The fourth film of the Twilight Saga becomes startlingly different from the first three installments. Just like Breaking Dawn, the book it was based upon, the film kicks off with the human heroine, Bella Swan (played by Kristen Stewart), preparing for and anticipating her wedding to Edward Cullen, her vampire fiance (played by Robert Pattinson).

Their extravagant wedding, complete with elaborate outdoor decor and a giant white cake, was fun to see come to life on screen and was the most lighthearted and humorous parts of the film. Although the film started a little slow, it quickly became more captivating and ended up being the most fast paced film of the series.

Breaking Dawn, the final of Stephanie Meyer’s four Twilight books, was cleverly and effectively split into two films since it had far too much action to successfully cram into a single movie. The book was already divided into three parts, the first two of which were included in Part 1.

Despite one part being from Bella’s point of view and the other from Jacob’s, the film interwove the two perspectives unnoticeably and impressively. Fans of the Twilight books will be relieved to learn that the film followed the books very closely while still making the story quite easy to understand for those who haven’t read them.

Regardless of how similar the book and the movie were, I was shocked at how bloody the movie became at times. There were many scary and horrifying scenes throughout the film that were terrifying to watch. Breaking Dawn Part 1 was certainly not for the faint of heart, and actually forced me to shield my eyes several times.

In spite of the gruesome aspects of the film, I found it to be the best installment of the Twilight Saga. There was no doubt that it was the most intense and suspenseful of the series. The story was thrilling and had me on the edge of my seat even though I had read the book. The acting also improved from the previous three movies, and Stewart’s portrayal of a weak and uncertain Bella in Breaking Dawn was far superior to her earlier performances.

Overall, Twilight’s Breaking Dawn Part 1 clearly surpassed the prior Twilight films, and I believe Twilight fans will be very pleasantly surprised by it.

Aran Kirschenmann, 15, is a contributing writer for the Bellevue Reporter and a sophomore at The International School in Bellevue. You may reach and connect with her on her Facebook page “The Young Critic.”