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THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON
Dramatic thriller romance about a young woman who pines when she is separated from her vampire beloved, until she befriends another young man, who happens to have a supernatural secret. Starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene, Rachelle Lefevre. Directed by Chris Weitz. Rated PG-13. Released on 11/20/09 by Summit Entertainment.

This page has everything about The Twilight Saga: New Moon's reviews:
Review ratings, review mixture, review coverage, review timing
Individual reviews are at the bottom of the page

The Twilight Saga: New Moon, Moderate Reviews
Updated: Thu, Dec 3 2009, 10:16pm
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The Twilight Saga: New Moon opened to moderate reviews. • Kenneth Turan wrote in the Los Angeles Times, "...lack of animating madness combined with the novel's demands give much of 'New Moon' a marking time quality." • Bill Goodykoontz wrote in the Arizona Republic, "...has more of a sense of humor and, thanks to a bigger budget and more assured direction by Chris Weitz (Catherine Hardwicke directed the first film), a little more energy." • Jordan Mintzer wrote in Daily Variety, "...as good as 'Twilight' and arguably a shade better, it's indisputably darker in its depiction of the throes and woes of adolescent love, especially when one gets dumped." • Leah Rozen wrote in People, "You'd have to be an already ardent 'Twilight' fan—girls and moms, you know who you are—to get moony over this teen twaddle." • Carrie Rickey wrote in the Philadelphia Inquirer, "...swoony adaptation of the second installment in Stephenie Meyer's young-adult series is a potent stew of fairy tale and romance-novel fantasy..." • Michael O'Sullivan wrote in the Washington Post, "Despite melodrama that, at times, is enough to induce diabetes, there's enough wolf whistle in this sexy, scary romp to please anyone." • Mick LaSalle wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle and Houston Chronicle, " 'New Moon' will please fans — but only fans." • And Michael Phillips and A.O. Scott on At the Movies both said, "See it."

The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Positive Reviews
(47 Reviews, click on headers for reviews)
 Compare This Film... 
TotalBroad
National
Press
Local
News-
papers
Alterna
tive/
Indie
High-
Brow
Press
Movie
Industry
NY/LA
Chicago
Toronto
Cities
4-11
Cities
12-25
Last
Wknd.
B.O.
Total
B.O.
52.5% 56.8% 51.0% 42.1% 41.6% 52.0% 45.4% 51.3% 60.3% $276.4K $294.3M
Averages: 53.3% 55.7% 54.2% 47.3% 49.8% 51.6% 52.4% 55.0% 55.4%
Review Mixture
Updated: Thu, Dec 3 2009, 10:16pm
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• The Twilight Saga: New Moon's reviews are separated by an average 17.0 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 17.9 percentage points. Less than 17.9 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 17.9 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.

The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Review Mixture: 17.0pp Average Difference Between Reviews
(Norm is 17.9pp; <17.9pp = More Consistent; >17.9pp = More Mixed)

(47 reviews, roll over dots for review)
Broad National   Alternative/Indie   Highbrow Press   Cities 4 - 11
NY, LA, Chicago, & Toronto Movie Industry   Cities 12 - 25
Excellent
Very Good
Good
Moderate
Fair
Poor
Excellent
Very Good
Good
Moderate
Fair
Poor
Big
Publications
>Bigger
Publications
>Biggest
Publications
Review Coverage
Updated: Thu, Dec 3 2009, 10:16pm
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• The Twilight Saga: New Moon's reviews covered 88.5% of potential readers (average is 65.6%).
• The film's reviews totaled 28,379 words in volume (average is 19,891 words).
• The film's reviews averaged 604 words in length (the norm is 483 words).

