Today’s Prayer Focus
MOVIE REVIEW

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part II

MPA Rating: PG-13-Rating (MPA) for sequences of violence including disturbing images, some sensuality and partial nudity.

Reviewed by: Thaisha Geiger
CONTRIBUTOR

Moral Rating: Offensive
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience: Teens Adults
Genre: Action Horror Fantasy Romance Thriller Drama Adaptation Sequel
Length: 1 hr. 56 min.
Year of Release: 2012
USA Release: November 16, 2012 (wide)
DVD: March 2, 2013
Copyright, Summit Entertainmentclick photos to ENLARGE Copyright, Summit Entertainment Copyright, Summit Entertainment Copyright, Summit Entertainment Copyright, Summit Entertainment Copyright, Summit Entertainment Copyright, Summit Entertainment Copyright, Summit Entertainment Copyright, Summit Entertainment Copyright, Summit Entertainment
Relevant Issues
Copyright, Summit Entertainment

false accusation/allegation

betrayals

IMMORTALITY—eternal life and eternal death

love in the Bible

TRUE LOVE—What is true love and how do you know when you have found it? Answer

marriage

self-sacrifice

courage, bravery

wolves in the Bible

blood

Featuring Maggie GraceIrina
Kristen StewartBella Cullen
Robert PattinsonEdward Cullen
Dakota FanningJane
Billy BurkeCharlie Swan
Taylor LautnerJacob Black
Ashley Greene … Alice Cullen
JD Pardo … Nahuel
Michael SheenAro
Kellan LutzEmmett Cullen
Mackenzie FoyRenesmee
Rami MalekBenjamin
See all »
Director Bill Condon
Producer Lionsgate
Summit Entertainment
See all »
Distributor

“Forever”

Series reviews: Twilight (2008), The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009), The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010), The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part I (2011), The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part II (2012)

“Breaking Dawn Part 2” is the fifth and final installation of the Twilight Saga. While some might sigh in overdue relief, some will likely find the film a satisfying end to what many call an epic love story.

“Breaking Dawn Part 2” begins immediately where “Part One” ended. Bella awakens as a vampire into a newly heightened world. Once her hunger is satisfied, Bella meets her daughter Renesmee, a half-immortal child who’s growing at an astonishing rate. While the Cullens are happily raising Nessie, she’s mistakenly believed to be an immortal child. Once the Volturi hear of this, they are determined to uphold their laws and kill the child. Carlisle believes if he can gather witnesses to vouch for Renesmee’s humanity, the Volturi will spare the little Cullen.

The CGI leaves a lot to be desired. In fact, I was rather shocked that such an expensive blockbuster would have nearly laughable graphics. Baby Renesmee was digitally altered to look like Bella, but the baby looks fake. Though colorful, the scenery is mostly fake as well, and it’s a bit distracting.

With that mentioned, however, this movie has a lot more substance and positive morality than the other installments. Since Edward and Bella are both on an equal playing field, Bella doesn’t come off as desperate anymore. She fiercely loves her family and wants to make sure her daughter remains safe. Jacob is no longer focused on Bella and Edward, but is determined to be a guardian for Renesmee. The entire Cullen family is also willing to die for one another and fight for what’s right. The Cullens’ friends risk their lives to stand beside them and against the Volturi (John 15:13).

Objectionable content

Bella easily controls her bloodlust. She’s briefly tempted, but Edward helps her through it, and she soon removes herself from the temptation (1 Cor. 10:13). She hunts down an animal and is shown biting its neck while it briefly cries out.

Bella does wear tighter dresses in this film, and one has a slit. Several women wear low-cut dresses. Jacob undresses and is shown down to his underwear right before he shifts into a wolf.

I’d say that this latest installment has the most violence. There are numerous decapitations, either by other vampires or by the wolf attacks. In the earlier movies, the decapitations were brief, but in this film, they’re a lot more vivid. In the prolonged battle scene, some vampires stomp on necks or twists necks. One vampire has his upper jaw ripped off. Some are shown twisting bodies or pulling bodies in opposite directions in order to decapitate. One ripped head is proudly held up by its hair, while another’s is held in the mouth of an avenging wolf.

In a flashback, an immortal toddler is shown with a bloody mouth around a pile of dead bodies. His maker’s head is ripped off and her body set on fire. One male vampire finishes his hunt of a human in the shadows. One of the Volturi’s super powers is the ability to emit black smoke. He releases a high amount of black smoke while a group of vampires surrounds one and dismembers him. In anger, Bella hits Jacob several times and hits one of a member of his pack.

