"A Week of Twilight": More vampire stories

The "Twilight" series have quickly become some of the most successful vampire stories of all time, and the upcoming film should only add to that. But they are far from the first. Here's a list of some of the other best vampire-related stories I've come across:

• Interview With The Vampire (novel and film) - Before Stephenie Meyer, Anne Rice was the original queen of the damned. Her "Vampire Chronicles" series set the bar for future vampire stories, and "Interview..." is the most famous of them all. The confessional story style and the treatment of vampirism as an unwanted curse to the infected, along with viewing the vampire as a sympathetic/romantic character rather than just a villian, changed the way vampires were viewed in popular culture and laid the groundwork for series like "Twilight." And Lestat, the vampire anti-hero of the series (played by Tom Cruise in the film), could be an ancient ancestor to Edward Cullen, though Lestat can be a little/lot more wicked at times. The novel is excellent and, in my opinion, the film is still the best vampire movie currently in existence.
• 13 Bullets (novel) - In this novel by David Wellington, Pennsylvania State Trooper Laura Caxton is recruited by FBI Special Deputy Jameson Arkeley to help him thwart a series of recent vampire attacks. Despite a few flaws (including a cliffhanger ending that actually made me angry when I read it), this story has a strong plot, very engaging characters, and a cinematic style that I think could easily translate into a good film. This is a different world than that of "Twilight" and "The Vampire Chronicles" in two major ways: 1) the world is aware of the existence of vampires, and 2) the vampires in this story are all evil, bloodthirsty and very, very ugly. "13 Bullets" is the first of a planned trilogy, so now is a good time to get into what is shaping up to be a great series. I still hate the ending though.
• Blood + (manga and anime series) - This series concerns Saya, a high school student who can't remember her past. One day she is confronted by a man named Hagi, who gives her a sword and tells her the truth about her past: she is the last true vampire, and is charged with defending humanity against an evil race called the Chiropterans. The animation in both versions are excellent (the manga in particular is beautiful to behold), and the story is an intriguing one that is carried out very well. A lot of blood is spilled in this series, but it's a vampire story, so it shouldn't come as a surprise. It's also a good place to start if you're thinking about getting into anime and/or manga.
• I Am Legend (novel) - If you've seen the most recent film version of this story that starred Will Smith, you might not be aware that the creatures in Richard Matheson's original novel were actually vampires, not zombies. Robert Neville is the last man on Earth who is somehow immune to a virus that has turned everyone else into bloodthirsty vampires. Holed up in Los Angeles (not New York, another change in the movie), he spends his days looking for a cure to the disease and his nights trying to survive against the creatures. While I did like the film, reading the book makes you wonder why they didn't just film the original version (and hopefully someone will someday).
• 30 Days Of Night (graphic novel) - A story about a group of vampires who travel to Barrow, Alaska, where the sun sets and doesn't rise for thirty days and wreak havoc on the town. The story is interesting, but the artwork makes it worth checking out; it's very dark and nightmarish (think "Silent Hill"). This series was made into a somewhat lackluster film last year, but whether you've seen it or not you should definitely check out the graphic novel.
• Here's a few more quick recommendations: Salem's Lot (novel) by Stephen King, Vampyr (film), Vampire Hunter D and Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (anime), Nosferatu (film) and Shadow Of The Vampire (film), and, of course, the original Bram Stoker's Dracula (novel and a vast number of films of varying quality).

"A Week of Twilight": Meet the Cullens

With all this week being devoted to "Twilight," I suddenly realized that many of you probably are not familiar with the series and its characters. So, since I've already discussed the principle characters Bella Swan, Edward Cullen and Jacob Black, it only makes sense to introduce you to some of the other major characters...namely, Edward's extended family of fellow vampires. Introducing the Cullens...

(note: to make things easier on myself, I used the descriptions listed on the Twilight Wikipedia page, and despite the often questionable reliability of Wikipedia I can assure you that these descriptions are all accurate enough...although you might want to hold off reading these if you want to read the novels, as they contain some spoilers)

The seven of them all live together under the guise as being an adoptive family with some biological connections; in reality, they are related only by their conditions.