The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Coverage, Volume & Length
(47 Reviews, click on headers for reviews)
 Compare This Film... 
TotalBroad
National
Press
Local
News-
papers
Alterna
tive/
Indie
High-
Brow
Press
Movie
Industry
NY/LA
Chicago
Toronto
Cities
4-11
Cities
12-25
Last
Wknd.
B.O.
Total
B.O.
Coverage:
Volume:
Length:
88.5%
28,379
604
90.3%
3,743
535
98.6%
18,766
647
97.8%
2,619
437
64.5%
2,718
680
80.0%
2,997
749
100.0%
8,916
637
100.0%
5,677
710
94.5%
6,635
603
$276.4K $294.3M
Averages: 65.6%
19,891
483
57.8%
1,914
345
89.2%
13,626
517
71.6%
1,958
346
62.3%
2,095
596
89.2%
3,093
673
86.6%
5,960
497
89.5%
3,881
536
87.2%
5,001
482
Review Timing
Updated: Thu, Dec 3 2009, 10:16pm
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The Twilight Saga: New Moon's reviews on average broke 14.5 hours after release. Norm for this measure is 20.4 hours after. The chart below shows the days leading up to and following release; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is The Twilight Saga: New Moon's opening day of release. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.

The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Average Review Timing: 14.5 Hours After Release (Norm is 20.4H After)
(47 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
M O R E    P O S I T I V E    R E V I E W S
E
A
R
L
I
E
R
L
A
T
E
R
M O R E    N E G A T I V E    R E V I E W S
THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON
47 Reviews

Reviews are listed below in descending order of readership/audience size
Headlines are quoted where possible; otherwise the review text is quoted
Reviews that come with the critic's grade are marked '(cg)'; other reviews were graded by our analysts

BROAD NATIONAL PRESS (7 Reviews)
Leah Rozen, People: MODERATE (cg)
"You'd have to be an already ardent 'Twilight' fan--girls and moms, you know who you are--to get moony over this teen twaddle." (Read the full review...)
191 words, 11/19/09

Nancy Gibbs, Time: GOOD
"Taylor Lautner's Jacob is warm, tawny, genial and able to get Kristen Stewart's shrink-wrapped Bella to stretch out and relax a little onscreen. It's as though the sun can come back out once Edward leaves; there are genuinely funny moments in their scenes together, not to mention sexual tension." (Read the full review...)
836 words, 11/20/09

Louisa Thomas, Newsweek: FAIR
"This might not have been a bad thing. 'New Moon' could have been as brave a movie as the first, which had something simple and sharp at its core. If only director Chris Weitz had managed to tease out the real drama--Bella's fear of aging--instead of a tired one." (Read the full review...)
696 words, 11/20/09

Michael Phillips, A.O. Scott, At the Movies: GOOD (cg)
Michael Phillips: "See it." A.O. Scott: "See it." (Watch the full review...)
236 seconds, 11/21/09

Lisa Schwartzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: VERY GOOD (cg)
"...sequel to 2008's 'Twilight' is a durable, recognizably faithful movie adaptation of 'New Moon.' " (Read the full review...)
366 words, 11/20/09

David Germain, Associated Press: WEAK (cg)
"Mopey teenage Bella has all the luster of, well, a mopey teenager. The real rivalry between the werewolves and vampires is to see which species can behave with greater preposterousness and pretension.... 'New Moon' is boring, eternally so." (Read the full review...)
817 words, 11/19/09

Claudia Puig, USA Today: GOOD (cg)
"The werewolves have it all over the blood-suckers... When these oversize, hirsute creatures burst onto the screen, they inject life into a rather inert story.... 'New Moon,' the film version, does nothing to add depth to a shallow tale." (Read the full review...)
601 words, 11/20/09

{The Twilight Saga: New Moon has not been reviewed by Us Weekly.}

LOCAL NEWSPAPERS (29 Reviews)
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: GOOD (cg)
"...if you've come to this movie looking for fancy filmmaking or an original voice (other than Meyer's), well, [director Chris] Weitz frankly doesn't care. You're not his audience. He's got a franchise to keep running, and he does that with workmanlike precision and minimal intrusion. Which, most likely, is just how fans will want it." (Read the full review...)
392 words, 11/19/09

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: POOR (cg)
"...takes the tepid achievement of 'Twilight' (2008), guts it, and leaves it for undead. You know you're in trouble with a sequel when the word of mouth advises you to see the first movie twice instead.... this experience is like driving a pickup in low gear though a sullen sea of Brylcreem." (Read the full review...)
710 words, 11/19/09

Manohla Dargis, New York Times: WEAK
"...juiceless, near bloodless... Ms. Stewart's darkly brooding looks are convincing, but her lonely-girl blues soon grow wearisome... Alas, Bella, whose palpable hunger for Edward gave the first movie much of its energy and interest, has been tamped down for 'New Moon'..." (Read the full review...)
970 words, 11/20/09

