The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part I opens on November 18th.

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, part I opens on November 18, 2011. Part II on November 16, 2012.

Tom Hardy (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises) was originally up for the role of The Huntsman (here), but his work on the next Batman film could keep him busy. Michael Fassbender (X-men: First Class, Inglorious Basterds) is now reportedly up for the role.

With the role of the villain now pretty much taken care of, Universal is looking for their actress to portray Snow White. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Dakota Fanning (War of the Worlds, The Runaways), Kristen Stewart (Twilight series), and Saoirse Ronan (The City of Ember, The Lovely Bones) were being considered by the studio. However, Universal is now wanting to go with an unknown for the role. The studio is now looking at Riley Keough (The Runaways, Jack & Diane), Felicity Jones (The Tempest, Soulboy), Bella Heathcoat (Neighbors), Alicia Vikander (Beloved). Sources close to production mention that Universal could change their mind about casting an unknown, and could go for big name such as Stewart or Fanning.

Universal will be holding screen-tests within the next few days to determine which actress gets the part. As of right now, production is looking to begin next year for a release in December of 2012.

The Film

The tagline for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse is, “It all begins … with a choice.” And, in essence, that’s true. But I think it’s more about Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) coming to terms with the choices she’s already made. At the end of The Twilight Saga: New Moon, Bella asks best friend (and werewolf) Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) not to make her choose between him and her vampire boyfriend Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) because “it’s always been him (Edward).” In the last scene, Edward makes a proposal of his own, and that’s where Eclipse picks up. Part of Bella’s choice is answering that proposal. She and Edward eventually come to a compromise. Bella and Jacob come to a compromise of their own, as well. He declares his love for her and forces her into admitting her own feelings for him. But, as she tells him, she knows it won’t change anything.

A more pressing concern for all three – and their respective families – is the army of newborn vampires who are coming after Bella. Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard) created and organized the army with the help of Riley (Xavier Samuel) and is using them for revenge against Edward for killing her mate, James. They’re causing chaos in Seattle, and the Cullens and the werewolves band together to protect Bella and stop the newborns.

As a fan of this series, I appreciate the way director David Slade translated this book to film. He kept all of the important aspects of the novel while mixing it up enough to keep those who’ve read it several times guessing. But what I like most about Slade’s version is that he made it his own, giving it his own look and feel, but also made it a perfect combination of the first two movies. There are several nods to the previous films fans will pick up on, from the large cross and display of graduation caps in the Cullen house from the first movie to the look of the Volturi and the menacing, screeching sound of Jane’s (Dakota Fanning) power from the second one. Even the coloring references the first two movies. Scenes with the Cullens are bathed in the blue tones of Twilight, and scenes with Jacob and the wolves have the same rich, warm, earthy neutral browns and greens of The Twilight Saga: New Moon. The cinematography is excellent.

The DVD

Audio/Video: The audio and video are comparable to the theatrical release. The colors and visuals are crisp and clear, as is the sound.

Commentaries: There are two commentary tracks on the two-disc DVD version and the DVD/Blu-ray combo – one with Pattinson and Stewart and one with Meyer and producer Wyck Godrey. If you’re a fan of Stewart or Pattinson, their commentary is a must-watch. It is a hilarious insight into the two actors and their take on the movie. The track with Meyer and Godfrey provides an interesting look into not only how the movie was made from Godfrey, but also how Meyer perceives her characters.

Special Features: The special features include the commentaries as well as deleted and extended scenes, a six-part “making of” documentary, a photo gallery and music videos from Metric and Muse. The deleted and extended scenes are fantastic. There are a couple of them taken out of the movie that fans of the book will appreciate. The documentary is also worth watching. It fuses together behind-the-scenes footage from all three movies into an interesting look at some of the characters and goes through the pre- and post-production of Eclipse.

But my favorite of the special features are the “jump to …” options, otherwise known as the Edward Fast Forward and Jacob Fast Forward. Basically, these allow you to watch the entire movie – but only the scenes Pattinson or Lautner, respectively, are in. That way, Team Edward doesn’t have to put up with Jacob scenes … or vice versa, depending on your loyalties. (That leaves Team Switzerland to watch the whole thing!)

The DVD release of The Twilight Saga: New Moon had fans in a bit of a frenzy because different retailers offered different special features. With the Eclipse DVD, there are fewer options – the single-disc DVD, the single-disc Blu-ray, the two-disc special edition DVD and the Blue-ray/DVD combo. Some retailers are offering special packaging, but the special features will be the same on all the editions that offer them.

Conclusion: For me, this is the best of the Twilight series. Give it a try. You might be surprised by what you find.

