If you have been anywhere around tween girls in the last few days, you've probably heard the news... Twilight's sequal, New Moon, is coming to theatres this Friday.
This is probably THE most anticipated film of the year by teenagers. The buzz for this film is huge. Even if kids aren't Twilight fans, they are going to be hearing nothing but Twilight for a few weeks. Some kids will just go to see it to see what all the buzz is about.
The question many of you might have is- what message will this film be communicating to our kids?
David and I just wrote a Youth Culture Window article answering that very question, an article that specifically addresses some of the self-destructive messages the film conveys. Here's just a snippet of that article:
Twilight Goes ‘Emo’
Bella’s Self-destructive Dependence on Edward
There’s a New Moon rising this Friday night in theaters… and your kids won’t miss it. The question is what will this new film in the Twilight Saga communicate to our kids?
The first film was labeled “harmless” by many, despite its numerous subtle messages. (Hey girls, wouldn’t it be romantic if your boyfriend snuck into your room in the middle of the night and made-out with you on your bed?) Harmless?
However, in the second film, Bella seems to take an emotionally-charged turn that’s self-destructive in nature. Whew! It’s a good thing we don’t live in a world where millions of young girls have low self-esteem and engage in self-destructive behaviors because of it.
(Awkward pause)
So… what will this New Moon look like?
The New Moon is FULL
The Quileute Tribe. The Volturi. Shape-shifters. Many adults may not yet know what these fictional agents have in common, but without a doubt, they’ll combine for the biggest event in youth culture this week.
For months, millions of teenagers have been counting down the days to this coming Friday night, November 20th, when New Moon, the second film in the Twilight Saga, is released in theaters around the world.
Youth media and marketing have capitalized on the “pop culture phenomenon” and have taken every opportunity to promote the new film in as many different venues as possible. Tons of websites have been created around the plot and cast (like TheTwilightSaga, TwilightersAnonymous and NewMoonMovie). MTV has highlighted exclusive previews of the upcoming film at both of their awards shows earlier this year and bloggers have been following the cast and speculating about the movie for weeks. When New Moon's soundtrack was recently released, it easily climbed to #1 on the album charts. Further, The Twilight Saga has even caused other TV networks to offer their own version of vampire stories given the success of this franchise. And of course, vampire merchandise has generated incredibly high sales in several retail stores...
CLICK HERE FOR THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
The article goes on to talk in greater detail about Bella's emotional self-destructive behaviors.
Let me be clear. I don't think this film is bad- it's probably going to be fairly clean. I just think that parents should 'co-view" this one with their kids so they can talk about what they saw.
After all, Twilight fans are a different breed... they're like little "emo-trekies!" If you want an idea of the mentality of the typical Twilight fan, just read some of the comments by teenagers in this blog article I wrote earlier this year (scroll down a little bit and read the responses from kids). YIKES! Scary stuff.