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: MODERATE
"...marks the franchise's entrance into the self-protective, don't rock the boat phase of its existence, which is inevitable but a bit of a shame.... lack of animating madness combined with the novel's demands give much of 'New Moon' a marking time quality." (Read the full review...)
680 words, 11/19/09

Kyle Smith, New York Post: WEAK (cg)
"...supposed to be an exciting love story plus monster action. So where's the excitement? Where's the action? Bella (Kristen Stewart) and vampire boyfriend Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) stare longingly past each other... and swap excruciating love-chat... moves like the line at the post office." (Read the full review...)
499 words, 11/19/09

Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: GOOD (cg)
"Despite melodrama that, at times, is enough to induce diabetes, there's enough wolf whistle in this sexy, scary romp to please anyone." (Read the full review...)
683 words, 11/20/09

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: VERY GOOD (cg)
"...pretty good -- a tick better than the first 'Twilight,' which wasn't bad either. Why does 'New Moon' basically work? [Chris] Weitz lets the material breathe, and his actors interact. The film does not try to eat you alive. Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson are interesting to watch." (Read the full review...)
612 words, 11/19/09

Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: MODERATE (cg)
"...a franchise that is beginning to seem almost perversely obsessed with self-denial, delayed gratification and impulse control. This is a teen movie whose climax involves a desperate rush to keep clothes on, not tear them off." (Read the full review...)
375 words, 11/19/09

Mick LaSalle, Houston Chronicle: MODERATE (cg)
" 'New Moon' will please fans -- but only fans." (Read the full review...)
824 words, 11/20/09

David Germain, Atlanta Journal-Constitution/AP: POOR (cg)
"Bella mopes through pretentious 'New Moon.' " (Read the full review...)
817 words, 11/20/09

Joy Tipping, Dallas Morning News: FAIR (cg)
"...director Chris Weitz takes an incredibly awful book and turns it into an instant inductee into the Putrid Movie Hall of Fame. Rosenberg wrote the script this time, but she must have been merely taking dictation from Lord the first time around, since this screenplay bears little of the sass or humor that made the first one so much fun." (Read the full review...)
663 words, 11/20/09

Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: MODERATE (cg)
"It's too long, it's poorly acted, the story's clunky and the dialogue is laughable.... 'New Moon' at least has more of a sense of humor and, thanks to a bigger budget and more assured direction by Chris Weitz (Catherine Hardwicke directed the first film), a little more energy." (Read the full review...)
626 words, 11/19/09

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: MODERATE (cg)
"This is a pop culture phenomenon, some weird early 21st century aberration, our equivalent of the hula hoop or dancing the Charleston on a bi-plane's wing.... So expect this film to satisfy its fans. Everybody else, get ready for a bizarre soap opera/pageant..." (Read the full review...)
780 words, 11/20/09

Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD (cg)
"...swoony adaptation of the second installment in Stephenie Meyer's young-adult series is a potent stew of fairy tale and romance-novel fantasy set in the primeval woods of the American Northwest." (Read the full review...)
490 words, 11/20/09

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: MODERATE (cg)
"Sorry, girls: The thrill is gone.... an anemic comedown after the full-blooded swoon of last year's 'Twilight'.... a sequel that's a morning-after mope-fest." (Read the full review...)
756 words, 11/20/09

Liam Lacey, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE (cg)
"Scenes that adults can only snigger at their suggestiveness may still delight younger female fans, who can enjoy collectively screaming along to onscreen tease." (Read the full review...)
719 words, 11/19/09

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: VERY GOOD (cg)
"Fangst: 'New Moon' simmers as Bella stews. Kristen Stewart somehow makes moping attractive as the romance simmers in Part Two of 'Twilight.' " (Read the full review...)
629 words, 11/20/09

Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: MODERATE (cg)
"Bella + Edward + Jacob = a pale 'New Moon.' " (Read the full review...)
639 words, 11/20/09

Bill Goodykoontz, Detroit Free Press: MODERATE (cg)
"Latest 'Twilight' movie is better than first." (Read the full review...)
664 words, 11/20/09

Julie E. Washington, Cleveland Plain-Dealer: VERY GOOD (cg)
"In vampire tale 'New Moon,' some things never get old -- like hunky guys." (Read the full review...)
438 words, 11/20/09

