Poll: Twilight honored among "Exorcist" and "The Shining" at Academy Awards

[BonsaiK]

You heard me, "Twilight" was honored in a horror movie montage that included such films as "Jaws", "Silence of the Lambs", "Friday the Thirteenth", "The Shining", "The Exorcist", and "Rosemary's Baby" among others.

As another personal slap in the face of horror movie fans, the tribute to horror films was actually presented on stage by the two stars of the second Twilight film.

Your thoughts?

Well it clearly horrified you enough to make this thread, right?

Not the film, but the ooze in the brains of the film maker that made the montage.

I don't see what the big deal is. It's just a movie. Some people like it, some don't. So what? Most horror movies are frankly crap anyway, there's only a tiny handful of genuinely good ones.

I can tell that you've never seen twilight. Otherwise you would see why its a problem that its included among the best HORROR movies.

It's got "vampires" in it (of a sort), close enough. God, Twilight haters sure get nitpicky. You need to understand that this is a massively popular film whether you like it or not and that if the Oscars don't include it in some montage or whatever, they look like a bunch of lame elitist snobs. Most horror films are complete rubbish anyway, it's a genre notorious for turning out lame copycat garbage.

 

[Cliff_m85]

You heard me, "Twilight" was honored in a horror movie montage that included such films as "Jaws", "Silence of the Lambs", "Friday the Thirteenth", "The Shining", "The Exorcist", and "Rosemary's Baby" among others.

As another personal slap in the face of horror movie fans, the tribute to horror films was actually presented on stage by the two stars of the second Twilight film.

Your thoughts?

Well it clearly horrified you enough to make this thread, right?

Not the film, but the ooze in the brains of the film maker that made the montage.

I don't see what the big deal is. It's just a movie. Some people like it, some don't. So what? Most horror movies are frankly crap anyway, there's only a tiny handful of genuinely good ones.

I can tell that you've never seen twilight. Otherwise you would see why its a problem that its included among the best HORROR movies.

It's got "vampires" in it (of a sort), close enough. God, Twilight haters sure get nitpicky. You need to understand that this is a massively popular film whether you like it or not and that if the Oscars don't include it in some montage or whatever, they look like a bunch of lame elitist snobs. Most horror films are complete rubbish anyway, it's a genre notorious for turning out lame copycat garbage.

Which is why they neglected "Army of Darkness", "Evil Dead 1", "Hostel", "Saw", and whatnot. Those weren't "horror" enough. *rolls eyes*

 

[Trifixion]

Of course Twilight is a horror film. I'm horrified it got made, aren't you?

 

[MR T3D]

the thing itself isn't scary.
what happens if you talk ill of it to the right person (read: girl) IS however.

Of course Twilight is a horror film. I'm horrified it got made, aren't you?

more of a disappointment to me.
disappointment in society.
but then, i don't get scared.

 

[Pendragon9]

its so bad its scary?

Exactly what I was thinking. XD

 

[Amund]

Ok, so even my Twihard friend who's totally obsessed with the damned movie is pulling a WTF maneuver here.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

at least aliens and Evil Dead 2 were in the montage.

Oh, and I call utter bullshit on the Hurt Locker winning best picture.

I'm really hoping you were rooting for Inglorious Basterds like I was. If you were hoping Avatar to win, you and I are going to have a fight on our hands. *gets his rapier ready*

I wanted either District 9 or Basterds to win. I liked Avatar, but not in a classic movie sense.

 

[RJ Dalton]

Yeah well Mark Twain was a noted smartass. The fact is, he worked very hard at his craft and fame/popularity was something he actively pursued, not just with his writing but also his inventions and other areas. There's nothing arbitrary about the fame that he received.

The sexual overtones in Twilight and the author's Mormon upbringing are no doubt directly related. Repressed sexual urges always emerge somewhere, so maybe this is a permissible way for her to experience and write about sexuality. Is it porn? I guess that depends on your definition of it. More than just Mormons like it though, and presumably they're not all just masturbating to it. I've met plenty of people who like the Twilight book but I haven't met one who gets off on it, although I'm sure those people do exist. The appeal is obviously broader than just that.

