Twilight Breaking Dawn — Part 2, 115mins, 12A - review

A frightfully fangtastic finale for the Twilight franchise
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13 December 2012

Woohoo! The fifth and final instalment of the Twilight saga has the best climax of any blockbuster this year. True, it also has the worst second act but, luckily for the film-makers, last impressions count. The twist in the tale earned its own round of applause at the world premiere on Wednesday night. Bill Condon (who also directed Part 1) has done this brazenly peculiar, fitfully brilliant franchise proud.

For the past five years, the teen-centric series has touched on many things (including addiction and, somewhat compulsively, Taylor Lautner’s firm pecs). But, in keeping with Stephenie Meyer’s novels, it is above all concerned with the thrilling perils of joining a cult. Heroine Bella (Kristen Stewart) seeks eternal life so she can snuggle with boyfriend Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) for ever. Only to discover that vampires, rather like Scientologists, struggle to get along with regular folks and are prone to fits of paranoia. Which brings us to Breaking Dawn — Part 2. This episode of the soap opera would work perfectly in a double bill with Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master.

We rejoin the action as Bella gets to grips with conversion. To paraphrase the mum in Shaun of the Dead, she’s gone “a bit bitey”. She’s also keen to bed Ed and spend time with their daughter, Renesmee (the terminally pretty Mackenzie Foy).

But then the control-freaky Volturi, convinced the child is a threat to the vampire species, declare war on the Cullens. The race is on to assemble witnesses from around the globe to prove Renesmee is harmless. Which is when the drama lurches to a halt. The various contingents finally gather in one room, resembling nothing so much as the figures in the “It’s a Small World” Disneyland ride. The three Oirish bloodsuckers are laugh-out-loud funny. But not in a good way.

Then it’s time to rumble in the snow and everything clicks. Michael Sheen has grown into the role of Volturi chief Aro; his manic-urchin smile is delightful. It’s a pleasure, too, to see Stewart at the centre of the action, whizzing furiously through the air instead of slouching on the sidelines.

How long will the Twi-hard cult last now that the plug has been pulled? My guess is that fans, thanks to this canny film, will find it easy to keep the faith. Love it or hate it, the Twilight zone is here to stay.

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