Roger Moore, Orange County Register: GOOD (cg)
"More bloodlust, a little less lust. The 'Twilight' sequel takes a lighter tone with a toothy 'Romeo & Juliet' tale." (Read the full review...)
825 words, 11/20/09

Mike Russell, Portland Oregonian: GOOD (cg)
"...more solidly crafted and insults its audience quite a bit less than its predecessor, and it sets up several nice emotionally complicated cliffhangers for the next installment." (Read the full review...)
1,196 words, 11/20/09

Kevin Johnson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD (cg)
"...feels new, often in ways that are good for the series.... fresh without sacrificing what fans liked about the original movie, and the special effects are more convincing." (Read the full review...)
441 words, 11/20/09

Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: WEAK (cg)
"...you have to admit that 'New Moon' is an improvement over the first 'Twilight' flick, which is kind of like saying you prefer e.coli to swine flu." (Read the full review...)
590 words, 11/20/09

Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: GOOD (cg)
"...the sex and the threat of it is gone in this golden-hued virginity metaphor, a teen romance novel that mom might approve of. But it's a funny film, a movie in on the joke that the most luscious girl in a rural Forks, Washington, might be fought over by pale, aged vampires and buff, Native American werewolves." (Read the full review...)
766 words, 11/19/09

Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: MODERATE (cg)
"What came across as intriguing and underplayed in the first film feels silly and clichéd in 'New Moon'... also reminds you what a terrific job [Catherine] Hardwicke did directing the first 'Twilight,' skirting the considerable potential for unintentional humor and bringing the lovers' emotional angst to palpable, relatable life." (Read the full review...)
252 words, 11/20/09

Carla Meyer, Sacramento Bee: GOOD (cg)
"Were it not for the dumb parts, 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon' would be a really good movie. Infinitely more polished and better acted than its predecessor, this sequel still suffers from the goofiness that hampered 'Twilight.' " (Read the full review...)
360 words, 11/20/09

Kenneth Turan, Baltimore Sun: GOOD (cg)
" 'New Moon' has gone with the more polished [director] Chris Weitz.... Weitz makes the vampire trains of Melissa Rosenberg's capable script run on time, but he almost seems too rational a director for this kind of project." (Read the full review...)
698 words, 11/20/09

Josep Parera, La Opinion: POOR (cg)
"Vampiros de mentira. 'New Moon', la segunda entrega de 'Twilight', sólo es apta para fans de la serie... y de cuerpos esbeltos." (Read the full review...)
672 words, 11/20/09

{The Twilight Saga: New Moon has not been reviewed by Denver Post.}

ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (6 Reviews)
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: MODERATE (cg)
"...this is now the second film in Stephenie Meyer's four-book 'Twilight' saga that fails to ignite the flame of Meyer's overheated prose.... I can't comment on the acting because I didn't catch Pattinson, Stewart and Lautner doing any. They basically primp and pose through the same humdrum motions they did before." (Read the full review...)
220 words, 11/27/09

Ella Taylor, Ruxton Alternative Weeklies: WEAK
"...groove to [novelist Stephenie] Meyer's chaste, oddly bloodless, and nearly plotless saga of a troubled high school outsider who finds love and protection with a family of expensively attired bloodsuckers in red-gold contact lenses." (Read the full review...)
591 words, 11/26/09

Maddy Myers, Boston Phoenix: MODERATE (cg)
"Like you'll even be able to hear anything over all the shrieking." (Read the full review...)
182 words, 11/26/09

Ella Taylor, Village Voice: WEAK
"...professional filmmaking applied to sub-literary euphemistic trash, in this case couched in the jejune crush-fantasies of a Mormon mom stranded at home with three little boys." (Read the full review...)
591 words, 11/19/09

Ella Taylor, LA Weekly: WEAK
"Where Catherine Hardwicke's lively, irreverent take on the first book in the 'Twilight' series at least made room for a few suggestive winks, the sequel is stuck right in the abstinence mud with author Stephenie Meyer." (Read the full review...)
621 words, 11/26/09

Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: FAIR (cg)
"[Director Chris] Weitz seems to understand the material's potential for high camp. Michael Sheen, in a brief appearance as vampire royalty, totally gets it, but by that point it's too late to do anything but ride it out ... and brace ourselves for 'Eclipse,' coming next summer." (Read the full review...)
414 words, 11/19/09

