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Twilight Sucks – There, I Said It

Dec 15, 2009
By .
Movies

I was tossing around various ideas for titles that would cleverly point out my anger and disdain for a series that I have not read,but I decided to just be direct. Last night, I went to see New Moon. I had not seen any of the other movies, or read any of the books. I have to admit, I had done some reading about the misogyny in the books and knew that the author was the "special underwear wearing" type of Mormon. I didn't just dislike the movie, it made me actively angry.Let's go ahead and get the positives out of the way. It's a very nicely shot movie. Some good cinematography and beautiful scenery. The special effects were also quite nice, particularly the vampire movement and fighting. I got red vines as a snack at the theatre. That's really about it.

The movie was poorly written. Characters did things that made no sense (especially Bella, the lead, who (it must be said) is really an idiot..), changed their motivations in mid stream and were generally not fleshed out at all. The movie had the most laughable cliff hanger I can remember in a long time, and ended so suddenly that there was laughter in theatre.

But let's get to the meat of my anger with the film. This is supposedly aimed at young girls, and is yet so full of ridiculous misogyny that I would shudder for a daughter of mine to look for a role model here. The female characters in the movie were ciphers for their males. They could not exist without a man in their life, and are rendered non-functional when they are alone.

Perhaps the creepiest part was the werewolf wife (who was human) who had the misfortune of being around her husband when he got angry & lashed out at her. It was a tacit endorsement of domestic violence. There was never any thought that the wife might leave her husband or that you maybe shouldn't be around someone who will strike you when they are angry (especially someone with claws..) Like a good woman, she stayed with her man. Accepting that the odd savage face wound was small price to pay for his love. YIKES! It is simply irresponsible to present that to young women. There just can't be a defense of it.

The main relationship between Bella & her sparkly vampire is not much better. She is helpless. At one point, there is a gang of young toughs who are threatening her. Does she scream for help? Run away? Fight back? No, she sort of goes limp and seems ready to take Bobby Knight's classy old advice until Edward leaps to her rescue. Again, the meek woman waiting for her savior, whom she cannot live with out. She resorts to constantly endangering herself to try and summon him again. Certainly a healthy message for young girls out there.

I want young women to see examples of strong female characters. I want girls to really feel like they can do anything, to realize that they are not defined by a boy or by anyone else. Sadly, Twilight teaches them none of this. Instead the message is to completely sink yourself into your boyfriend, do his bidding and accept that he might get angry and hit you now & then. You've come along way baby!

Last 5 posts by Ezra

18 Comments
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18 Comments

  1. tim  •  Dec 15, 2009 @5:32 pm

    I never understood the Harry Potter phenomena (having refused to read the books) until I was talked into going to the midnight showing of the first film. The entire theatre was filled with teenage girls and a group of gay guys (that would be us). I made a comment along the lines 'oh there is a book based on this movie?' and have never seen so many angry teenage stares in my life. I now understood who bought Harry Potter books.

    When the first Twilight movie was scheduled I grabbed the first book and started reading it. After 30 pages I realized it was targeted at the exact same demographic at Harry Potter. 13 year old girls. I deleted the book (kindle).

    Neither the world of Potter or Twilight teach girls anything. The sad part is that's what they and their mothers appear to want.

    (from the little I've read – Potter, at least, is better written)

  2. Al  •  Dec 15, 2009 @6:27 pm

    The lessons that kids can take away from the Potter series will center around evils of racism and the folly of placing too much trust in government. (Yes, my kid is a big fan and as a result I know way, way too much about Harry Potter.)

  3. vegas710  •  Dec 15, 2009 @7:42 pm

    Meh. I'm no apologist for the books or movies but sometimes I think people are looking for a better reason than "it's crappy" to justify hating something they've never read.
    In context (in the book) the wife being attacked makes sense. He didn't understand what was happening to him and could not control his wolf yet. It's a lesson about playing with monsters, not about abusive men.
    I've heard talk about how Edward's SO much better than Bella which is so anti-feminist. But the female vampires are even cooler than Edward who turns out to be very insecure about himself. Also, it's written from Bella's perspective and 16 yr old girls tend to idolize their crushes.

