海角大神

The final Twilight聽saga chapter, Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2, was always expected to face an uphill battle with anyone but diehard fans of聽Stephenie Meyer鈥檚 supernatural romance series. Despite blockbuster box office returns, Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 1 was met with largely negative reviews and the sense that splitting the final Twilight book into two parts arguably proved to be a disservice to the quality of the film聽adaptation 鈥� even if it doubled-up profits for Summit Entertainment.

It goes without saying that moviegoers who are simply uninterested or cynical about the Twilight franchise will not enjoy Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2 鈥� as the film still contains the usual series staples (shirtless Taylor Lautner, glittering vampires, melodramatic romance, etc). However, does the final entry,聽once again directed by聽Bill Condon (Dreamgirls), ultimately deliver a filmgoing experience worthy of recommendation to cautiously curious fans of entertaining cinema 鈥� in addition to the already strong Twilight聽series faithful?

Surprisingly, yes. As mentioned, Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2 isn鈥檛 going to win-over the franchise鈥檚 longtime critics and, given the amount of ties to past events and characters that dominate the proceedings, it鈥檚 still hard to recommend as a standalone experience for the uninitiated. That said, out of the (now) five film series, Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2聽easily includes the most straightforward plot and, instead of dwelling on the core Bella, Edward, Jacob love triangle, manages to deliver a competent (albeit still campy) 鈥渨ar鈥� story 鈥� complete with a fun cast of supporting heroes/villains and a finale that ends the current saga with a fiery bang. Condon shot Part 1 and Part 2 at the same time but the difference is staggering, as the latter installment is stronger in nearly every single way imaginable, with a focused story, higher production values, and a number of appealing setups. It鈥檚 still an overly-dramatic and downright cheesy escapade聽but, unlike most of the prior entries,聽Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2聽 offers enough fun for appeal to a slightly broader audience.

The Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2 story picks up directly after the events of Part 1:聽wherein Bella (Kristen Stewart) nearly lost her life during the birthing of her half-human, half-vampire daughter,聽Renesmee聽- only to be turned into a vampire at the very last minute by husband, Edward (Robert Pattinson).

In Part 2, newborn vampire Bella awakens from a post-transformation slumber and wastes no time in testing out her new supernatural powers. Unfortunately, after being reunited with Renesmee (now played by Mackenzie Foy), Bella and her daughter 鈥� along with werewolf/one-time love interest Jacob (Taylor Lautner) 鈥� are spotted by Cullen family 鈥渃ousin鈥� Irina (Maggie Grace) who mistakes Renesmee for an 鈥渋mmortal child鈥� (read: a child who has been turned into a vampire and, as a result of their juvenile lack of self-control, risk exposing the existence of vampires to humans).聽Irina reports the Cullens to the Volturi, the vampire ruling class and police force, known for their ruthless handling of similar situations. In an effort to clear their names, and reveal the truth of Renesmee鈥檚 parentage, the Cullens recruit a roster of international vampire 鈥渨itnesses鈥� to help set the record straight or, should the Volturi choose to be unreasonable, fight to the death.

While Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2聽still relishes in sappy cliches about 鈥渢rue love鈥� and hyper-romanticized encounters between Bella and Edward, the larger plot is actually very straightforward and finds a successful balance between the sentimental franchise camp and some genuinely entertaining changes to the established format. The majority of scenes still present eye-rolling moments but, freed from all the overly-complicated teen romance, Part 2 allows a number of characters to step outside of the drama for unique moments to shine 鈥� revealing that the core Twlight universe has more going for it than the love triangle focus of earlier movies.聽Abstract core elements (such as the Volturi, 鈥渋mprinting,鈥� and the dangers of 鈥渋mmortal children鈥�) are all explained with mostly natural exposition or engaging flashbacks 鈥� educating uninitiated audience members on the primary character beats in play.

Watching Bella experiment with her newfound powers is amusing to watch, and a welcome change of pace from her cringe-worthy descent into sickness and death in Part 1, but the real stars this round (for anyone who isn鈥檛 already grounded in Team Edward, Team Jacob, or Team Bella) is the international cast of vampires who come to aid (or in some cases mock) the Cullens for their plan to face the Volturi. Not only do some of the characters offer enjoyable riffs on traditional vampires, the film focuses heavily on each Twilight vampire鈥檚 鈥済ift鈥� (aka: super powers) 鈥� leading to a number of slick comic book-like 鈥渉eroes鈥� such as Benjamin (Rami Malek)聽with聽Airbender-ish聽control of elements in nature and chilling 鈥渧illains鈥� such as Alec (Cameron Bright)聽who can rob opponents of their physical senses.

On the battlefield, the combination of super-powered hero vampires, rough and tumble shape-shifting wolves, as well as blood-thirsty Volturi combatants, makes for a rousing last confrontation that is as outrageous as it is amusing (it would also make for a crazy drinking game: one drink for every decapitation). The final聽Twilight set-piece doesn鈥檛 come close to matching the scale of the assault on Hogwarts in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 鈥� Part 2 but, compared to the flat visuals and underwhelming action beats in prior Twilight entries, the closing moments of the film definitely raise the series bar and should provide a satisfying conclusion for聽Twihards 鈥� along with fun surprises for less-knowledgeable viewers.

Still there鈥檚 no doubt that the film is held-back by mushy character moments and a 鈥渂udget鈥� look (despite the franchise raking in over $2.5 billion at the global box office) 鈥� both holdovers issues from earlier franchise entries. Even though there is no 鈥渢alking wolves鈥� colloquium this round, there are still a number of unintentionally humorous exchanges and awkward visuals (especially CGI baby Renesmee) that undercut the quality of the filmmaking 鈥� even if the final film itself delivers a worthwhile experience for its intended audience.

It鈥檚 unlikely that Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2 is the end of the Twilight movie franchise (given all the talk of spin-offs or further sequels) but Stephenie Meyer remains clear that it is the end of Bella and Edward鈥檚 tale. As a result, it鈥檚 fitting that the final chapter in their storyline also offers the most fun and excitement thus far 鈥� not to mention serves as the entry that could change a few minds about the available potential in the larger series. Naysayers aren鈥檛 going to be won-over (and have plenty of fair criticisms) but it鈥檚 easy to imagine that some initially reluctant viewers might be less adverse to further Twilight installments after their time with聽Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2. In our review of聽Part 1聽I contended that, considering the passion and support of the Twihard community (not to mention resulting blockbuster profits), Summit Entertainment owed faithful fans better quality Twilight films 鈥� and聽Breaking Dawn 鈥� Part 2 is definitely a step in the right direction.

Ben Kendrick blogs at Screen Rant.