{The Twilight Saga: New Moon has not been reviewed by Washington City Paper.}

HIGHBROW PRESS (4 Reviews)
Kenneth Turan, NPR Morning Edition: MODERATE
"In place of 'Twilight' director Catherine Hardwick, a filmmaker of flamboyant emotionality who seemed to feel these teenage characters in her bones, 'New Moon' has gone with the more polished Chris Weitz, who doesn't deliver as much passion." (Listen to the full review...)
171 seconds, 11/20/09

Manohla Dargis, New York Times: WEAK
"...juiceless, near bloodless... Ms. Stewart's darkly brooding looks are convincing, but her lonely-girl blues soon grow wearisome... Alas, Bella, whose palpable hunger for Edward gave the first movie much of its energy and interest, has been tamped down for 'New Moon'..." (Read the full review...)
970 words, 11/20/09

David Edelstein, NPR Fresh Air: WEAK
"...a small, rather turgid romantic horror film that under different circumstances would barely attract notice, yet the hysteria will turn all screenings for the next week into big events.... an overwrought view of the peril of surrendering to the flesh." (Listen to the full review...)
310 seconds, 11/20/09

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: MODERATE
"...marks the franchise's entrance into the self-protective, don't rock the boat phase of its existence, which is inevitable but a bit of a shame.... lack of animating madness combined with the novel's demands give much of 'New Moon' a marking time quality." (Read the full review...)
680 words, 11/19/09

{The Twilight Saga: New Moon has not been reviewed by NPR All Things Considered, Wall Street Journal, New Yorker.}

MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Jordan Mintzer, Daily Variety: GOOD
"While this second chapter of Summit Entertainment's four-part franchise is as good as 'Twilight' and arguably a shade better, it's indisputably darker in its depiction of the throes and woes of adolescent love, especially when one gets dumped." (Read the full review...)
909 words, 11/18/09

Michael Rechtshaffen, Hollywood Reporter: GOOD
"...for better or worse, exceptionally faithful to its 2008 beginnings.... should suit its ferocious adolescent female fan base just fine. The uninitiated meanwhile, might find that the film's deliberately unhurried 130-minute running time feels like a Cullen clan eternity." (Read the full review...)
438 words, 11/20/09

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: MODERATE
"...marks the franchise's entrance into the self-protective, don't rock the boat phase of its existence, which is inevitable but a bit of a shame.... lack of animating madness combined with the novel's demands give much of 'New Moon' a marking time quality." (Read the full review...)
680 words, 11/19/09

Manohla Dargis, New York Times: WEAK
"...juiceless, near bloodless... Ms. Stewart's darkly brooding looks are convincing, but her lonely-girl blues soon grow wearisome... Alas, Bella, whose palpable hunger for Edward gave the first movie much of its energy and interest, has been tamped down for 'New Moon'..." (Read the full review...)
970 words, 11/20/09

{The Twilight Saga: New Moon has not been reviewed by Wall Street Journal.}

NY/LA/CHICAGO/TORONTO (14 Reviews)
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: GOOD (cg)
"...if you've come to this movie looking for fancy filmmaking or an original voice (other than Meyer's), well, [director Chris] Weitz frankly doesn't care. You're not his audience. He's got a franchise to keep running, and he does that with workmanlike precision and minimal intrusion. Which, most likely, is just how fans will want it." (Read the full review...)
392 words, 11/19/09

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: POOR (cg)
"...takes the tepid achievement of 'Twilight' (2008), guts it, and leaves it for undead. You know you're in trouble with a sequel when the word of mouth advises you to see the first movie twice instead.... this experience is like driving a pickup in low gear though a sullen sea of Brylcreem." (Read the full review...)
710 words, 11/19/09

Manohla Dargis, New York Times: WEAK
"...juiceless, near bloodless... Ms. Stewart's darkly brooding looks are convincing, but her lonely-girl blues soon grow wearisome... Alas, Bella, whose palpable hunger for Edward gave the first movie much of its energy and interest, has been tamped down for 'New Moon'..." (Read the full review...)
970 words, 11/20/09

