Happy Black Friday, everyone! You didn’t think I’d pass up this opportunity to talk about this particular movie, did you? Admittedly, it has been a while since I’ve seen a movie based on a book, so I’m a bit out of practice… but giving it a good go.

If you recall (you probably don’t, which is why I’m going to link to it), I didn’t particularly like the book New Moon. But, it’s been nearly three years since I read the book, and I honestly didn’t remember much more than the basic plot overview.

Which is a good thing, technically, because I found that the movie worked on it’s own terms, as a movie. It wasn’t just highlights from the book; it actually followed its own plot arc (whether or not it was close to the book is really beyond my memory, but then I don’t think it matters much).

That said, my reaction to the movie was much like my reaction to the book. I thought they did Bella’s heartbreak when Edward left exceptionally well; you could really get a sense of her despair and depression, as well as the length of time it took her to begin to snap out of it. The best part of the movie was the Jacob part; Bella was more natural and less angsty around Jacob. He’s still my favorite character, and even though he’s 12, Taylor Lautner is quite nice to look at. I got ticked off when Bella began putting herself in danger for the sake of conjuring up visions of Edward, and told M (who went too) that if she ever does that for the sake of True Love I was going to pummel her. 🙂

Like Twilight, the best part was the supporting characters. Alice is fun and intriguing and has an awesome wardrobe; it’s good thing she’s in this one more). I missed more of Carlisle; he was one of the better parts of Twilight. And Charlie was still lovable as Bella’s goofy, clueless day. Edward is sufficiently sparkly and gothy and more irritating than I found him to be in Twilight. (Oh I love you Bella…. no wait! I don’t want you… I’m going to kill myself… bleh!) The Volturi were intriguing; Michael Sheen was brilliant as Aro, and Dakota Fanning looked like she had a ball playing Jane. I think the director could have made the Volturi even more menacing, but I loved the underlying tension between charisma and repulsion.

It was an okay escape, not as fun as some other movies, but not a bad outing either.

Verdict: Better than the book. Which isn’t saying much, IMHO.