Dissecting Twilight- The Directors Notebook (Folk's Version of Twilight) WIP

So, because I'm a little bored and I haven't provided any walls of text in a while, i'm going to thumb through my copy of the director's notebook and give my perspective on scenes and other aspects of the film. I personally like the movie but there are still a lot of things I didn't like, so I thought I might as well throw myself in the lion's den an see what everyone else thinks of my take on Twilight.

Comments are welcome!

I truly believe Catherine was a fan of the books but I don't think she's able to reel herself in when it comes down to actually going in a direction that makes sense, or taking an "artistic" alternative.
I'm not convinced she or the team working with her had a very good grasp of the material either.
I'll explain as I go through the book.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
And Now: Folk's Take on Twilight!

I've skipped to the important parts. Anyone who has a copy of this book knows that quite a few pages are filled with nonsense in terms of twilight. I'm digging into the meat. ;3

Character Designs~

Bella-
Now I'm glad they didn't go with the crazy borderline curly hair in the first concept sketch. The normal straight hair seems much more appropriate for her character, but the fashion & make-up bug me for a few reasons.
We all know Bella is unnaturally pale. But the blue make-up around her eyes is a bit much. As the girls pointed out in the movie commentary, she's paler than the vamps a great deal of the time. That's a problem. We know Bella is almost as pale as they are, but she's, you know, ALIVE.
I also did not understand the need for the damn headband. I have no doubt that some people still wear them but it's a sort of...childish thing to wear unless you live in southern California and you're into the trendy Hollywood glam. Those chicks wear the hard plastic bands all the time but this really doesn't seem to fit her character at all in my mind. She always seemed like a bit of a tomboy in my head and being a tomboy myself...NO girly little headbands.
Then, if you look on page 24 & 25 you can see her progressive wardrobe. I'm sorry but am I the only one that thinks it's ridiculous that she is dressed more feminine just because she falls in love? Isn't the idea that they're drawn to each other just the way they are. They don't feel a need to change to be together. (Although emoward probably wants to change some things but I'm talking big picture)
I'm not saying she felt a need to change but again, as a chick, I've never felt the desire to dress or act differently for a guy. That's like saying you have to be fluffy and fem to be happy in a relationship. I know, I read too much between the lines but my brain does that on default. Deal.

Edward-
Rob rocked it IMO but thank the gods he pitched a fit over the hair extensions. I know he's probably going to rock them in "unbound captives" but I'm sure that film will have a bigger budget with a more skilled make-up team. I can only imagine what terror this looked like. Kudos Rob!
I have no idea why they assumed Edward had long hair anyway. I mean, I love long hair on guys (if they can work it) but long hair on vamps is so...traditional. We're supposed to be going the other way, remember?
As for wardrobe, I think most of it worked because I REALLY like Rob in blue but I did want to see more warm colors from the book. I think most of the budget in the clothing department should have gone to him as well because he gets the most camera time. Alice makes sense but Edward had some pretty snazzy outfits in the book too and he's the focal point.
oops!
I also REALLY like the longer version of the pea coat. It seems more powerful for some reason. I don't think Edward would have modified his jacket just to fit in with a more modern crowd. Like Rob sort of points out in the commentary, that would draw more attention to Edward. I don't think people would hate him like Rob does, but people would really notice!

As I've already said in my previous thread, I think they screwed up with Bella always being in green and Edward always wearing blue.
Here's that monstrosity. Why can't I ever rattle thing's off in one or two sentences?

"I don't quiiiiite feel like Bella's wardrobe is spot on. I mean, it wasn't what I pictured in Twilight but everyone seems to have the same problem. She's always got her shirt riding up or something rather low-cut on. Maybe it's just me but from the way I read Bella, she seemed to be pretty opposed to that sort of thing both because of the weather and...all she seemed to own that showed skin was the blue blouse.
I never pictured Bella in these kinds of outfits. Plus I hate skinny jeans so they're really pissing me off. kstew is already a stick, we don't need to highlight that fact imo.

whats with the green? check twilight and every spoiler we've seen from NM. She's ALWAYS in some sort of green. I'll admit that I love Rob in blue so I can see why movie Edward was established with a blue wardrobe (favorite color bby!) and thus they chose something different for Bella but I still would have liked to see him in a few warm colors and Bella in some blues...since Edward likes her in blue etc. you all know what i'm talking about. Plus Bella has an issue with things being too green so why would she wear it? Browns and blues would have made more sense to me.
I just hope Chris didn't do the same thing Catherine did with the "color schemes". I mean, it's not a bad idea per say...but it's a little amature as far as I'm concerned. That's like saying you don't have the skill to make any color work on an actor. Edward is cold yes, he's dead, but part of his personality is warm and he's Bella's safety blanket so a few warm tones wouldn't hurt. Of course NM is Emoward so maybe not this time around but I'm hoping for warmth in Eclipse. Maybe to show progress in his characters mindset if nothing else."

Old baseball uniforms-didn't expect them but I wasn't bothered either...except for the infamous G!
come on people, learn your alphabet.

Alice-
I like the wardrobe Ashely ended up with but you can see on page 30 & 31 that they spent a huge chunk of money on bits of costumes they never used in the film. Big no no for a small budget.
The original concept outfit...*shudder* thank god someone fixed THAT!
The hair wasn't as short as I wanted but not everyone pictured a pixie cut apparently. Seems pretty logical given her nickname and physical description but hey, some people get by just fine being oblivious. <<

Rosalie-
I have nothing against Nikki but she just wasn't my Rose. It's not a beauty thing because I do think nikki is beautiful. It's just more of a build and personality thing. Obviously she plays cold and hateful in the movie but I don't think it was to the level that you feel from book Rose. You get the idea but at the same time, I don't feel like it's always there. I pictured Rose as very tall and platinum blonde with old fashioned thick long wavy culrs and maybe a bow holding them back. A more elegant old fashioned version as apposed to the modern take in the movie. In my opinion Rose should have had a presence that got your attention every time she was in a scene. Not because you liked her but because she's a big personality and there should be some dread that she's there. Know what I mean?

Jasper-
Pretty spot on except for the gross lack of attention his character got throughout the entire film.
again, a little too much blue for my taste. I love the color but since all the cullens have very different personalities, one color pallet doesn't do them justice.
Despite his pain I think jasper strikes me as a warm person. Maybe some autumn colors...

Emmett-
Yes and no. more colors. maybe more form fitting shirts seeing as he loves his bod.
Not fond of the sideways hat thing. just a personal preference.
Otherwise, Kellan IS Emmett so yeah...

Dr. Cullen-
I'm pretty happy with him. Peter did a great job but again, the wardrobe.
sometimes it worked, sometimes it was the wrong kind of "upper class".
I get where they were going but I always pictured him being dressed to the nines in public and being more cozy at home with his familty. Maybe nice sweaters and jeans.
Not the preppy stuff they went with this time around. Again, with Carlisle, more warm colors. Of all the vampires to give off warmth, it's got to be him!
ps. I like the blonde but I wouldn't have cared if he had brown hair either. In fact, I think Peter looks younger with his dark locks and a bit of scruff. That would have been fine by me!

Esme-
eh...no. Just no. I didn't like anything about their design for her.
I think Elizabeth did fine but she wasn't the esme I pictured. I thought her apparel should have been more like what I stated for Carlisle too.
9's in public, cozy at home.
I think dark reds and maybe even purple could have suited her if done properly.
I would have kept her in a dress a lot too just becuase it adds a soft stereotypical feeling to the character. I don't see her as a character that would jump head first into modern outfits and fashion.

The crest-
I would have asked stephenie about it. It's a fun idea but not needed and I don't like the wristbands on the guys. I little diversity please.
rose-necklace-sure
carlisle-ring-m'kay
esme-bracelet-no (female version of the ring thanks)
alice-choker-kinda ( i see alice wearing a more elaborate silver choker, not ribbon)
jasper-wristband-no ( i'm going to say a tattoo feels more appropriate given his military history)
edward-wristband-no ( being edward...something unexpected and unique would have been better. maybe a very small simple version of rose's necklace on a thin silver chain. like the first prototype carlisle created for the family.)
emmett-wristband-maybe (he might do that but i'm not sure)

Crest Design-
again, stephenie. I don't get the irish influence being that carlisle is from england. Yeah, stick that in your juice box. oops!

Nomands-
I can't say I had much in mind for them because they weren't as big of characters in the first book as they were in the movie. I suppose I'm fine with how they ended up. James worked for me but I pictured dark blonde hair.

Laurent-
Never made a detailed mental image of him so this is fine for me.
Maybe less of the shirtless thing. Dunno why.
Same with james.

Victoria-
I expected her to be more on edge like in the book but this version is fine too.
Not at all when I expected wardrobe wise but again, no mental image to compare to.

They all seem sort of punk rock and I wasn't going that dirction in my head so you can see how I was caugh off guard.

Waylon-
small character but fun. He made me laugh so he gets bonus points. I always notice when a smaller character does a really good job...and not so good. (the waitress at the diner...really?)

Jacob/Billy/"friends"-
Billy was perfect IMO so thats all i have to say about him.
Jake was close. I think the problems come when he's with his friends. You can tell that his hair is a wig compared to their real mops and the beanie...no.
I know he's not really into his heritage just yet but i would have thought a few small touches like a bracelet or ring or something would have been nice. For anyone who isn't sure, jewelry isn't considered feminine by any means to native americans. Both sexes wear jewerly proudly.
yes, i'm native american, i'm not pulling this out of my @ss.
Jake's "friends"...i think everyone shares the same views of them. Not bad but just meh.

The humans-
Sometimes they were on, sometimes off. Mike was pretty darn close to what I pictured as was Tylor(oddly enough since steph never gave us much of a description).
I know Eric and Ben were combinded as were Lauren and Jessica but I wish they hadn't done that. I know, budgets. But I feel like Eric was too "wannabe suave" and because he's Beric <-get it? I felt like Eric was settling for Angela because he couldn't get bella. That's pretty crappy right? Angela deserves someone who wants her. She's great.
Speaking of which, I like her in the movie. Very close to my mental image.
I was super turned off when I saw just HOW skinny the chick is but she's also a model so whatever... Still a turn off.
Jessica was okay but it was too easy to pick up that she's the token Biatch of the school. Jessica should be a little harder to pick up on. I know, they melded two characters but I would have rather had them drop Lauren and keep Jessica traditional. Short with curly dark hair etc.
you know. Book Jessica. It wouldn't have been hard.

Charlie- HE ROCKED! Like EVERYONE has been saying, Billy took 2D charlie and made him one heck of a character. I hope we get to see a lot more of him because Billy was fantastic!
The mark of a very good actor. You can tell he's a pro.

That's it for my viewpoints on the characters.
There will be more to come and I'll add pictures later to help with visuals.

Next up, SETS!

How do I even compete with that?!?!?! I totally agree I think that Catherine was a fan of the books which as a fellow fan I thought was awesome. I also thought she would;ve tried to stick to the book more or at least get some of the characters correct I.E. Bella.

I agree. Bella to me, wasnt the bella from the book, she wasnt tomboy enough...to me she was like the popular awkward kid...which was weird but that could just be me.