After finishing my Physical exam, SOAP presentation, and DxR clinician case last week, I found myself with a pleasant little oasis of free time amid all of the other craziness. I've just gotten to the part in Irving Stone's autobiography of Michelangelo (The Agony and the Ecstasy) in which the artist, seeking to understand the human body from the inside, in order to completely comprehend the form for sculpting, has begun sneaking into a monastery's room for the unclaimed dead - to dissect. I'm thoroughly enjoying it - while his trepidation is not something with which I can readily sympathize (I'd been looking forward to dissection for years, but I guess I'm not facing excommunication or death, either), I do understand his wonder and awe. However, as much as I'm enjoying Michelangelo's uncharted journey down through skin and fat, muscle and fascia, there was something else I've been waiting to do for a while: I've been planning on watching Twilight.
My reasons for this are two-fold. First, Stephenie Meyer's series about psychic vegetarian vampires and the teenage girls who love them is absolute literary gold right now. I'm very interested in the economics of literature, and how current trends (like Amazon's Kindle) are changing things. It could be argued that Ms. Meyer is the literary heir to the hysteria whipped up by J.K. Rowling, merely stepping into place behind her, rather than creating her own hysteria, but Ms. Meyer used a tried-and-true formula. First, the paranormal romance series is doing better than ever (just check it out on Amazon). Second, women love vampires - ever since Anne Rice made them sexy instead of scary. Third, after watching the movie, I can say that it's quite honestly unapologetically high-school, and thus aimed at the perfect group. While I wanted to read the book to understand the inner workings of this latest literary juggernaut, I heard that the movie was better (a very rare occurrence), and so settled on that.
My second reason is my interest was sparked due to the ongoing romance between the lead stars Kristin Stewart and Robert Pattison. While chemistry onscreen is great and necessary, you just can't fake some things. I feel that part of the reason Mr. and Mrs. Smith was so much fun was the near tangible chemistry between Pitt and Jolie.
After watching the movie, I've got to say that it's nothing amazing or fantastic. I'm a little miffed that, instead of making vampire's shrivel in the sunlight or burst into dust and whatnot, Ms. Meyer instead makes them sparkle. It does, however, manage to capture the manic self-importance of high school - the belief that everything will be the end of the world. It seems like just another outing in a long line of ubiquitous vampiromances, adding nothing special to the canon (as far as movies go, Interview with the Vampire was much better. As was Blade 2). I think the reason for the earth-shattering success of the whole Twilight series can be attributed entirely to the unashamed mania of the 13 year old girl.
Who screams their hearts out and faints at concerts? 13 year old girls. Who went to see Titanic double-digit times, making it one of the highest-grossing movies ever? 13 year old girls. I think that pretty much sums it up - the 13 year old girl is a fantastic fan to have. Looking at the big money-makers in books and movies, they're not responsible for everything. Harry Potter seemed to open a door into the world of reading, and J.K ushered little boys and girls alike through like the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Movies don't do well unless they ticket money from the whole family, like the recent slew of superhero-action flicks. The top books and movies tend to be family oriented, but there's something to be said for the sheer power of their mania.
I wonder why little 13 year old boys don't act like this. My younger brother is reading Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians series which, for all intents and purposes, sounds a hell of a lot more interesting than romances with sparkly vampires. Rick employs familiar and lesser known Greek gods and monsters, spinning an engrossing yarn for the young adult group, and though I haven't read it, the series seems to be a capable mixture of years of scholarship and fantastic story-writing. So where's the hysteria? Where are the movie contracts? Where are the thousands upon thousands of Amazon review? I think the differences are, simply, due to the fact that the fan base is made up of boys.
You know, I'll be part of it is that girls are a whole lot more social. There are some fantasy series that are doing fantastically right now, but the guys who read them would rather do so in the comfort of their own homes, and then sit around blogging about them (errr...ahem...), instead of gathering into giggly gaggles to talk about the character's feelings. Perhaps I shouldn't say it's just a 13 year old girl thing - who are predominantly members of book clubs?
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