut was in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Malta with £13,910,877 ($22.0 million), which was a new high for the series. It was also huge in many European and Latin American countries.[78][97] It remained in first place at the box office outside North America for three consecutive weekends.[98][99] With $423.8 million, it is the highest-grossing film of the franchise[100] and the sixth-highest-grossing film of 2011.[101] Its highest-grossing region after North America is the UK, Ireland, and Malta ($48.8 million), followed by Brazil ($35.0 million) and Germany ($33.1 million).[102] Critical response[edit]Breaking Dawn – Part 1 received generally negative reviews from critics. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes reports that 25% of critics (of the 203 counted reviews) gave the film a positive review with an average rating of 4.36/10, and the site's consensus reads, 'Slow, joyless, and loaded with unintentionally humorous moments, Breaking Dawn Part 1 may satisfy the Twilight faithful, but it's strictly for fans of the franchise.'[103] The review site Metacritic gave the film a 45 out of 100, based on reviews from 36 critics.[104] It is the lowest-rated installment in the franchise, which was previously New Moon. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a 'B+' grade, the audience was 80% female and 60% over 21 years old. Among females only the film received an improved 'A-' grade.[87] Justin Chang of Variety gave the film a negative review, calling the film 'disappointing'.[105] Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter also gave the film a negative review, calling Part 1 'bloated'.[106] Brent Simon of Screen International called the film 'soapy and melodramatic'.[107]Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film one star out of a possible five, and referred to it as the next stage of an 'emo-operetta' that 'sweeps us away on a new riptide of mawkish euphoria'.[108]Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film two-and-a-half stars, saying that it is filled with a lot of unanswered questions, but calling Stewart's portrayal of Bella 'pretty good'.[109] The television show Film 2011's Claudia Winkleman gave the film a negative review, calling it 'hilarious'.[110] Writing for Rolling Stone, Peter Travers said Breaking Dawn – Part 1 is 'the worst Twilight movie yet' and thought Taylor Lautner looked like a 'petulant five-year-old'.[111] Mary Pols of Time magazine named it one of the Top 10 Worst Movies of 2011, saying 'this entry, which held within it the teasing promise of explosive consummation, instead delivered soap-opera-level dry humping in high-thread-count sheets', and concluded, 'This was the bloodiest of the Twilight movies but somehow the most bloodless.'[112] Conversely, Gabriel Chong of 'Movie Exclusive' gave the film four stars out of a possible five, praising the dialogue, wedding and action scenes, and particularly Condon's direction, stating, 'In the hands of a lesser director, the turn of events could very well descend into farce—thankfully then, this movie has found a masterful helmsman in Condon.' He went on to praise Stewart's performance, calling it 'mesmerising' and saying that she 'makes [Bella's] every emotion keenly felt that runs the gamut from joy, trepidation, anxiety, distress and above all quiet and resolute determination.'[113] Mark Adams of Daily Mirror also gave the film four stars out of five and said, 'The Twilight films manage to cleverly blend melodrama with supernatural thrills, and while the film is not without its silly moments and cringeworthy dialogue it does deliver the drama and emotional highs we have come to expect'. He also praised the wedding, describing it as 'beautifully staged', and Stewart's performance.[114] Other positive reviewers from The New York Times and Philadelphia Inquirer said the dialogue was improving and the whole movie played out with style, while being faithful to the book and servicing hardcore fans.[115][116] MSN Entertainment critic Alaina O'Connor gave Condon some praise for bringing 'a certain visual elegance that helps with some of the more-absurd elements of the story.' O'Connor also felt that the film did a good job of 'examining the relationship between Edward and Bella', but felt that the narrative was weak otherwise.[117] The film was also ranked the tenth best film of 2011 by E!.[118]Will Brooker, writing for Times Higher Education, makes the case that Breaking Dawn has a feminist element, stating that it 'reverse(s) the embedded cinematic conventions of male voyeur and female-as-spectacle', and that 'the lack of attention to (Bella) as sex object is remarkable.'[119] The film also drew both criticism and praise for having what was seen as a pro-life theme. Natalie Wilson, writing for the Ms. magazine blog, described what she saw as the book's 'latent anti-abortion message' as 'problematic from a feminist perspective' and found this element 'heightened, not diminished, in the film', citing scenes in which Rosalie scolds Alice for using the word 'fetus'.[120] Richard Lawson of The Atlantic said that Bella's pregnancy 'serves as the narrative dais from which Meyer, and in complicity Condon and the screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg, delivers a startlingly direct and uncovered anti-abortion sermon', adding 'it seems there was no escaping the firmly anti-choice themes of this leg of the story, and so we must sit and grumble while sickly Bella is scored by plaintive strings as she chooses the one true moral path'.[121] Neil Morris of Independent Weekly said that the film 'takes up a radically pro-life mantle when Bella refuses to abort her baby, even though her life may depend on it'.[122] Sandie Angulo Chen of Moviefone described the 'bulk' of the film as 'one long pro-life debate', in which 'Bella says it's her body, her choice (terms usually used in the pro-choice movement), but her decision is pro-life to the extreme, because the baby can and will kill her'.[123] In contrast, John Mulderig of the Catholic News Service praised the 'strongly pro-life message being conveyed via Bella's unusual plight', saying it 'presents a welcome counterpoint to the all-too-frequent motif in popular entertainment whereby pregnancy is presented as a form of disease or an almost unbearable curse'.[124] In an interview with Screen Rant, screenwriter Rosenberg addressed the perception of a pro-life message in the film, stating, 'If I could not find my way into it that didn't violate my beliefs (because I am extremely pro-choice very outspoken about it, very much a feminist) I would not have written this move [sic]. They could have offered me the bank and I still wouldn't have. In order to embrace it I had to find a way to deal with it. I also had no interest in violating Stephenie's belief system or anyone on the other side'.[125] On February 25, Breaking Dawn – Part 1 was nominated for eight Razzie Awards, including: Worst Picture; Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-Off or Sequel; Worst Screen Ensemble; Worst Director (for Bill Condon); Worst Screenplay; Worst Actor (for Taylor Lautner), and Worst Actress (for Kristen Stewart). The Worst Screen Couple award for Kristen Stewart with either Taylor Lautner or Robert Pattinson was also included. The film lost all categories to Jack and Jill.[126] Health issues[edit]A week following the film's release, incidents began occurring of the birthing scene having triggered epileptic seizures in moviegoers. The visual effects during the scene involves several pulsating red, white, and black flashing lights, which creates an effect similar to a strobe light. Reports of such photosensitive seizures have been reported in Sacramento, California, and Salt Lake City, Utah. The incidents have become more widespread as news of the incidents began to flood several news sites, making people aware that health issues that attendees were experiencing might have been caused by the scene.[127][128] Famed comic book artist Jim Leetweeted that he and his family had to leave a screening of the film after 'our 11 year old son literally threw up during the birthing scene.'[129] The people who have experienced seizures during the film are reportedly 'perfectly healthy people'.[130] See also[edit]Free Twilight Movie FullReferences[edit]
External links[edit]
Twilight Movie Part 1
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