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TWILIGHT Working from the first novel in Stephenie Meyer's literary franchise, director Catherine Hardwicke and scripter Melissa Rosenberg have made Twilight a love story first and a vampire tale second. Kristen Stewart stars as Bella, who moves to Forks, Wa., and finds herself attracted to the enigmatic Edward (Robert Pattinson), who sports a pasty-white complexion and avoids the company of the other high school kids. But he is likewise drawn to Bella, and as their relationship grows, he exposes his true nature to her. Twilight is occasionally overwrought, yet Hardwicke turns that into a blessing rather than a curse. The astute director, who previously helmed Thirteen, understands her teen protagonists, and rather than speak down to them (and, by extension, to the film's youthful viewers), she allows their angst-filled behavior, their oversized emotionalism, to register as the most important thing in the world (because, to a teenager caught up in the moment, that's exactly what it is). This ripeness in the movie's form and content fuels the heated romance between Edward and Bella, and the romantic sessions between them have an aching sweetness, marred only by an obtrusively florid score (by the usually reliable Carter Burwell) that threatens to turn these sequences into Viagra for Teens commercials. There's some late-inning action when Edward and his family must stop a "bad" vampire (Cam Gigandet) who's determined to snack on Bella's blood, but this part of the film feels rushed and tacked-on. Clearly, Hardwicke's interest remains firmly on matters of the heart – a heart unencumbered by the traditional wooden stake, of course. ***
VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA A menage a trois between the Olympic-worthy team of Scarlett Johansson, Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz is one of the various expressions of intimacy found in Vicky Cristina Barcelona, but viewers shouldn't expect to see explicitness on the order of, say, Shortbus or Henry & June. After all, Woody Allen is the auteur, and he's always been more interested in exposing the intricacies of the heart than the pleasures of the flesh. Yet therein lies the major problem: He's basically told a tale that depends heavily on carnal knowledge, and the soft-pedaling of the harsher aspects make this feel, well, as if it were made by a 72-year-old filmmaker who's stepped outside his comfort zone. Johansson and Rebecca Hall play Americans vacationing in the Spanish city when they're propositioned by a sensual artist (Bardem) to join him for a weekend of wine and sex. Both women do succumb to his charms (albeit at different points), only to find matters growing more complicated once his fiery ex-wife (Cruz, stealing the show) re-enters his life. The movie stumbles over itself while bringing fresh life to several issues, among them the ability of one's artistic impulses to be awakened by a foreign culture; our need for familial security versus our desire for hedonistic experimentation; and the viewpoint that sex in itself need not be a shallow vice but rather a passageway into deeper understanding between people. The notions presented are worthy of discussion, but I just wish Allen had given them more of a chance to be heard. Instead, there's a reticence about the film that stops even the most interesting scenarios short. **1/2
YES MAN No one can really blame Jim Carrey for returning to the same spastic well time after time. When the actor attempts to stretch, as in Man on the Moon or The Number 23, audiences usually stay away in droves. So, yes, Yes Man finds the elastic comic working a variation on his patented routine from such hits as Bruce Almighty and Liar, Liar. The difference here is that there's a winning romance to go along with his hyperactivity – for once, he's as sweet as he is sweaty. Much of the credit goes to Zooey Deschanel, who matches up better than Jennifer Aniston, Renee Zellweger, or any of the other past movie g.f.s expected to stand aside as he cut loose. Carrey stars as Carl Allen, a perpetually gloomy introvert whose entire life changes after he's convinced by a self-help guru (Terence Stamp) that he must say "yes" to every situation that comes his way or risk a spell of bad luck. Thus, Carl ends up saying "yes" to a homeless man (Brent Briscoe) needing a ride, a nerdy boss (New Zealand actor Rhys Darby, very funny) who invites him to a Harry Potter costume party, and so on. Into this mix comes Allison (Deschanel), a free spirit who responds to Carl's newfound sense of adventure. As is often the case with Carrey, his shtick alternates between appealing and exhausting, and the film itself runs too long for its own good. But the sequences between Carrey and Deschanel provide the picture with a needed boost, as her off-kilter personality allows him to maintain his goofy brand of humor while also displaying a softer side. Is Yes Man worth seeing? Yes ... but feel free to wait for the DVD. **1/2
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