Ah, but the point being here, there is no objective identifier for fame and popularity. There is no single thing that all popular/famous stories have in common. Hollywood has proof of this: frequently, two movies come out that are almost exactly the same in premise, one gains popularity, the other does not.
And what about the Super Mario Brother's movie? Everybody around here will tell you it's shit and you can analyze it and see tons of things that are just not very well done, even judging it by its own merits, but that movies got one hell of a cult following.
And what about all the people who work hard all their lives to gain popularity and fame and never actually get it? How many people put their whole heart and soul into their work and are virtually unknown?
Fame itself is an accident. There is nothing you can do to predict what will and won't be popular.
So, Twilight's popularity does not speak for it's quality (or lack thereof). I can't argue the fact that people like it and I can't tell you every individual's reason for liking it, but from an analytical standpoint, Twilight has nothing. Both stylistically and technically, there is no merit to be found in its pages, but it somehow struck a nerve that appeals to a large group of people - generally, the sort of people who foam at the mouth when the see a sparkling, sexy man with his shirt off, and key your car if you tell them how ridiculous they're being.
That said, Twilight is absolutely fascinating in its own right for that. If you take a step back and let go of that part of your brain that is trying to ooze out of its ears to escape the horribleness of the text and ask yourself, just what does this say about our culture and our conceptions of what makes a story appealing, it serves as a good point for discussion.
Truly, a story doesn't have to be good to be liked. Hell, I like the Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, but I can't see a single reason to call it good when I try to look at it objectively. You can't account for personal taste.

 

[BonsaiK]

You heard me, "Twilight" was honored in a horror movie montage that included such films as "Jaws", "Silence of the Lambs", "Friday the Thirteenth", "The Shining", "The Exorcist", and "Rosemary's Baby" among others.

As another personal slap in the face of horror movie fans, the tribute to horror films was actually presented on stage by the two stars of the second Twilight film.

Your thoughts?

Well it clearly horrified you enough to make this thread, right?

Not the film, but the ooze in the brains of the film maker that made the montage.

I don't see what the big deal is. It's just a movie. Some people like it, some don't. So what? Most horror movies are frankly crap anyway, there's only a tiny handful of genuinely good ones.

I can tell that you've never seen twilight. Otherwise you would see why its a problem that its included among the best HORROR movies.

It's got "vampires" in it (of a sort), close enough. God, Twilight haters sure get nitpicky. You need to understand that this is a massively popular film whether you like it or not and that if the Oscars don't include it in some montage or whatever, they look like a bunch of lame elitist snobs. Most horror films are complete rubbish anyway, it's a genre notorious for turning out lame copycat garbage.

Which is why they neglected "Army of Darkness", "Evil Dead 1", "Hostel", "Saw", and whatnot. Those weren't "horror" enough. *rolls eyes*

No, what they weren't is popular enough. Yes they have a cult following but the Oscars doesn't care about cult followings and frankly there's no reason why they should. If they started caring all the horror movie elitists would probably just start whining and saying stuff like "that film is trendy now, we can't like it anymore". THere's no pleasing some folks.

 

[CincoDeMayo]

its so bad its scary?

My. Thoughts. Exactly!

 

[benoitowns]

How is such a simplistic, cliched, pandering romance novel so successful? How did the freaking Academy accept it? I assumed it only was successful because it made girl's....I'm going to stop here before this post gets reported or something.
But seriously why is it so popular? Im no romance novel fan, and I am sure there are very few, but how is this accepted in our society? There weren't fan girls like this since Obama was running for president, and even that was an entire level of obsession lower than this.
I think I would rather listen to Kirk Cameron lecture on why looking at the Mona Lisa proves intelligent design, or...or...watch a show about Britney Spears and what new scandal is happening this time then legitimately accept Twilight as good.
I can almost understand what Stephanie Meyers was thinking, to write a story about something that is easily related to this type of audience. Though it seems like a simple romance archetype plot having another character go through the same types of actions and thoughts and emotions, it seems rather silly how there are vampires and werewolves(but not really) that interact without any REAL problems.
It saddens me greatly to see how much of an effect this series has had on our country.(assuming your in America Land like me)Luckily it could be worse, I mean half of the population could be creationists and believe evolution is a lie...Oh...crap
Well, hopefully this is just a fad and will die out.......please die out...oh and American Idol too....

