If you're a teenager and you're female, you must know that "Twilight" has opened.
Since it's based on a wildly popular series of novels by Stephenie Meyer, the vampire drama has a ready-made audience. Which is good, because in movie form, there really isn't a lot to distinguish it from other young vampire tales ... or even some television shows that have used a similar theme, and we've had several of those in recent years.
What "Twilight" does do is to tap into the zeitgeist of being an outsider, whether you have a taste for blood or not. That's probably a big reason the saga is resonating so strongly with young fans, since it puts a fantasy spin on universal issues, particularly those pertinent to people of that age.
Robert Pattinson, who's appeared in a couple of "Harry Potter" entries, plays a hunky Dracula who's quite popular with the young ladies at school -- if a bit distant, as also is the case with his siblings, adoptees as he is. His emotional stance changes when he becomes drawn to the new girl in town (Kristen Stewart, "Panic Room"), and vice versa.
Can he keep his natural urges in check, so that she is his girlfriend and not his next meal?
And can she maintain a blind eye to what could happen to her?
Director Catherine Hardwicke ("Thirteen") has mounted a handsome-looking film, but her main stars don't generate as much heat as they should; still, fans of the books might project that onto the actors. Other cast members include such TV reliables as Billy Burke ("24"), Peter Facinelli ("Damages," "Fastlane") and Elizabeth Reaser ("The Ex List," "Grey's Anatomy").
"Twilight" is OK, but given its roots, it should have more bite.
(Yes, that's my big vampire line.)
(Rated PG-13)
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