Hollywood Reporter’s Todd McCarthy gives what at first appears to be a favorable review of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PART 2, but it turns out that he is referring to the film’s potential to yield huge box office returns by playing to the base:
Anyone who has seen even one of the previous cinematic installments of Stephenie Meyer’s endlessly protracted cross-species love story basically knows what to expect here, and the multitudes who have seen them all will jam theaters the world over in the coming weeks to experience the consummation so devoutly to be wished: the ultimate and imperishable union of Bella Swan and Edward Cullen. The $1 billion generated by the first four entries in the U.S. and $2.5 billion generated worldwide will be increased considerably by the time Breaking Dawn finally reaches its dusk.
Later, McCarthy gives a clearer look into his assessment of the film’s quality:
Although the new film builds to a massive confrontation on a wintry field between more than two dozen vampires, backed up by their hirsute werewolf allies, and the more numerous and gifted Volturi, this remains the rare popular series without any great set pieces or even memorable scenes; from the beginning, it all has just sort of chugged along in a stylistically mundane way that has not infrequently slipped over into dullness.
McCarthy seems in line with critical reaction so far. The current Rotten Tomatoes score is 87% fresh, but some of those fresh ratings are somewhat half-hearted:
- Variety’s Justin Change says BREAKING DAWN 2 “clears a low bar to stand easily as the franchise’s most eventful and exciting entry.”
- In Empire Magazine, Helen OHare opines: “Fans will be left on a high; other viewers will be confused but generally entertained…”
- David Edwards of Daily Mirror sniffs, “…an adequate end to the story but not much else.”
Non-fans could be breathing a sigh of relief now that THE TWILIGHT SAGA is coming to an end, but their relief may be premature: the film adaptation of THE HOST, based on Stephanie Meyer’s first “adult” novel (i.e., not designed for teens) is scheduled for release on March 29, 2013.