Why Every Filmmaker Needs to Watch Twilight

I hate to admit that the first time I binged the incredible film saga Twilight was during quarantine. I regret not following the bandwagon of being obsessed with Twilight in the 2010s, because oh man did I miss out on a good time. I have never wished to have watched a movie in the theaters more than when watching Breaking Dawn Part 2. If you are like me and were never into the Twilight Saga during its revolutionary phase, I am begging you to binge the Saga right now - especially if you are interested in pursuing filmmaking. I know what you may be thinking. Although the Twilight Saga may seem extremely cringeworthy and incomparable to ground-breaking films, I promise you that your impressions are false and Twilight isn’t as bad as you think. The Twilight Saga is a great lesson for filmmakers on how to perfectly cast a movie, own a cringe concept, and create a legacy. The Saga is also a great lesson in watching something that could have gone so wrong do pretty well.

The Twilight Saga is a perfect example of how to own a cringe concept, and turn it into something great. The material of the Saga is a vampire romance. In general, any premise involving vampires, forbidden love, werewolves and romance could typically risk leaning on the cringe side. Throwing all of those premises together risks a movie that can’t be taken seriously. But Twilight didn’t throw off audiences with overwhelming cringe. How did the makers do that? What made Twilight not 100% cringe? Let’s investigate.

First off, the Twilight Saga is a perfect example of how to cast and dress characters. Robert Pattinson's performance as Edward still lives on today as the best performance by an actor ever. (Okay, that claim might be subjective but when you consider the material Pattinson was given and how he delivered I would consider his performance to be top notch.) Pattinson owned the vampire look every time he was on screen along with the Cullen family. Each Cullen member was - dare I say - casted and dressed perfectly. The makeup? Incredible. Outfits? Legendary. Hairstyles? A legacy. Ashley Greene’s portrayal of Alice made me wish I was a vampire with a cute haircut and pep. Each character in the Twilight Saga was portrayed in such an iconic way that simple items of each character's wardrobe could be sold without context of which character it belongs to. This iconography is a lesson for future filmmakers, (yes you read my claim right). Creating characters with distinct wardrobe, facial expressions, and tone, is a way to profit off of merchandise and create a truly memorable character. Other examples of movies that did this well are: Breakfast at Tiffanys, American Psycho, and Star Wars. (Did I just compare Twilight to the legendary Star Wars? Maybe.)

Twilight’s cinematography is also engaging, fun and not at all boring or flat. For example, in the baseball scene titls, pans, and a variety of lenses are utilized to create a fast moving, fun scene. The shot variety is engaging and allows for the viewer to feel as hyped as the characters. As Victoria, Laurent, and James emerge through the smoke in a slo-mo shot, with an audio que audience members are captivated and intrigued by what’s to come. This scene alone is a great lesson on how to introduce an antagonist in an intriguing way. They antagonists emerge out of nowhere in a vulnerable, laid back moment for the protagonists. It is more efficient to introduce the antagonist of your story, (if there is one), at a vulnerable moment for the protagonist, because it allows for the rise of tension. As a viewer, would you rather have the enemies meet in a chill coffee shop or while one of them is exhausted after running 20 miles?

If you are working with material or premise that could possibly ring the cringe bell - own it! The easiest way to fail as a filmmaker is to not own your concept 100%. If you don’t take your material seriously then neither will your audience. I hope my rant about Twilight  has convinced you to finally binge the Saga. If not… I don’t understand why you would not want to see Robert Pattinson as a vampire.