It is very rare for me to go to the movies twice in one month, let alone twice in one week. Yet that is exactly what I did this week, having gone to see the midnight release of Eclipse and then going to see The Last Airbender tonight (you can find my thoughts on that movie here).
Eclipse is probably the only movie in the Twilight series that I can say I loved, and will probably still love a year from now (unlike the other two, which I’ve grown more and more disenchanted with as time goes on). Everything was just better in this film, in my opinion. The acting was better (not a lot of ‘overacting’ in this one). Secondary characters were able to shine a little more in this movie. And there was more than one fight scene!
Basically I’m saying all of this to waste space, so that anyone who doesn’t want to be spoiled can have time to look away before I go into specifics on what I did and didn’t like. 
THE LIKES:
Flashback scenes: For me, the best part of the movie were the flashback scenes, especially Rosalie’s. In Eclipse, Rosalie went to being the vampire bitch with immortal PMS to being a sympathetic character, and an unlikely ally for Bella (in her desire for Bella to remain human). The movie delivered that scene perfectly, and Nikki Reed was finally allowed to shine. She said recently in an interview that they did film the part where Rosalie is flying up and down the hallway in her wedding gown, torturing Royce before she kills him, but that it was cut from the final product. I’d have loved to see that scene.
Jasper’s flashback scene was very short and to the point, but it was also done pretty well, and allowed Jasper and Bella to intereact more in the movie.
The story of the third wife was one I did not think they would put in the movie, so I was very glad to see it there. Any scenes where we get history on the secondary characters have always been my favorites in the books, because it’s refreshing to hear about someone other than Bella all of the time.
Love triangle: I think the love triangle was done pretty well; not too biased one way or the other. Taylor Lautner played Jacob with just the right amount of confidence and vulnerability, and Robert Pattinson didn’t overdo his character. In the book, Edward is a lot more comfortable around Bella, and for me, that really came across in this movie. All three actors seemed a lot more comfortable with each other.
The “birds and the bees talk” between Charlie and Bella: Probably one of the best and funniest scenes in the movie. Period.
The humor and playfulness between the Cullens: We got to see a little of the fun interactions of the Cullens in Twilight, but no real “family” interaction with them since the baseball scene. Here, we saw some playfulness with Alice and Jasper (not to mention a kiss, finally!). Emmett was his usually cocky and playful self, and it was very fun to see. The training scenes where the Cullens take turns sparring against each other was probably the most we’ve seen them together, as a family.
Abs, abs, and more abs: Let’s face it, aside from Kellan Lutz (who is – after all – a model for Calvin Klein underwear!) Taylor Lautner probably has the best body on the set. And Eclipse gave us plenty of opportunity to verify that fact. The rest of the wolf pack aren’t so bad, either, but since they only got minimal screen time, Taylor was the one who received the cheers and sighs from my fellow movie watchers.
THE DISLIKES:
Victoria: Nothing against Bryce Dallas Howard, but she is so not Victoria. Where Rachelle Lefevre played Victoria with a certain arrogance and confidence, Bryce’s Victoria seemed unsure, vulnerable and scared.
The over-hyped character of Bree Tanner: Yes, I read “The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner” and felt a connection to this character, which is what I’m sure Stephenie Meyer wanted. But seriously? All the press, interviews and references to this character during promotion for the movie, and she was on screen for maybe a total of five minutes. If that. She probably spoke three lines the entire movie. Why go through the trouble of making us care about this character beforehand, just to have us question it when she’s treated as an afterthought in the movie? Oh yeah, to make more money off of Twilight fans. “The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner” has sold over a million copies since it’s June 5, so I guess Stephenie Meyer and her team accomplished that much, at least.
These are all probably the most prevalent thoughts I have towards the movie at this time. Again, compared to Twilight and New Moon, this film was less “cheesy” and has better direction, and I can sit through the majority of this movie without feeling like I want to cringe (a reaction that I have now almost every time I watch Twilight). Seeing as how Breaking Dawn was my least favorite book, I hope that the director who helms that movie will do as good a job as David Slade did with this one.
