DVD Review:The Twilight Saga: New Moon Two-Disc Special Edition
Please find below TheDailySnitcher's review of the 2-Disc Special Edition of New Moon, which features Harry Potter stars Robert Pattinson and Jamie Campbell Bower.
The DVD is on sale now and can be purchased at Amazon.com.
Disc one of the New Moon two-disc special edition DVD includes the feature presentation, with the option of an audio commentary with director Chris Weitz and editor Peter Lambert. Disc two features an hour-long documentary, The Journey Continues, which starts with actor interviews about what their lives have been like since the aftermath of the release of Twilight. We also get an inside look into the new director, Chris Weitz, the costumes, set design and much more!
The feature film picks up where Twilight left off and follows the romance between Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) and Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson). Because Edward is a vampire and therefore will never age, Bella is worried that Edward won't love her once she grows old. She sees her only solution as becoming a vampire, too, but Edward doesn't want her to change, fearing that her soul will be damned.
Further complications arise when Edward makes the heart-wrenching decision to leave Bella to keep her safe from his vampire family who might not always be able to control their blood lust around her. The Cullens must also leave Forks because people are starting to notice that Carlisle Cullen (Peter Facinelli), who acts as the father figure of the vampire clan, hasn't aged in the ten years that he's been in town. Without the Cullen's protection, though, Bella is open to an attack by the vampire Victoria, whose mate was killed by Edward and who is seeking revenge on Edward by killing Bella. Bella is kept safe even without Edward around to protect her, though, thanks to sixteen-year-old Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner), who through the course of the movie discovers that he is a werewolf that hunts vampires.
Throughout the movie, too, Bella and Jacob develop strong romantic feelings for each other. Bella holds back on her feelings for Jacob, though, keeping a candle lit in her heart for Edward in the hopes that he'll return to Forks one day and she'll see him again. This of course leads to animosity between Edward and Jacob when Edward comes back into Bella's life and the two confront each other at the end of the movie, leaving Bella to intervene and tell Jacob that she will always choose Edward over him.
Before Edward returns to Bella, though, she learns that she is able to see him whenever she puts herself into dangerous, life-threatening situations. Thus, Bella becomes a sort of thrill seeker/adrenaline junkie, all in the hopes of catching shadowy glimpses of Edward telling her to stop whatever dangerous thing it is that she's doing. The images of Edward are beautifully done with CGI, fading away like the smoke from a candle when it is blown out.
The action leading up to the end of the film begins with Edward believing that Bella is dead from one of her death-defying stunts, leading him to Italy to the Volturi - the closest thing to royalty the vampire world has. The Volturi are very powerful and can kill a vampire if the vampire requests it, so Edward is essentially seeking suicide with their help because he no longer wishes to live if Bella is not alive. By exposing himself as a vampire to the human world, thereby breaking one major vampire law, Edward will be put to death. He is just about to reveal himself when Bella races toward him and stops him. But the Volturi still want blood for Edwards' act, but when Bella offers to sacrifice her own life to save Edward, Alice Cullen (Ashley Greene) comes to her rescue. Alice can see the future and she shares her vision of Bella becoming a vampire. Intrigued by Bella's ability to resist vampire powers, the Volturi decide to let them all go unharmed, as long as the prophecy that Bella becomes a vampire is fulfilled.
Back in Forks, Edward and Jacob meet in the woods with Bella intervening and begging Jacob not to ask her to choose between him and Edward, because her choice will always be Edward. Jacob leaves, angry, and the film closes with the scene of Edward asking Bella to marry him.
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DVD Extras
Disc two includes the following special features that fans of Twilight will love.
The Journey Continues: A 6 Part Documentary on the Making of The Twilight Saga: New Moon (65 minutes)
Life After Twilight (4:31)
Interviews with the cast and crew about how their lives have changed with the release of Twilight.
Chris Weitz Takes The Helm (4:07)
The new director talks about working on the film and his experiences. Also included are cast comments about the director and what it was like collaborating with him.
The Subtle Details (7:49)
An in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at the set design, location scouting, and general aesthetic of the film.
A Look at Production (30:10)
A detailed behind-the-scenes look at actual shooting of the film
It's Not Magic (10:28)
A look at the special effects of the film.
Ready For the World (8:21)
A look at the final stages of production including editing and the film's release. Also included is a deleted scene from the movie.
Music Videos
Meet Me on the Equinox by Death Cab For Cutie (3:50)
Satellite Heart by Anya Marina (3:48)
Behind the Scenes Rehearsal of “I Belong to You by Muse (1:35)
Spotlight by Mutemath (from Twilight) (3:43)
Final Grade: A
The Twilight Saga: New Moon was released by Summit Home Video and stars Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene, Rachelle Lefevre, Billy Burke, Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Nikki Reed, Kellan Lutz, Jackson Rathbone, Anna Kendrick, Michael Sheen, and Dakota Fanning. It was written by Melissa Rosenberg from the book by Stephenie Meyer and directed by Chris Weitz. It will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on March 20th, 2010. It is rated PG-13.
Thank you to Summit Entertainment for providing the review copy!
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