This Audience Has Teeth: Discourse and Disagreement on “Twilight”
November 20, 2022
From the moment teenager Bella Swan asked her immortal, vampire boyfriend, Edward Cullen, “How long have you been 17?” (47:59-48:02), fans have been hooked. Whether or not one thinks Twilight (2008) is atrocious or genius, its profound impact on popular culture is undeniable. While hated by critics because of its industrial utility, perceived quality, and target audience, Twilight remains hugely popular among fans because of its memorable teen romance, campy aura, and female lead. Furthermore, the commercial and cultural success of the film demonstrates the primacy of the audience in determining the outcome of a media text.
Media critics have long viewed mass media as a source of propaganda and distraction and thus have often harshly critiqued works which have otherwise gained popularity and positive feedback from the public at large. A major line of thinking regarding this cynical form of media analysis stems from Theodore Adorno and the Frankfurt School. These media scholars maintain that mass media reinforces dominant ideology by promoting consumerism and diversion at the expense of enlightenment and communication among the working class (Jackson, Lecture 13).
Criticisms of Twilight echo many of Adorno’s fears about mass media industrialization. The first line of scrutiny of this film concerns its construction, not as a piece of art, but rather as a method to make money off of its audience of teenage girls. This includes playing up the conventions of the genre, including young love and overprotective parents, as well as casting actors who already have played favorably with this market. Justin Chang, film critic for Variety writes, “Built-in femme fanbase will lend this Summit Entertainment release some serious B.O. bite, with Robert Pattinson’s turn as an undead heartthrob keeping repeat biz at a steady pump” (1). This reflects Adorno’s postulation of a “standardization” of mass media in which the production of media texts resembles the mass production of any other commodity under capitalism (Adorno, 201).
Additionally, critics present the film as simply yet another poor quality romance movie, given the appearance of difference by the addition of mythological creatures. Chang writes, “The result is a supernatural romance in which the supernatural and romantic elements feel rushed” (1). Adorno calls this “pseudo-individualization”; it is a work that gives audiences the illusion of consuming something different, yet remains something easy and simple for them to digest (203). Furthermore, critics write that the film itself is subpar in its aesthetic value, acting, and plot. One theme emerges among reviewers: the campy or exaggerated nature of the film. Commenting on what he calls Twilight’s “camp factor,” Kirk Honeycutt at The Hollywood Reporter writes, “Operas have arias; Twilight has stares” (1). In her review for The New York Times, film critic Manohla Dargis also points out what she describes as, “the shy glances and furious glares of two unlikely teenage lovers…” (1). These details are presented as evidence of the film's poor quality, its overdependence on childish emotions and its penchant for the melodramatic. Who would enjoy such a film? Critics are quick to point to one group in particular: teen girls.
One major judgment of the film falls outside the realm of production, and instead upon its perceived intended audience of teen and tween girls.While critics could have chosen to go after how some of the film’s misleading representations of femininity and relationships may impact its target audience, they instead attacked the audience itself. Manohla Dargis makes some interesting points regarding the film’s messaging regarding abstinence, yet undermines her own assertion by calling into question the analytical capability of it’s viewers, describing Edward, the love interest as, “catnip to anyone with OJD (obsessive Jonas Brothers disorder), but it also means he’s a bore” (1). Kirk Honeycutt goes one step further, writing, “Every teenage girl… wants to see this movie. But do any guys? To a male, a vampire movie means blood ‘n’ guts and horror in the night. What’s all this mushy stuff?” (1). This assertion that the “mushy stuff” that teenage girls might enjoy is less legitimate than what men might enjoy fits into media scholar John Fiske’s idea of gendered taste hierarchies. To Fiske, social relations are structured in a manner which grants power to certain groups over others (Jackson, Lecture 7). He writes, “In a patriarchy, women are lower in the hierarchy than men, so the cultural forms that appeal to them are judged to be aesthetically inferior to those that appeal to men” (330). Yet, despite this depiction of Twilight as an inferior work because of its perceived female audience, teenage girls, and in fact a variety of audiences have continued to watch and enjoy this film. There are important implications to young female viewers overcoming their embarrassment, and accepting their enjoyment of this film. Fiske writes that embarrassment happens when someone enjoys something that is deemed “illegitimate” according to the taste hierarchy, disrupting social norms (Jackson, Lecture 7). Consequently, “Recognizing and overcoming embarrassment, then, is one way in which women can change the meanings of femininity as they operate in their own relationships” (Fiske, 330). For teenage girls, a group that has little power, overcoming embarrassment can become a powerful tool. Additionally, there are many other viewers who have enjoyed this series beyond just teenage girls, disrupting the idea that only a certain group can enjoy this type of media. The simple act of enjoying a film perceived as lesser is powerful and disruptive.