  4. Derrick  •  Dec 15, 2009 @7:51 pm

    The movie is a lot more interesting if you pretend vampirism is a form of AIDS.

  5. Vice Magnet  •  Dec 15, 2009 @8:44 pm

    I thought the movie was better than I expected, despite the wooden acting throughout. As far as the message goes, aren't vampires supposed to enchant their victims, making them helpless and spellbound? Wasn't this the case with Bram Stoker's Dracula and with the Ann Rice vampires? I believe that it isn't as sexist as you advance the notion, Ezra. Besides, if you are surrounded by a half dozen dudes in a dark lot like that, you are probably going to scream as they close in on you. Bella (who yeah, is an idiot) was saved from her fate by her vampire boyfriend just as she was about to scream.

  6. The Mule  •  Dec 15, 2009 @9:34 pm

    Pretending that vampirism is a form of AIDS hits closer to the mark than one would expect, since vampirism has a literary history of standing in for sex. The Twilight series is sexphobic in general. Indeed, the fantasy of a dreamy boyfriend/savior who would NEVER think to consummate his love for you (by having sex with you or drinking your blood, whatever) is very compelling, especially to preteen girls somewhat overwhelmed by confusing social sexual standards.

    The important thing, Ezra, is that you got to enjoy some delicious, tasty red vines! Well, for maybe 20 minutes tops, eating slowly. I feel your pain for the rest of the mopefest.

  7. Linus  •  Dec 16, 2009 @10:01 am

    I guess I'm confused. You're saying you think the special underwear has something to do with the crappy writing? Did I miss the point of that aside?

  8. Ezra  •  Dec 16, 2009 @10:24 am

    Vegas – perhaps the book added some context to that scene, but I'll tell you as a movie only watcher, it was jarring how they glossed over the abuse. In fact, I'm not sure context makes it that much better. Are we teaching young girls that they should stay with abusive spouses as long as the abuse is incidental? I think not!

    Vice – Interesting take that Bella is the victim of Edward's supernatural charm. It doesn't make up for how weak she is, and the example that sets for young girls (IMO, of course..) And that's really the crux of my complaints with the film (and probably the books as well) that these are targeted at young girls, who take these things to heart. I would much rather people look at a strong (and complex) female character like Buffy than a weak cipher like Bella. Let's teach girls to be tough and individuals and not define themselves by hyperemo crushes.

    Also, Stoker and other vampires weren't being marketed to young girls as a new age Romeo & Juliet (which the movie hammers over your head with all the subtlety of porn movie plots..)

    Linus – I think you can see a great deal of the author's Mormon tenets come through in the book. Plus, Mormonism is almost as crazy as Scientology when you really look at it, so I'm always happy to get a special underwear reference in.

    By the way, my favorite bad acting moment of the movie is when Edward recites (in the most wooden tone deaf manner possible) a poignant stanza from Romeo & Juliet, and every girl in the class makes doe eyes at him. Heh, he really made the words come to undeath…

  9. Patrick  •  Dec 16, 2009 @10:26 am

    Yes, Linus. This is the point: when one is going to unload on a victim, there are times when it's best to unload both barrels, then reload and do it again. Thus, the writer behind Twilight is not simply an exploitative hack; She is an exploitative hack who wears scary underwear.

  10. Linus  •  Dec 16, 2009 @10:42 am

    Don't you think, Ezra, it kind of takes the edge off your cries of "misogyny! misogyny!" when you are so casual about making fun of another's religion? Particularly when the religious tenet you are mocking has nothing to do with your substantive criticism?

    I'm not a fan of the books–there is no question they are poorly plotted, with weak and illogical characters. I also understand what Ms. Meyer was attempting to do, but I think her goal was too ambitious–to write a chaste version of vampires. As the Mule noted, vampires have too much literary history as a stand in for sex to change that and not have it be extremely jarring for the reader. But I also find it, well, weird, that so many of the criticisms I've read of her work focus on the Mormon angle of it, without actually discussing what "Mormonness" comes through in the books. In other words, the Mormon beliefs that infuse the series are the beliefs about chastity, which cannot be argued to be uniquely Mormon beliefs. Can they? So, why try to paint it as a Mormon series, and then connect the dots to lay the crappiness at the feet of the Mormon beliefs, rather than at the author's feet, where crappiness belongs?