The Flick: Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

The DVD: Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Those days are a thing of the past, and I can tell you exactly when the winds of change started. It was with one movie. A box-office smash from a famous director known for making horror films, starring a cast of attractive twenty-somethings. The flick is Scream, a reinvention of the slasher wheel that was marketed toward the fangirls as much as it was for the fanboys. Gone were the days when a genre-type film was advertised with daring artwork. Now it was about the poster having more of a Vanity Fair look, a more glamorous touch to them. There is no arguing that this strategy worked in spades, as Hollywood struck oil with a old selling point for a new generation. Today’s advertising is about grappling your attention with a hot young actor who is going to be starring in the film.

Money talks, as the Kevin Williamson penned project made well over one hundred million dollars in domestic ticket sales. The floodgates opened and every young star wanted to be in the next big thing. Jennifer Love Hewitt in I Know What You Did Last Summer, Josh Hartnett in The Faculty, and Katie Holmes in Disturbing Behavior are prime examples.

Incredible things can happen when you find that magic in a bottle that is a great story with an attractive cast. The new millennium has found this potent formula again in the film versions of Stephanie Meyer’s best selling novels that have touched the pop culture zeitgeist like nothing I have seen before. Was this what it was like when The Beatles invaded America in the 1960′s?

Summit Entertainment and Creation Entertainment came to Los Angeles, California for three days of all things Twilight. I’ve have been to many of these kinds of events, and aside from Comic-Con, I have never seen such a huge auditorium full of hardcore fans. The room was wide open and from left to right; it looked like the setting for a small concert. It was appropriate because the stars of this series are like rock gods to these girls.

I will be the first to admit that I am not the demographic for the Twilight films, but I can really appreciate the magnitude of what the franchise has accomplished, especially in the economic times that we live in.

Keep your eyes peeled for our coverage of the Los Angeles Premiere of Eclipse and interviews with its stars in the coming weeks.

Click on the pictures for a larger image.

As Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious murders as Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard) continues her quest for revenge against Bella (Kristen Stewart). Meanwhile, Bella is forced to choose between the vampire Edward (Robert Pattinson) and the werewolf Jacob (Taylor Lautner). A decision that could ignite a war between vampires and werewolves.

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse will open in theaters and IMAX on June 30, 2010.

Bella (Stewart) once again finds herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward (Pattinson) and her friendship with Jacob (Lautner) — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella is confronted with the most important decision of her life.

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse flies into theaters and IMAX on June 30th.:

New clip from The Twilight Saga: Eclipse

Bella (Stewart) once again finds herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward (Pattinson) and her friendship with Jacob (Lautner) — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella is confronted with the most important decision of her life.

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, directed by David Slade, stars the talents of Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Dakota Fanning and Bryce Dallas Howard. The third film, based off the series of books by Stephanie Meyer, is set for release on June 30th

The David Slade directed picture also includes the talents of Taylor Lautner, Dakota Fanning and Bryce Dallas Howard. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse comes out in theaters and IMAX (possibly in 3-D) on June 30th from Summit Entertainment. Stop reading and start staring at the pictures below.:

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse stars the talents of Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Dakota Fanning and Bryce Dallas Howard. The Summit Entertainment picture comes out in theaters everywhere on June 30th.

Bella (Stewart) once again finds herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward (Pattinson) and her friendship with Jacob (Lautner) — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella is confronted with the most important decision of her life.

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse is directed by David Slade and stars the talents of Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Bryce Dallas Howard and Dakota Fanning.

Bella (Stewart) once again finds herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward (Pattinson) and her friendship with Jacob (Lautner) — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella is confronted with the most important decision of her life.

New Trailer for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse

In THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE, Bella once again finds herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge.  In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between Edward and Jacob — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the struggle between vampire and werewolf.  With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella is confronted with the most important decision of her life.

Bella (Kristen Stewart) once again finds herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge.  In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between Edward (Robert Pattinson) and Jacob (Taylor Lautner) — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the struggle between vampire and werewolf.  With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella is confronted with the most important decision of her life.

The feature, which also stars the talents of Dakota Fanning, Bryce Dallas Howard and many others, comes out in theaters and in IMAX on June 30th. Check out the first teaser trailer below (and we promise you it’s more than ten seconds long).:

Bella (Stewart) and Edward (Pattinson) have been reunited, but their forbidden relationship is threatened to be torn apart again with an evil vampire still seeking her revenge. And Bella is forced to choose between her true love for Edward or her friendship with Jacob Black (Lautner) as the struggles between vampires and werewolves continues. But there is still another choice for Bella to make, mortality or immortality?

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse comes out in theaters and IMAX on June 30th. Do not forget, this Thursday the full trailer for this film will be released online before it’s attached to Remember Me, so come back here to watch the sucker.:

The Runaways comes out in theaters on April 9th. Look at all of the new stuff below.: