The Twilight film saga

The last thing any distributor wants to hear is a room full of critics laughing - when the film they are marketing is not a comedy. Such was the fate of the film Twilight at the screening I attended prior to its release last year. But the popularity of this franchise seems certain to lead to reviewers choking on their chortles.

Twilight is based on the first book in the internationally best-selling series by Stephanie Meyer about a romance between a teenage girl and a repentant vampire. Bella Swan is played by meek 'every girl' Kristen Stewart; the undead Edward Cullen by teen heart-throb Robert Pattinson, best know for his role as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

Meyer's description of the vampires in her book is of a race of incredibly beautiful people with preternaturally pale skin. They possess all sorts of advantages for luring victims to them, including irresistible voices, dazzling eyes and alluring scents. Since so much of their affect is conveyed in the books by listening to Bella's thoughts, it was always going to be interesting to see how this translated to the more visual medium of cinema. Sadly, the answer is 'Not well.'

Someone had clearly interpreted 'pale' as 'pancake'. The figures that glided on to the screen looked like refugees from the silent features of the last century. Worse, their lips sported deep red lipsticks and their eyebrows were darkened with mascara, so that they more resembled fans of The Cure than creatures of the night. Furthermore, it appears that the only way the producers could think of making good looking actors look extraordinarily good looking was to give them big hair. To be honest, Robert Smith would have appeared normal next to this collection of pretty-boy Goths.

However the look and the feature have found significant resonance with teens ticket buyers. Edward now has his own range of make-up - yes, that's right, Edward. It's no surprise given Twilight has returned $530 million at the box-office worldwide for an investment of $55 million. Producers are already at work on the three follow-up films that mirror the rest of the Twilight series. New Moon is set for release in November this year; Eclipse in June 2010. Breaking Dawn, the final chapter, is currently set for 2013, but is likely to arrive ahead of schedule. Anyone hoping to avoid the Twilight Saga over the next five years might just as easily have hoped to avoid Harry Potter during the previous decade.

For many Christians, deciding whether or not to see these films will be as simple as hearing that they involve vampires. Fair enough. For others, particularly teens, the vampire has become something of a modern day dissident, like the James Dean figures of a previous generation. It is helpful that the heroine isn't a rebel without a cause. She is prepared to trade peace, public opinion and ultimately her life for a love that will literally last for eternity.