There is one sex scene (the married couple). Bella straddles Edward, and, as they kiss, he rips her dress from the back. There are glimpses and up-close shots of their limbs and bare backs. Afterward, Bella tells her husband that he really was holding back when they’d been intimate during her time as a human. She says she fears that she may not want to stop for weeks. The morning after, Emmett jokingly asks if they’re done already and if they broke any furniture. There’s a comment of how Emmett and Rosalie went at it for a decade. In another scene, Edward tells Bella she needs a bath and begins to unbutton her shirt.

Although Carlisle attempted a diplomatic approach with the Volturi, several people warned him that the Volturi would never listen, but instead kill them all. Even Edward shared with Carlisle that everything that was happening was because he fell in love with a human (Psalm 94:16). Yes, the movie is about vampirism and wolves, but their attempt to protect an innocent child reminded me of Proverbs 31:8-9:

“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.”

Overall, I found the film to be a decent ending to the saga. Kristen Stewart delivered her best performance as Bella, and the movie’s fast-paced plot made the movie engaging. If you enjoyed the previous installments, then I believe you’d enjoy this one. If you aren’t a fan, then don’t bother. This film is only targeted at Twihards and general fans of the saga.

Violence: Heavy to extreme / Profanity: Mild—“hell” (2), “p_sses,” “friggin’”/ Sex/Nudity: Moderate to heavy

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.


Viewer CommentsSend your comments
Positive
Positive—I really enjoyed this, but I am a fan of the entire series. It was visually stunning, and it was very sentimental. I don’t want to say much else, because I don’t want to include any spoilers. As far as the nudity, I disagree with the other reviewer. They did show a love scene, but there wasn’t any nudity, and these two characters are married. I do usually watch movies with Clearplay, so maybe I would edit that out, but I really didn’t find it to be offensive. There was some gore, too, but it is a vampire movie, you know? All in all I just really enjoyed it.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Pam, age 45 (USA)
Positive—I really enjoyed this last installment to the franchise. Having read all of the books and seen all but Part 1, I liked how closely the movie series has followed the books. Kristen and all of the cast were amazing. I do disagree with the reviewer on the CGI, I thought it was very artistically beautiful. Taylor’s character Jacob brought a lot of funny moments, as expected.

The only offensive part to me was the romantic scene. They could have easily left that out, and the movie would have been just as good. Thankfully, the scene was between two married characters. I would not recommend it to anyone under 13, or those who haven’t followed the series at all. This was the first that I’d seen in theaters, and I enjoyed the overall experience. Huge props go out to my younger brother who, not really being a fan, took me to see it as an early Christmas present.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Christie, age 23 (USA)
Positive—It is a fan based movie for sure, so I loved it! I am a Christian and also an older twihard so this movie ending the Saga was important to me, and it did not disappoint!!!…
My Ratings: Moral rating: Good / Moviemaking quality: 5
Ronni, age 36 (USA)
Neutral
Neutral—I’ll be the first to admit, I hate this book. But I really enjoyed this film, in part because it amends what was the biggest mistake (I felt) in the novel—the need for a climax of some sort, and a battle, which on screen is impressive. There are moments involved that book fans will delight in, but even non-book fans can follow it and enjoy the humor, horror, and romance. I’d caution parents of younger girls that it may be best to wait a couple of years—heads are torn off, vampires are mauled to death, werewolves are crushed and killed, and there’s a lot of skin in the love scene. I’d say it pushes the PG-13 rating further than any film I’ve ever seen.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 4
Charity, age 29 (USA)
Negative
Negative—This is my first time making a comment. I usually wait for your comments before I go to see a movie. I wish I had before I went to see this one. I do not recommend this for anyone unless they can see it edited. This is typically how I view most of my movies. I thought this would be mostly action, but not so. I took my 15 year old daughter and we have had quite a discussion about sex being shown on the screen as this one did. Very Steamy! Nude shown waist up for Edward and legs and the same for Bella, though she is turned towards him and her arm partially covers her chest. It is a long, active scene, and they end it by them both standing in slight shadow, unclothed. My husband and son were gone and had wanted to see it—no way! The scriptures encourage us to be chaste in our thoughts and deeds—tell me how teens and singles viewing this will be able to keep clean thoughts in their minds?! Yes, Bella and Edward are married—that is the only reason I didn’t say Extremely Offensive. It would be easy to have this long scene cut right out and not hurt the movie at all!