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: MODERATE
"...marks the franchise's entrance into the self-protective, don't rock the boat phase of its existence, which is inevitable but a bit of a shame.... lack of animating madness combined with the novel's demands give much of 'New Moon' a marking time quality." (Read the full review...)
680 words, 11/19/09

Kyle Smith, New York Post: WEAK (cg)
"...supposed to be an exciting love story plus monster action. So where's the excitement? Where's the action? Bella (Kristen Stewart) and vampire boyfriend Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) stare longingly past each other... and swap excruciating love-chat... moves like the line at the post office." (Read the full review...)
499 words, 11/19/09

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: VERY GOOD (cg)
"...pretty good -- a tick better than the first 'Twilight,' which wasn't bad either. Why does 'New Moon' basically work? [Chris] Weitz lets the material breathe, and his actors interact. The film does not try to eat you alive. Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson are interesting to watch." (Read the full review...)
612 words, 11/19/09

Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: MODERATE (cg)
"...a franchise that is beginning to seem almost perversely obsessed with self-denial, delayed gratification and impulse control. This is a teen movie whose climax involves a desperate rush to keep clothes on, not tear them off." (Read the full review...)
375 words, 11/19/09

David Edelstein, New York Magazine: MODERATE
"Kristen Stewart is, as always, lovely and believable... [Director Chris] Weitz's compositions have no spark, though, and his pacing is so flaccid that you're going to need the electricity of a live, first-weekend audience to stay charged up..." (Read the full review...)
836 words, 11/19/09

Liam Lacey, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE (cg)
"Scenes that adults can only snigger at their suggestiveness may still delight younger female fans, who can enjoy collectively screaming along to onscreen tease." (Read the full review...)
719 words, 11/19/09

Ella Taylor, Village Voice: WEAK
"...professional filmmaking applied to sub-literary euphemistic trash, in this case couched in the jejune crush-fantasies of a Mormon mom stranded at home with three little boys." (Read the full review...)
591 words, 11/19/09

Roger Moore, Orange County Register: GOOD (cg)
"More bloodlust, a little less lust. The 'Twilight' sequel takes a lighter tone with a toothy 'Romeo & Juliet' tale." (Read the full review...)
825 words, 11/20/09

Ella Taylor, LA Weekly: WEAK
"Where Catherine Hardwicke's lively, irreverent take on the first book in the 'Twilight' series at least made room for a few suggestive winks, the sequel is stuck right in the abstinence mud with author Stephenie Meyer." (Read the full review...)
621 words, 11/26/09

Josep Parera, La Opinion: POOR (cg)
"Vampiros de mentira. 'New Moon', la segunda entrega de 'Twilight', sólo es apta para fans de la serie... y de cuerpos esbeltos." (Read the full review...)
672 words, 11/20/09

Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: FAIR (cg)
"[Director Chris] Weitz seems to understand the material's potential for high camp. Michael Sheen, in a brief appearance as vampire royalty, totally gets it, but by that point it's too late to do anything but ride it out ... and brace ourselves for 'Eclipse,' coming next summer." (Read the full review...)
414 words, 11/19/09

{The Twilight Saga: New Moon has been reviewed by all NY/LA/Chicago/Toronto.}

CITIES 4 to 11 (8 Reviews)
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: GOOD (cg)
"Despite melodrama that, at times, is enough to induce diabetes, there's enough wolf whistle in this sexy, scary romp to please anyone." (Read the full review...)
683 words, 11/20/09

Mick LaSalle, Houston Chronicle: MODERATE (cg)
" 'New Moon' will please fans -- but only fans." (Read the full review...)
824 words, 11/20/09

David Germain, Atlanta Journal-Constitution/AP: POOR (cg)
"Bella mopes through pretentious 'New Moon.' " (Read the full review...)
817 words, 11/20/09

Joy Tipping, Dallas Morning News: FAIR (cg)
"...director Chris Weitz takes an incredibly awful book and turns it into an instant inductee into the Putrid Movie Hall of Fame. Rosenberg wrote the script this time, but she must have been merely taking dictation from Lord the first time around, since this screenplay bears little of the sass or humor that made the first one so much fun." (Read the full review...)
663 words, 11/20/09

