Directed by Chris Weitz
Starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner
As a self confessed, self diagnosed ‘twi-hard’ there was no question involved as to whether I would attend the 00:01am showing, on its release date.
Unless you’ve been in complete isolation, with no means of communication for the last year, you will have heard of the sensation that is “Twilight” and the eighth wonder of the world: Robert Pattinson. “New Moon” is the long awaited, next instalment of vampires and teenage love affairs.
For those of you who haven’t read Stephenie Meyers’ novels, “New Moon” takes us back to the town of Forks, on Bella Swan’s (Kristen Stewart) 18th birthday. She is technically, now, a year older than her heartthrob boyfriend, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and so, is desperately longing to be bitten and turned into a vampire. These hopes, however, soon vanish when the Cullen family moves away; and in doing so, cut all means of contact with Bella. The return of two familiar faces causes trouble in Forks; but the return of Jacob Black (and his ‘hot bod,’ which is on display a little more than necessary) may just be able to counteract this.
“New Moon” definitely seems to be aimed at a much wider demographic audience than its predecessor. It still contains the core plot of romance and heartbreak, but has a mixture of other elements also. A fair amount of action is featured; and the film’s high budget means that the special effects in these scenes are decent, especially during the werewolf vs vampire fight scenes. There is a huge amount of suspense laid out, particularly when the plot leads us to the Volturi in Italy, so expect to be perched on the edge of your seat! 
Like any adaptation, the film features some differences to the novel, which fellow ‘twi-hard’s’ will notice. My advice is to go into the film with an open mind, viewing it as a whole different entity to the book.
“New Moon” was the number one advanced ticket seller of all time and featured stars such as 50 Cent, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Cat Deeley at its premiere: showing that it is ‘cool’ to love “The Twilight Saga.” Oh, and it’s not seen as ‘sad’ if you (like me) are eagerly anticipating the release of “Eclipse.” Right?
A must see!
★★★★★
Shauna Botrel