• Dr. Carlisle Cullen: The adoptive father of the Cullen children and husband of Esme Cullen. Born in London as the son of a Anglican pastor, he is around 360 years old and works as a doctor in Forks. After becoming a vampire, he spent hundreds of years resisting the smell of blood so that he could become a doctor. He changed Edward, Esme, Rosalie, and Emmett into vampires to save their lives.
• Esme Cullen: Carlisle's wife, who was found by Carlisle and changed into a vampire after a failed suicide attempt following the death of her baby. She is the mother figure of the Cullen family, and has a strong ability to love passionately.
• Alice Cullen (real name: Mary Alice Brandon Cullen): One of Edward's adoptive sisters. She is described as "pixie-like", and her movement is noted to be very graceful. Her special ability is seeing the future as soon as someone makes the decision to head down that particular path. This ability is very useful, as it gives the family forewarning to any dangers. However, she cannot see the future if werewolves become involved (they are immune to her power for unknown reasons). She is married to Jasper Hale, who is her soul-mate, and she loves Bella as if she were her own sister.
• Jasper Hale: One of Edward's adoptive brothers, and Alice's husband and soul-mate. He can sense and influence the emotions of people around him. He has the most trouble with the Cullens' "vegetarian" lifestyle, since he and Alice are the newest members of the family, and before joining them he spent almost a century living off human blood. He became a vampire sometime during the American Civil War. He was initially involved in vampire wars, creating new vampires and forming them into armies, until he met Alice and became a part of the Cullen family.
• Rosalie Lillian Hale: Edward's adoptive sister, who is self-absorbed and described as being the most beautiful person in the world. At first, she appears to play an antagonistic role in the story. She became a vampire when Carlisle saved her life after several men, including her fiancé, beat and raped her, leaving her to die. She is the wife and soul-mate of Emmett Cullen. Rosalie dislikes Bella because of Bella's willingness to give up her humanity for an eternal life as a vampire.
• Emmett Cullen: Edward's adoptive brother, and Rosalie's husband and soul-mate. As a human, Emmett went hiking and ran into a large grizzly bear. Provoked, the grizzly attacked and nearly killed him before Rosalie, who was hunting, interceded. She saved him and then carried him 100 miles to Carlisle, in hopes of saving his life by turning him into a vampire. He is extremely muscular, with dark curly hair and dimples.

"A Week of Twilight": Werewolves vs. Vampires!

For today's "Twilight" article I decided to explore the seemingly eternal battle between werewolves and vampires. One of the major plotlines in the series is the conflict between the werewolf and vampire species. According the books, werewolves are the natural enemies of the vampires, and come into being wherever vampires naturally occur as nature's means to balance things out. The idea of vampires and werewolves battling it out is nothing new; the "Underworld" films also tell this type of story (although in a less-brains/more action-oriented way). But where did this idea come from? Has it been around as long as the myths of these creatures have?
Apparently not. The earliest recorded stories actually link vampires and werewolves together; in fact, one of the most common beliefs instructed that werewolves who died would, if their bodies were not properly disposed of, be resurrected as vampires. Other cultures believed that some vampires chose to become werewolves, and some even consider the two beasts to be one and the same.
Believe it or not, the earliest record I could find of vampires and werewolves being enemies is taken from a popular pen-and-paper role playing game series called "Werewolf: The Apocalypse." "Werewolf..." was released by publisher White Wolf, which was born in 1991 (White Wolf also created the popular RPG "Vampire: The Masquerade"). After this came the "Underworld" movie series, which many "WTA" fans argue stole the idea. And then came "Twilight." So there you have it.
Honestly, can't we all just get along?

July 29, 2008 - DVD and CD new releases

Good morning. There's almost nothing to speak of for CD releases today, but there are some DVDs worth checking out.



DVD

• Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay - The sequel to "Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle." While boarding a flight to Amsterdam, stoners Harold and Kumar are mistaken for terrorists and are sent to the titular prison. Soon enough they escape and wacky hijinks ensue. This isn't as good as the first film, but still worth a look if you like this kind of comedy.
• Doomsday - When an epidemic destroys Scotland, the remaining survivors are walled off and develop their own anarchic society. This horror/action/dark comedy was directed by Neil Marshall, who also made the extremely creepy horror film "The Descent," and that makes this film a must-see for me.
• Shine A Light - Martin Scorsese's documentary/concert film about the Rolling Stones. If you still dig the Stones this is a film you'll want to see for sure.
• more: Stargate: Continuum, Surfwise, WarGames (25th Anniversary Edition), Dark City (Director's Cut), Witchblade: The Complete Series, Two Fat Ladies: The Complete Series, Freakazoid: Season 1, Avatar The Last Airbender Book 3: Fire Volume 4.

CD

• Lucy Woodward: "Is...Hot and Bothered (Barnes & Noble exclusive)" - The long-awaited second album by Woodward (who had a hit a number of years ago with "Dumb Girls") is a mix of rock-pop, jazz, and R&B. If you like pop music with a bite and some intelligence, this CD is worth checking out. The physical copy is only available at Barnes & Noble, but you can also buy it on iTunes.
• more: Sugarland: "Love On The Inside (standard edition)", Third Day: "Revelation."

"A Week of Twilight": Twilighters go crazy at Comic-Con

Hey again everybody. As you probably know by now, I'm writing everything Twilight-related this week. Although I have recently become a fan of the vampire series, for a while I have been doubting just how popular this series really was. Sure, I'd heard the comparisons to the Harry Potter juggernaut, but that could all just be hype. And I really doubted just how hyped people were for the upcoming film. But after hearing about the reaction the film's panel recieved at Comic-Con last Thursday I cannot deny it anymore: Twilight really is shaping up to become a cult phenomenon of Potter proportions.
Simply put, the panel was packed with thousands of fans who treated the cast, director Catherine Hardwicke and author Stephenie Meyer as if they were the Second Coming. There was screaming, crying, and when Robert Pattinson, the relatively unknown actor chosen to play vampire heartthrob Edward took the stage, something akin to rioting. According to interviews the mostly unknowns were surprised and kind of freaked out by it. Indeed, many members of media outlets covering the event claimed the had never seen a reaction like that at any previous Comic-Con.
I guess I'm going to have to re-evaluate my predictions for the film's success now.

"A Week of Twilight": What is Twilight?

Hello everyone; welcome to "A Week of Twilight," my first special edition of this blog. I figured I'd start things off with a quick explanation of what Twilight actually is.

Twilight is a series of young adult books told from the perspective of Isabella ("Bella") Swan, a 17-year-old girl who moves from Phoenix, AZ to the small town of Forks, WA. She comes to know the Cullen family, particulary Edward Cullen, the oldest son who Bella falls in love with. Eventually she discovers that they are actually a coven of vampires who have given up on human blood and are living in secret. The series' primary plot involves the ongoing relationship between Bella and Edward, and whether Edward will eventually agree to change Bella into another vampire (she wants it, he doesn't). She also has to contend with her feelings for her best friend Jacob Black, who undergoes a major change as the storyline develops. Other plot lines involve Bella being hunted by other less-friendly vampires, Edward running afoul of an ancient vampire sect known as the Volturi, and the strained peace between the Cullens and a local pack of werewolves, the natural enemies of vampires.

Three books in the series have been published so far: "Twilight," "New Moon" and "Eclipse." The fourth and final novel, "Breaking Dawn," will be released on Saturday, August 2. In addition, another novel called "Midnight Sun," which tells the events of "Twilight" from Edward Cullen's point of view, will be released in the future.

Okay, that's all I have time to write about now, but I'll post again later today describing Twilight's reception at Comic-Con this past week (hint: there was a lot of screaming).

Be thee warned; A Week of Twilight Approaches...

Yeah, I know that headline is really dumb, but so be it. Before I head off for Ludington this weekend I wanted to let everybody know that, in honor of the release of "Breaking Dawn" (the fourth and final novel in Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight Saga") next Saturday, I will be devoting the week leading up to it to news related to the popular vampire series. Tuesday's CD and DVD releases and Friday's New Movies list will still be posted, but I'll also post an extra Twilight-related article on these days as well. This'll all lead up to Friday when I will post my own personal recaps and reviews of "Twilight," "New Moon" and "Eclipse," the first three books in the series. Enjoy the weekend, and get ready for a very pale week...

-Matty G