 

[Rayansaki]

Silence of the Lambs wasn't horror either... but it had quality clips for a montage.
Leave Twilight alone.

 

[Mr.PlanetEater]

...No..Dear god no! It's hardly a film on it's own, besides it's not even in the same category of Horror. Next you'll be telling me Reservoir dogs and Valentines day are the same genre.
Also, if Twilight gets honored as one of the best movies then next it'll be honored as one of the best pieces of literature amongst Catcher in the Rye and Hamlet (Dear god, if that happens I'm declaring a holy war on the fucknuggets that let cliched messes go beyond a pop fad and into the literary classics-sphere) I can understand the concept of Twilight, and why any person that wants to make money would write it (I would've written it, if I knew I could rake in the big bucks allbeit a sellout philosophy on reflection. But it's not nor should it ever be considered a best of in anything relating to Cinema, or Literature.

 

[BonsaiK]

Yeah well Mark Twain was a noted smartass. The fact is, he worked very hard at his craft and fame/popularity was something he actively pursued, not just with his writing but also his inventions and other areas. There's nothing arbitrary about the fame that he received.

The sexual overtones in Twilight and the author's Mormon upbringing are no doubt directly related. Repressed sexual urges always emerge somewhere, so maybe this is a permissible way for her to experience and write about sexuality. Is it porn? I guess that depends on your definition of it. More than just Mormons like it though, and presumably they're not all just masturbating to it. I've met plenty of people who like the Twilight book but I haven't met one who gets off on it, although I'm sure those people do exist. The appeal is obviously broader than just that.

Ah, but the point being here, there is no objective identifier for fame and popularity. There is no single thing that all popular/famous stories have in common.

Yes there is. Lots of people like them and they make a shitload of money.

To say Twilight has no redeeming features is just bunk. People bought it, read it, liked it, spread the word, then more people bought it, liked it, spread the word etc... yes there's a hype machine too but that sort of stuff only really kicks in with books after there is enough sales to make phenomenal amounts of advertising financially feasible and worthwhile, and for that to happen, people have to genuinely like the damn book in the first place. Before the oh-so-trendy Twilight hatred kicked in, the book garnered mostly positive reviews from critics, and even the ones who did have some negative things to say about it still acknowledged the broad appeal of the book.

You've also got to remember Twilight's audience - Twilight is a "young adult" book, the writing deliberately isn't as mature as books which don't have that focus. It's not supposed to be "War And Peace". It's also not really aimed at guys, which is obviously why it gets so much disproportionate hate on this forum. But the book is obviously damn good at what it does, that much is crystal clear, or it just wouldn't be so popular.

Here's some links to various critical acclaim, some written before trendy Twilight bashing took over, some after:

http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA446397.html?industryid=47085&q=twilight+meyer+review
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/423654-Best_Children_s_Books_of_2005.php
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/children/article1081930.ece
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookclub/5989699/Twilight-high-school-drama-with-a-bloody-twist.html
http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2009/jul/13/living_real_life_romance88905/[/spoiler]

The reviews written later tend to have an air of self-justification about them, almost anticipating the hordes of criticism from bored male internet trend-following dingbats. Hating Twilight is the real trend. People pick on it because it's popular, and horror fans are having a little cry because it's more popular than their pet favourites are. That's really the only reason. If Twilight was just another book, you wouldn't care, and this thread wouldn't exist.

 

[Deadpewl]

You heard me, "Twilight" was honored in a horror movie montage that included such films as "Jaws", "Silence of the Lambs", "Friday the Thirteenth", "The Shining", "The Exorcist", and "Rosemary's Baby" among others.

As another personal slap in the face of horror movie fans, the tribute to horror films was actually presented on stage by the two stars of the second Twilight film.

Your thoughts?

