Update: I now have PROOF that I was there. I'm the geek in the tie-dye and dark glasses, clapping like a fool. Well, we were very surprised. Check out this video. Fun stuff.
Just got back (I may have broken a few traffic laws in my haste to blog) from the Eclipse advanced screening at Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Hollywood and Highland. It was AMAZING!
In case you missed the previous post, my 5 adjectives (as they came to me on the lunatic drive home):
1) Charming
2) Spontaneous
3) Exquisite
4) Intimate
5) Masterful
Now I will explain them, in case you find them a bit fuzzy.
Charming: Such sweet romance, with just the right dash of humor so that the Kristen/Robert and Kristen/Taylor scenes feel like a conversation you'd have with your own significant other (except for the vampire/werewolf/human stuff). Aww! and *sigh* were heard throughout the theatre at several points.
Spontaneous: This could refer both to action and humor. Wow. David Slade, you are my hero! It was just....I mean...I'm rendered speech-awkward.
Exquisite: Okay, this was the best word I could think to describe the intensity of emotion. The tent scene, and the scene right after it (no spoilers here) played out on the screen exactly as I imagined them in the book. Kudos to the top three actors (Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, and--as I accidentally called him tonight--Edward Pattinson). You guys seriously pulled off a knock-out performance. I've never been one of those people calling you bad actors to begin with (silly gooses, they are), but now I can honestly say you are three of the most talented actors I've seen on screen. Those scenes were chock full of emotion per the books, and yet you pulled them off truthfully and faithfully. If the point of acting is to connect with your audience, then well done. Well done.
Intimate: I almost put "familiar" here, but that didn't quite sum up the connection I felt as a member of the audience to the big people on the screen. Taylor as Jacob's character, especially, pulled off a presence so credible, I felt like I was watching my own flesh and blood up there, like a brother or a dear friend. Aww, Jacob, I thought. That's such a
you thing to do. Inside jokes, yes. But more than that, there's an intimacy between fans and the characters that I suppose has only been building over the past several years. This film led it to its
epoch. All Breaking Dawn director, Bill Condon, has to do is keep from spoiling it (and I fully trust him with this, of course).
Masterful: Okay. Whoooh. No spoilers. No spoilers. No spoilers. Let me just say that there's a moment in the film that I thought would be painful to watch, and instead it was so beautiful as to be rendered a masterpiece all by itself. If you watch this on the 30th and still don't know what I'm talking about, then come on back here and I'll set you straight. But I have a feeling you will know it when you see it. It's the moment when everyone around you gasps in awe, and you find yourself mouth-agape as well.
Now for the OTHER amazing part:
About twenty minutes into the show, the screen goes blank. We're all sitting there like, Umm, Hello! We're trying to watch an advanced screening of the year's best movie here! And some guy comes in and goes, "Sorry, we're just having technical difficulties." That's when I point to the giant camera being wheeled in and whisper to my neighbor, "Umm, I thought they said no cameras." It was RIGHT in front of me! Then the screen comes back on and it's Jimmy Kimmel's face...and he's talking to us. Like, as in, he sees us and we see him but he's actually across the street filming. It's not like I've never webcammed before, but this was just so unexpected.
So then the screen zooms out and we see that the three main stars of the film are there with Jimmy Kimmel, and the crowd goes wild! They're looking all cool and quiet like they always do in interviews (I got a big kick out of the on-screen reaction when the dude behind me yelled, "I love you, Taylor!" or something equally geeky), and then the theatre around me really bursts into craziness...
Into the front of OUR theatre walks Dakota Fanning, Peter Facinelli, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Xavier Samuel (that's Jane, Carlisle Cullen, Victoria, and Riley for those of you who know the books but not the actors).
I don't think I've ever been that close to a movie star. The lucky ducks on the front row got their shirts signed by Carlise--I mean Peter. But we behind the camera definitely got more camera time. So I don't know if you'll be able to see me on the clip. At first I was trying to hide my face, but then I realized that was stupid and futile anyway. So I'm the one in the ridiculous homemade yellow and blue tie-dye. If I'm there, you won't be able to miss me.
That was my whirlwind of an evening in Hollywood.
And I didn't die in traffic, either. Cloud 9, here I come. Goodnight.
*collapses in an exhausted blur of euphoria*
Update: Go HERE and HERE for info on the Jimmy Kimmel show.
