The year is 2010 and you’ve waited an eternity (a year) to re-immerse yourself in the event of the century, otherwise known as the most quintessential vampire-werewolf romance of the 21st century. Your feet ache from standing in the long line of sparkly skin and “Team Edward” vs “Team Jacob” preteens, and you anxiously await the two hour phenomenon about to take place.
You might be thinking to yourself, “I thought the event of the century was the eclipse,” and you would be right, but you would also be wrong. The event of the century didn’t take place last week, but rather 14 years ago with the release of, “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.”
Some say the eclipse is a once in a lifetime experience, but I revisit it at least once every year, and I am never in danger of permanently damaging my eyes or losing vision.
I’m not here to step on any toes and say the natural phenomenon of the moon covering the sun for a few moments isn’t super cool, even though most people don’t get full coverage and did I mention it’s dangerous, but if that is your favorite eclipse – listen up, or at least keep reading.
I’m going to give you four words: vampires, werewolves and true love. The entire Twilight franchise is a revolutionary and remarkable piece of work despite what the entire cast of all five movies may think.
“Eclipse” stands out from the other parts of the series, both in reading and watching, due mostly to its strong use of the love triangle trope. I can confidently say this saga makes for one of the best uses of the trope in romance today, and this film, especially, highlights the battle between the three characters.
While it is clear from the start that Bella and Edward have an undeniable chemistry, Stephanie Meyer, the author of the novels, splits fans apart by convincing us Jacob might have a chance with her. The battles and events that take place in “Eclipse” do a perfect job of leading us into the finale, “Breaking Dawn.”
I would like to take this opportunity to appeal to anyone who isn’t the targeted demographic for this kind of thing, which would be nobody in my opinion, and give you an irritable reason this movie is phenomenal: the soundtrack.
It is not often that a producer can take a good book, and make it any better by making it into a movie. In fact, they usually do the opposite. However, the Twilight movies include some of the best soundtracks in movie history.
My personal favorite song takes place in the first movie, amidst a baseball scene, making Twilight the only sports movie I’ve ever seen. Muse’s “Supermassive Black Hole” is such a fun and intense song on its own, but pairing it with some slow-motion vampire shots is pure gold.
The directors and producers for “Eclipse” recognized the beauty that Muse produces and included my second favorite song from the saga in this film. “Neutron Star Collision” was written and performed by Muse for “Eclipse,” and it was all the better for it.
Other songs such as “What Part of Whatever” by CeeLo Green and “My Love” by Sia contribute so much to the film, making it a timeless watch and landing it a nomination for Best Soundtrack at the Grammys and the American Music Awards.
All in all, “The Twilight Saga” gets a lot of hate for being cheesy, but whether it’s your guilty pleasure or your favorite film, it cleared a path for the world of romance and fantasy to break into the industry and earn its place on screen, both in television and film.
