Feature Story ~ The Twilight Phenomenon

As I enthusiastically tell people about my favorite book series, all goes well, until the inevitable “What are they about?” is asked. Generally my response is to quickly spit out the words 'vampire' and 'romance', then follow up with a “I know it sounds horrible, but really, they're so so good”, but by then, the damage is done and I've received all sorts of horrified expressions or doubtful smirks. Vampire romance is perhaps the worse, most cringe-inducing cliché out there. At a recent family event, I was asked the dreaded “So, what type of books do you like?”, and I found myself saying, “Oh. Um. I like this book called Twilight. But I can't tell you what it's about. It sounds too stupid.”

But true fans of the Twilight Saga know the story is much more than simply vampires and romance. Twilight tells the tale of seventeen-year-old Bella Swan, who moves from Phoenix to live with her father in Forks, Washington, a sleepy, gray little town located in the perpetually rainy Olympic Peninsula. It is there she encounters the enigmatic, “devastatingly beautiful” Edward Cullen, who is clearly something above and beyond the ordinary. The story is very much a narrative, told in first person from Bella's wry, relatable perspective. The series continues with New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn.

The books are huge. All four in the saga sit in the top four spots for USA Today's fiction bestseller list, and the entire series is ranked at number one for the New York Time's children's bestseller list. There are a combined total of 10.7 million of the books in print, and the series has received attention from major periodicals such as Time and Entertainment Weekly, as well as other publications and news-stations around the country. Two summers ago, the release of Eclipse knocked Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows off the number one spot on the New York Times list, which was no easy feat. The books have been toted as the next Harry Potter, as both series inspire cult like followings, incur supernatural elements, and enjoy enormous popularity. But that's about where the similarities end. Junior Divya Reddy says, “I like Harry Potter because JK Rowling created such an intricate world. But I love Twilight for its well-constructed, detailed characters.”

The widest demographic of fans seems to be teenage girls, though a quick Google search for the books yield results such as www.twilightMOMS.com and www.twilightguy.com. But according to Junior Brad Carstens, “No matter which way you cut it, it's a total chick book. I think that bottom line, it's tough for an author to make a love story that both sexes can enjoy equally, because each respective sex is looking to get different things out of it. I like to throw myself into the persona of a character as I read, but with the main character being a girl and the only important male character seeming so aloof, the task was impossible.”

Gender preferences aside, why are the books so popular? The most common answer seems to be the incredibly animated, if not realistic, characters. The characters are really the novel's greatest asset. Though some of the characters may be as unrealistic as the storyline, they felt believable. As I was reading the books, Edward and Bella were so captivating for me, I felt compelled to see how it all played out. I had to know how their story ended. Junior Barbie Close agrees, adding “The best thing about the Twilight books is the fact that as soon as you read them, you can forget everything stressful in your life. Instead of being nervous over an essay in AP, you're panicked that Bella may choose Jacob over Edward.”

The fourth and final novel in the series, Breaking Dawn, was released to less-than-stellar reviews this past August. While Time magazine gave it an A-, Entertainment Weekly gave it a D, criticizing “outrageous plot twists” and comparing it to a “bad Goth sitcom”. This was a surprising turnabout, as Meyer's books have generally received reluctant praise, citing her genuineness and compelling style. However, maybe the professionals in the publishing world have higher expectations than the average high schooler. Most everyone I talked to immensely enjoyed it. Senior Stephanie Schilz says, “ I loved the last book. I think that people criticized it so much because it wasn't what they were expecting.”

The film adaption of Twilight hit theaters November 21st, starring Robert Pattinson (Vanity Fair, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) and Kristen Stewart (In The Land of Women, Into the Wild) as the star crossed lovers. The movie was a smash success, grossing $70 million in the opening weekend alone, and going on to make over $300 million world wide. Not bad for a film made on a $35 million budget.

But not everyone was happy with the movie. “I hated it!” exclaims junior Abby Frawley. “The special effects were so cheesy ... and Kristen Stewart is a horrible actress!” While Ms. Stewart's acting abilities are subjective, it was universally agreed that the vampire supernatural speed and strength wasn't done very realistically. The average review of the film was around 2 out of 4 stars. However, most fans were able to keep things in perspective. “You have to take it for what it is. I went in not expecting much, and I was pleasantly surprised,” says sophomore Mel Mataya. “It was obviously low-budget, but the atmosphere of the movie felt right, and that's all that matters.”

Love it or hate it, it is undeniable that for now, Twilight is a steady fixture in pop culture, and with three movie sequels coming in the next few years, it'll be a while before Edward and Bella go anywhere. So embrace it for what it is, as sophomore Tim Jurney has done. “They're horribly unrealistic books,” he says. “Great, but pure escapist literature.” We all need to escape from time to time.