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: MODERATE (cg)
"This is a pop culture phenomenon, some weird early 21st century aberration, our equivalent of the hula hoop or dancing the Charleston on a bi-plane's wing.... So expect this film to satisfy its fans. Everybody else, get ready for a bizarre soap opera/pageant..." (Read the full review...)
780 words, 11/20/09

Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD (cg)
"...swoony adaptation of the second installment in Stephenie Meyer's young-adult series is a potent stew of fairy tale and romance-novel fantasy set in the primeval woods of the American Northwest." (Read the full review...)
490 words, 11/20/09

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: MODERATE (cg)
"Sorry, girls: The thrill is gone.... an anemic comedown after the full-blooded swoon of last year's 'Twilight'.... a sequel that's a morning-after mope-fest." (Read the full review...)
756 words, 11/20/09

Bill Goodykoontz, Detroit Free Press: MODERATE (cg)
"Latest 'Twilight' movie is better than first." (Read the full review...)
664 words, 11/20/09

{The Twilight Saga: New Moon has been reviewed by all Cities 4-11.}

CITIES 12 to 25 (11 Reviews)
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: MODERATE (cg)
"It's too long, it's poorly acted, the story's clunky and the dialogue is laughable.... 'New Moon' at least has more of a sense of humor and, thanks to a bigger budget and more assured direction by Chris Weitz (Catherine Hardwicke directed the first film), a little more energy." (Read the full review...)
626 words, 11/19/09

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: VERY GOOD (cg)
"Fangst: 'New Moon' simmers as Bella stews. Kristen Stewart somehow makes moping attractive as the romance simmers in Part Two of 'Twilight.' " (Read the full review...)
629 words, 11/20/09

Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: MODERATE (cg)
"Bella + Edward + Jacob = a pale 'New Moon.' " (Read the full review...)
639 words, 11/20/09

Julie E. Washington, Cleveland Plain-Dealer: VERY GOOD (cg)
"In vampire tale 'New Moon,' some things never get old -- like hunky guys." (Read the full review...)
438 words, 11/20/09

Mike Russell, Portland Oregonian: GOOD (cg)
"...more solidly crafted and insults its audience quite a bit less than its predecessor, and it sets up several nice emotionally complicated cliffhangers for the next installment." (Read the full review...)
1,196 words, 11/20/09

Kevin Johnson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD (cg)
"...feels new, often in ways that are good for the series.... fresh without sacrificing what fans liked about the original movie, and the special effects are more convincing." (Read the full review...)
441 words, 11/20/09

Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: WEAK (cg)
"...you have to admit that 'New Moon' is an improvement over the first 'Twilight' flick, which is kind of like saying you prefer e.coli to swine flu." (Read the full review...)
590 words, 11/20/09

Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: GOOD (cg)
"...the sex and the threat of it is gone in this golden-hued virginity metaphor, a teen romance novel that mom might approve of. But it's a funny film, a movie in on the joke that the most luscious girl in a rural Forks, Washington, might be fought over by pale, aged vampires and buff, Native American werewolves." (Read the full review...)
766 words, 11/19/09

Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: MODERATE (cg)
"What came across as intriguing and underplayed in the first film feels silly and clichéd in 'New Moon'... also reminds you what a terrific job [Catherine] Hardwicke did directing the first 'Twilight,' skirting the considerable potential for unintentional humor and bringing the lovers' emotional angst to palpable, relatable life." (Read the full review...)
252 words, 11/20/09

Carla Meyer, Sacramento Bee: GOOD (cg)
"Were it not for the dumb parts, 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon' would be a really good movie. Infinitely more polished and better acted than its predecessor, this sequel still suffers from the goofiness that hampered 'Twilight.' " (Read the full review...)
360 words, 11/20/09

Kenneth Turan, Baltimore Sun: GOOD (cg)
" 'New Moon' has gone with the more polished [director] Chris Weitz.... Weitz makes the vampire trains of Melissa Rosenberg's capable script run on time, but he almost seems too rational a director for this kind of project." (Read the full review...)
698 words, 11/20/09

{The Twilight Saga: New Moon has not been reviewed by Denver Post.}

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An Education 91.5%
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Ongoing Limited
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The Damned United 82.7%
The Girl on the Train (La fille du RER) 65.8%
The Horse Boy 73.4%
The Hurt Locker 92.4%
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus 59.7%
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The Maid (La Nana) 84.5%
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