So, what made viewers enjoy this film? What explains the discrepancy between critic and audience reaction? Principally, the love story resonated much more with younger viewers than it did for older critics. The dramatic glances and the all-consuming emotions make sense to someone experiencing the extreme highs and lows of adolescence. Twilight as a narrative about young love is much more meaningful for its younger viewers. Furthermore, it would be a mistake to assume that audiences take the romance at face value. In fact, young audiences are much more discerning than critics give them credit for. Namely, audiences recognize the campy nature of the film, and yet, unlike the critics, they like the film more because of it. To them, features like the bizarre blue tint, the dutch angles, and outlandish scenes (baseball, anyone?) made the film iconic and memorable. Film critic Scott Mendelson describes how the goofiness of the film has come to be seen as “self-mocking” and is “a pleasure” (1). While these such elements are enjoyed by many fans, one facet of Twilight that continues to be debated: its protagonist.
Despite critic’s descriptions of Twilight’s representation of Bella as a female protagonist with little agency, many audience members found Bella empowering. While Bella isn’t exactly the powerful heroine audiences today might want to see, she was one of the only female leads in a blockbuster to date. Therefore, young women would have no choice but to construct their vision of a heroine out of Bella. Furthermore, perhaps a lead doesn’t need to be liked for them to be important. Mendelson writes, “Even if you hated Bella, she wasn’t supposed to represent an entire gender”. Despite critic debate about Bella’s character and influence, it is clear that audiences weren't necessarily looking for a young woman lead who was a good role model, they were just looking for a young woman lead.
I argue that the success of Twilight not only demonstrates the power of audiences over critics in determining the outcome of films, but also proves that female-led films can achieve mainstream commercial and cultural success. While the film had a budget of only 50 million dollars for production (as compared to Spider-Man 3 (2008) which had a budget of 250 million), Forbes reported that it made over 700 million dollars worldwide, making it the third grossing film of 2008 (Mendelson, 3). Despite overwhelmingly negative reviews from professional critics, this film made it clear that audiences were hungry for films with female protagonists, and willing to spend money to see them in theaters.
It is even harder to wrap one’s head around the unmeasurable cultural achievement of Twilight. Over a decade after its initial release, it remains one of the most memeified and referenced pieces of media in popular culture. Aesthetically, the film seems to be having a comeback, with the aughts returning in the form of grungy tee-shirt-over-long-sleeves, low-rise jeans, and of course Converse sneakers. Quotes from the film, originally heard over 14 years ago, continue to be repeated over and over. Naturally, the film itself continues to be watched and rewatched, with fans freaking out when Twilight was removed from streaming platform Netflix in January 2022. I would argue that most importantly, Twilight set the scene for the ascendance of female-led young adult franchises, which would become the prominent cultural texts of the 2010s. Blockbuster hits like The Hunger Games (2012) and Divergent (2014), though differing in quality and content, were hugely successful. While these films may have little in common with Twilight besides the female lead, together, they demonstrate the rise of audiences, especially young ones, as rulers of culture.
The discourse surrounding Twilight demonstrates the discrepancy between professional critics and young audiences in reception of a media text. The success of the film exemplifies how audiences are becoming more powerful in terms of control of cultural discourse.
Works Cited
Adorno, Theodore W. “On Popular Music” Cultural Theory and Popular Culture, edited by John Storey, The University of Georgia Press, 1998, pp. 197-209.
Chang, Justin. “Twilight.” Variety, 19 Nov. 2008, https://variety.com/2008/film/markets-festivals/twilight-2-1200472117/. Accessed 20 November 2022.
Dargis, Manohla. “The Love That Dare Not Bare Its Fangs.” The New York Times, 20 Nov. 2008, https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/21/movies/21twil.html. Accessed 20 November 2022
Fiske, John. “On Popular Music” Critical Terms For Literary Study (2nd Ed), edited by Frank Lentricchia and Thomas McLaughlin, The University of Chicago Press, 1995, pp. 321-335.
Hardwicke, Catherine. Twilight. Summit Distribution, 2008.
Honeycutt, Kirk. “Twilight: Film Review.” The Hollywood Reporter. 20 Nov. 2008, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/film-review-twilight-125111/. Accessed 20 November 2022.
Mendelson, Scott. “Twilight Taught Hollywood Lessons That It Has Only Started To Learn.” Forbes, 21 Nov. 2018, https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2018/11/21/how-twilight-with-kristen-stewart-and-robert-pattinson-turned-a-fairy-tale-romance-into-a-blockbuster-franchise/?sh=44ed78ab6fb8. Accessed 20 November 2022.