Well it clearly horrified you enough to make this thread, right?

Not the film, but the ooze in the brains of the film maker that made the montage.

I don't see what the big deal is. It's just a movie. Some people like it, some don't. So what? Most horror movies are frankly crap anyway, there's only a tiny handful of genuinely good ones.

I can tell that you've never seen twilight. Otherwise you would see why its a problem that its included among the best HORROR movies.

It's got "vampires" in it (of a sort), close enough. God, Twilight haters sure get nitpicky. You need to understand that this is a massively popular film whether you like it or not and that if the Oscars don't include it in some montage or whatever, they look like a bunch of lame elitist snobs. Most horror films are complete rubbish anyway, it's a genre notorious for turning out lame copycat garbage.

ITS. NOT. A. HORROR. MOVIE. (yes caps were necessary)! Thats like saying Romeo and Juliet was an action story because it had swords in it. it was a romance that happened to include vampires.

 

[brainfreeze215]

As my old high school guidance counselor said: "Let's be real here, it was the most horrifying movie up there."

 

[BonsaiK]

You heard me, "Twilight" was honored in a horror movie montage that included such films as "Jaws", "Silence of the Lambs", "Friday the Thirteenth", "The Shining", "The Exorcist", and "Rosemary's Baby" among others.

As another personal slap in the face of horror movie fans, the tribute to horror films was actually presented on stage by the two stars of the second Twilight film.

Your thoughts?

Well it clearly horrified you enough to make this thread, right?

Not the film, but the ooze in the brains of the film maker that made the montage.

I don't see what the big deal is. It's just a movie. Some people like it, some don't. So what? Most horror movies are frankly crap anyway, there's only a tiny handful of genuinely good ones.

I can tell that you've never seen twilight. Otherwise you would see why its a problem that its included among the best HORROR movies.

It's got "vampires" in it (of a sort), close enough. God, Twilight haters sure get nitpicky. You need to understand that this is a massively popular film whether you like it or not and that if the Oscars don't include it in some montage or whatever, they look like a bunch of lame elitist snobs. Most horror films are complete rubbish anyway, it's a genre notorious for turning out lame copycat garbage.

ITS. NOT. A. HORROR. MOVIE. (yes caps were necessary)! Thats like saying Romeo and Juliet was an action story because it had swords in it. it was a romance that happened to include vampires.

Does not matter it looks close enough at a glance. (p.s caps are annoying)

* Black spine and predominatly black graphic design
* Vampires (ish)
* It's called "Twilight" implying the coming darkness etc

That's all you need to be called "horror" these days let's face it. Hollywood does not care about elitist horror fan rage because it doesn't pay the bills. In the real world (the one that trendy bandwagon-jumping Twilight-haters generally spend little time in) money is more important than hazy concepts like "how exactly is a horror film defined" so they'll use the "if it talks like a duck it must be a duck" philosophy and tribute the things that lined their pockets and if you don't like it they frankly don't care because you're not the target group who this is marketed to anyway.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Well people in the industry of books have said that the books are written terribly, fact, the literary techniques used have been called shit by these people. I'll have to find that link again.

 

[BonsaiK]

Well people in the industry of books have said that the books are written terribly, fact, the literary techniques used have been called shit by these people. I'll have to find that link again.

The original Twilight books are "young adult" genre books. It's not supposed to be written like an adult story, and many "young adult" genre stuff plays fast and loose with certain structural and narrative norms deliberately, to appeal more strongly to their chosen audience. Twilight must have done a good job of this because people lapped it up...

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Well people in the industry of books have said that the books are written terribly, fact, the literary techniques used have been called shit by these people. I'll have to find that link again.

The original Twilight books are "young adult" genre books. It's not supposed to be written like an adult story, and many "young adult" genre stuff plays fast and loose with certain structural and narrative norms deliberately, to appeal more strongly to their chosen audience. Twilight must have done a good job of this because people lapped it up...

I'm talking objectively here. How people liked or disliked it is different. But looking objectively at how well written the books were, these guys said they were shit (as soon as I get that link to the people talking about how bad it is I'll post it on my own thread).