Entertainment : From the Front Row of the Balcony: \'Eclipse\' unites teens, vampires & werewolves

Michael Feldman, the comedian on the National Public Radio’s What D’Ya Know program, said the big question that the “Twilight” saga raises is this: Is there a difference between teenagers and vampires?
Yes, I thought, as I listened to the radio show. Vampires are much easier on the family car.
Until, that is, I saw the latest “Twilight” movie, and realized I was wrong.
I went to the Palace Sunday evening, accompanied by three of my daughters. The rest of the audience seemed to be as disproportionately female as my ride to and from the Palace.
“Eclipse” is the second --no wait, Marcy tells me it's the third-- of the Twilight movies which are based on the novels by Stephenie Meyer. The last one, according to people who care about this, is scheduled to come to theaters in 2011.
“Eclipse” is a love story about a girl, Isabella “Bella” Swan, who is in love with Edward, a vampire. But Jacob, a werewolf, is also in love with Bella, who sees Jacob as just a very good friend. Bella’s father, who errantly assumes that the boys who say they love his daughter are mere humans, dislikes Edward intensely but wants her to spend more time with Jacob.
The rivalry for Bella’s love is the second problem between Jacob and Edward -- the first being that vampires and werewolves are natural enemies.
Bella, a senior in high school, is planning on joining Edward in his immortal life as a vampire after graduation. But she is learning that to become a vampire will mean losing her connections with the family she loves now. And the other vampires warn her that life as a vampire is not what it seems.
Jacob, however, can promise Bella her own life if she chooses to say with him.
And while these three are sorting out their personal relationship issues, they must also save their community from an invasion of “newborns” -- an army of young vampires under the control of the evil Victoria, who is out to kill Bella. Edward still painfully recalls his encounter with Victoria following the Civil War.
The only way to save the city and Bella from this attack is for the werewolves and vampires to work together. The vampires --in their human form -- seem to be normal high school students. The werewolves, however, in their human form, look and dress like California surfers. The two groups obviously do not like each other, but they are forced to put aside their instinctive animosity to save the city -- and Bella.
Why you should go: If you like movies about teenagers, vampires and werewolves, “Twilight” movies are most likely the best you will see. For a movie about vampires, teenagers and werewolves, “Eclipse” has a very low quantity of violence and sex. In fact, Edward makes it clear to Bella that intimacy must wait for marriage. And the violence is not the gory type.
My favorite part: In the tent, where Jacob and Edward address their differences with a mutual respect. “If we were not natural born enemies, I might actually like you…… nah…”
What you should know before you go: I have mentioned teenagers, vampires and werewolves, haven’t I?