Twilight

My ratings: 2 stars

My Angle: Raises troubling issues about romance a tough call for parents

Kid Appropriate: Thirteen and over with an adult (maybe)

Spiritual Issues: Plenty - but also can be used to talk about many possitive issues - here is a sermon using the movie as an illustration




Of much interest these days (especially to teen girls and their Dads) is the Movie Twilight - which I have actually seen. The following review is a bit of a "spoiler review" but for you parents out there well worth it.

What makes Twilight of especial interest to me is that it also crosses into another of my hobbies which is reading. This book series is being read by millions of teens (mostly early teen girls) and the movie should not be considered apart from its literature background. I share with you this week while I am "in process" I've watched the movie but I have not yet read the book.

First my review of the Movie and then I would love to hear your thoughts:

The movie is geared towards the 9-16 year old set. I think it is a horrible crime for us to continue to let our very little girls grow up too quickly. So I would say - "do not let your pre-teen watch this movie about a teenager's romance".

Song of Solomon 2:7 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you by the gazelles and by the does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.

Then I would say, "don't let your teenager watch this movie alone".

I'm of the belief that Jesus is to be the center of your child's heart and that the primary male relationship in a girl's life should be her Dad. Boys are coming on strong in the teen years, and that can't be helped, but Dad if you stay engaged then you might be able to reason with her a little longer. If you choose to permit your daughter to see this movie, then go to the movie with your daughter and find out what about it appeals to her. Use it as a tool to communicate with her.

But before you do that here are some of the specifics:

Pros-The movie is not overly violent by today's standards, it contains themes of self sacrifice, original sin, redemption, good works, abstinance, etc. It is hard to ignore many of the good aspects of the movie.

So wha'ts the beef?

Cons-I think the romaticizing of the "dark brooding male" gets way too much help already and this movie only piles on it. I find it disturbing thatBella falls immediately in love with the one boy who seemingly rejects her when all others seem infatuated with her. The importance on popularity in this movie is muddled. Is the main character rejecting her popularity or is her confidence a result of her instant popularity?

There is a message in the movie that seems to be saying, "if a boy is attacted to you in such a way that he stalks you night and day- well that is good". Througout the movie romance is very superficially dealt with and I think only feeds into common misconceptions.

Life lessons learned the wrong way in this movie:

Stupid behavior -Daughter is out of town with her two friends (all around 16) the kids split up, the main character nearly gets assualted by 4 drunken men, her friends allow her to ride home with the "dark brooding guy" - stupid - girls never let your friend ride home with someone else and never let them walk off alone in the city! Simply put the heroine was just subjected to one near gang rape and could have been subjected to another because her Dad let her drive out of town with two girls that let her walk off alone and then drive home with the school weirdo.

Stupid behavior 2 - Guy stalks girl in her bedroom, they kiss, he jumps away saying - "I'm not as strong as I thought" so they spend the night clothed in her bed. Stupid - 9 times out of 10 it just doesn't work like that what happens is much different and often results in teen pregnancy.

Back to some possitives (although after those you may reject the movie outright) Intimacy is limited to steamy looks, and an all night clothes on cuddle. I don't like it but on the other hand this is likely pretty close to where many of your daughters are in their mid teens.

So do we reject the movie outright? What May be most troubling about the movie is the books - but I haven't read them yet.... try this link. For further study:

An Academic Paper

A youth group leader




Bill Crawford - The Bayou Christian