Get an edited copy or use one of those machines that allows you to filter it yourself. The action was cool.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Very Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 4
Bev, age 57 (USA)
Comments from young people
Positive—It was the best movie I’ve ever seen. There was only one scene that I would even consider “inappropriate”. It was a love scene between Bella and Edward but not much was shown and they were married. I didn’t think that it was necessary but other than that the movie was amazing. I loved it. And the whole story was about protecting this little girl (Renesmee) that never did anything wrong and all these people willing to risk their life for her. I would recommend this movie to anyone 13+. It was a little gory and could be too much for a young child.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Taylor, age 14 (USA)
Positive—The lovemaking scene between Edward and Bella really only showed their kissing, and briefly their legs. Everything else about this movie was spectacular, and the actors did very well in playing their parts. If you have been a fan of the previous installments, Breaking Dawn 2 will not disappoint!
My Ratings: Moral rating: Better than Average / Moviemaking quality: 4½
Emily “emshemie,” age 14 (USA)
Comments from non-viewers
Negative—This movie is dumb. This series is dumb. It portrays blood-sucking vampires in a morally neutral light. I am THANKFUL this series will end. If Robert Pattinson hated the role so much, why did he play Edward Cullen in the first place? I would have left, maybe the new actor would’ve destroyed the series and people would move on from this junk. Now, if Twilight was a series about Christians fighting evil vampires and werewolves, with Christ’s disciples defeating such devils, or breaking the occultic bonds on any repentant creatures, I would TOTALLY approve of it. But it’s not.
Peter, age 22 (USA)
Negative—…The reviewer of this movie should have read 1st and 2nd Corinthians before watching/reviewing this movie. What would Paul have said about the content of this movie? Would he have said, “Don’t judge your brother,” or “what fellowship has light with darkness?”
James C, age 37 (USA)
Negative—I have not seen this movie series. …As a parent of 2 teenage girls, I did read the first book of the series before determining they would not be allowed to read/watch it. Scripture makes clear the sort of things we are and are not to put into our heads: Philippians 4:8 says Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Shouldn’t the fact that this series is about vampires be enough said for a Christian? Blood, gore, the “undead” and many other not so lovely things are going to fill the head of the viewer.
My Ratings: Moral rating: / Moviemaking quality:
Dawn, age 48 (USA)
Negative— When I was younger, approximately ten, I remember looking back at the first “Twilight,” and though I hadn’t seen it or read the so-called “novels,” I still believed it was an evil movie, just from happening to glance at the rather creepy theatrical poster in my hometown movie theater. Five years later, my opinion has not changed. I still view the fifth installment of the series and the predecessors as violent, dark, and inappropriate films, not to mention poorly-made excuses for entertainment. I have never wished to see these movies nor read the books, and I never will. Two girls at my Christian school live and breath the Twilight Saga, dressing like the character Bella; putting up posters of Taylor Lautner’s character in their rooms; cutting their hair, and wishing they could become vampires like the way the protagonist in the series did.

To me, the girls almost seemed too idolatrous of the screenplays, yet they haven’t even read the “novels.” However, despite their attempts at “becoming Bella,” there is only one characteristic that reminds me of their relation to the Twilight “hero”. (Note the sardonic quotations around the word hero.) It is the fact that all three of them are willing to change themselves from their own God-given form. Bella wanted to become a vampire so she could be with the one she loved. One should not change who they are to please another person unless it is for Christ Jesus. For salvation through him. These girls are so willing to change themselves, who they are, and what they stand for to simply look like a vampire.

It is sadistic that these disturbing screenplays and their motives can cause a person to change their ways to look more like a character in a dramatic, overly-anticipated, and grossly secular movies. It is also vastly creepy how Hollywood filmmakers can turn such fantasized stories of vampires like “Dracula” (another disgusting movie/novel couple that I will not see nor read) and touch them up just enough so that they can be accommodating for… (ahem) less mature audiences in sickening movies such as the Twilight deal. Horribly twisted story plot? Check. Heinous morals? Check. A cast of overly-idolatrized young celebrities? Check. Passionate fans? Check. A movie that God would not want us to view? Triple check. The makings for an downright outrageous Hollywood flick suitable for no one? Check.
Claire, age 15 (USA)

PLEASE share your observations and insights to be posted here.