  11. vegas710  •  Dec 16, 2009 @10:44 am

    Hyperemo crushes will always be a part of teenage girlhood. It just will. It always has been which is why the book appealed to so many middle-age women. We so remember being there even while we hate on Bella for her pining.

  12. vegas710  •  Dec 16, 2009 @10:48 am

    Not done, touchy touchpad.
    Angel beat up Buffy while he was Angelus, the werewolf thing was the same situation. A good person who just *might* turn into a monster. Not a guy with a bad temper.

  13. Ezra  •  Dec 16, 2009 @11:11 am

    Vegas, a crucial difference in the Buffy-Angel relationship was that Buffy stood up for herself. You could also add the later Spike romance, which took the same romance and sort of reversed the roles. I would much rather my daughter took her life cues from Buffy than from Bella.

    Plus, in Twilight they specifically say that the werewolf guy got angry and lashed out at her. That's a big difference from being a soulless monster. In fact, all the werewolves in the movie are basically roid rage waiting to happen (probably literally and figuratively).

  14. TomH  •  Dec 16, 2009 @11:13 am

    When you get down to it, the movie is popular among teenage girls and many women. Probably, although I do not know it for fact, somewhat less popular among males of any age.

    Why, then is this story focusing on weak women characters more popular among females, and less so among males?

    In Harry Potter, used as a foil for comparison above, both the male and female characters are strong (although the males admittedly lead). The popularity of the stories is high among young people and many older people, and my impression (again, sorry no facts) is that the popularity is more equal between the sexes. Why do you think that is?

  15. vegas710  •  Dec 16, 2009 @11:22 am

    I would never argue that Bella is a good role model. But your point that Sam losing control of his wolf was code for abuse only makes sense if the same holds true for Angel. Plus, Angel's change comes as a result of Buffy's sex, a terrible lesson about women's sexuality being bad and dangerous. You can find moralistic grounds to hate on any story if you look hard enough.
    The wolf is a fierce protector and so until it is controlled, it shouldn't be around other people. The accident with Sam and Emily happened because he was the first wolf and didn't know what would happen. Paul would have eaten Bella when she slapped him because he was younger than the others and not in control of his monster.
    I think the books and the movies can suck just for sucking without people trying to find moral grounds for the suckage.
    PS, I have to mention the Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs. Strong female lead. Very good books.

  16. Derrick  •  Dec 17, 2009 @8:52 am

    Honestly Ezra, I thought the whole "lead wolf messed up his girlfriend" angle was great. Because it was the only time in the effing movie that the "monsters" actually did something.

    I don't know if it's related to the mormonism or whatever, but the relationship between Edward and Bella isn't just chaste. It's sterile. The whole movie is just completely sterile. I got a feeling that the story was simply stripped of any sort of naughtiness. High School, both romances. Just completely devoid of heat. We're supposed to believe that Bella is so in love with this douche. SO IN LOVE mind you, that she mopes around for MONTHS after he leaves and then goes crazy for danger. The movie beats you over the head with this stupid love story but it never even attempts to make you feel it. It's just so unbelievable my wife was calling bullshit. There are Japanese Shojo anime series with the same plot that have more heat in the story.

    The most offensive thng I find about the Twilight series is that the Vampires have no discernable weaknesses. Now that's the real crock.

  17. vegas710  •  Dec 17, 2009 @10:40 am

    The vampire's weakness is the werewolf. They can be staked but still have to be dismembered and burned after. They're not all that different than other vampires in literature.
    And middle-age women everywhere will tell you that there is heat o'plenty in the books. Just no on-screen chemistry between two mediocre actors.

  18. Shannon  •  Aug 23, 2010 @11:54 pm

    I just wanted to let you know I referenced you in my blog on the subject of misogyny in the Twilight saga. It's in its beginning stages, but is something I feel needs to be much more discussed. Thank you for writing this post, and feel free to stop by my blog anytime, if you so desire. =)

    http://antifeministtwilight.blogspot.com/

    *Shannon