‘Twilight’ fever grips Saipan

Regina Deleon Guerrero didn’t know a thing about the Twilight books by Stephanie Meyer until she heard about it from her Math teacher in 7th grade.

“There was a lot of hype about it,” recalled Deleon Guerrero, 15. “I learned about the book but didn’t want to read it. So I decided to watch the movie first.”

That’s when she got hooked.

The sophomore student at Marianas High School read the entire book series (reading the first book last) and would throw in scenes and trivia about the four-part saga in her talks with family and friends who, she admits, are becoming tired of her fanaticism.

“Whenever we have conversations, if something comes up that would remind be about Twilight, I would shift the conversation and talk about the series,” Deleon Guerrero smiled. “My sister Tiara gets the worst end of the stick and she becomes annoyed.”

A book series and three movies later, Deleon Guerrero still can’t get enough of the Twilight fever. She and best friend Ha’ane Fejeran will be joining millions of Twi-hards around the globe for the latest and much-anticipated two-part conclusion to the vampire saga that has become a worldwide phenomenon.

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 will premiere in the CNMI at Hollywood Theaters today and Deleon Guerrero has already secured a spot for herself by having her parents buy her a ticket right after they became available.

“I would go there right after school, fall in line and make sure my friend and I get a good seat. I’m very excited. I know that I will watch it again at a later date,” said Deleon Guerrero.

The books and the movies revolve around Bella, a young female human, who falls in love with Edward, a handsome vampire, who has to compete with his girlfriend’s werewolf best friend, Jacob. Fans of the movie series are equally divided between the characters of Robert Pattinson (Edward) and Taylor Lautner (Jacob).

A self-confessed Team Edward member, Deleon Guerrero says she is particularly looking forward to the wedding scene and the succeeding honeymoon.

Why not Team Jacob? “The way Stephanie Meyer portrayed Edward, he is more romantic than Jacob,” Deleon Guerrero blushed. “I like how he’s old-fashioned, too.”

But Twilight fans are not necessarily limited to female moviegoers. Caleb Leung, 16, said he “may have watched” the first three movies. He checked for tickets to Breaking Dawn – Part 1 for him and his girlfriend but learned that they were already sold out.

“I will watch it with friends as soon as it’s available because I like all the action that happens, especially the transformation of the characters, and maybe some of the love parts,” said the junior student at Marianas High School.

A 15-year old As Lito resident, who declined to be identified, said she’s rooting for werewolf Jacob. “He’s hot!” At the same time, “he’s very protective of Bella but he doesn’t hold on to her.”

What’s great about the Twilight movies, she added, is “the action and just the drama of it.” “I’m just sad that it’s going to come to an end really soon.”

A staffer at Hollywood Theaters said that Twilight movies have always been well-received, thanks to the books that he believes were “instrumental” in the movies’ popularity. He said they’re prepared for the kind of reception that Twilight does to moviegoers on island.

“We’ll probably sell out. We always sold out the first shows of every Twilight movie, at least for the first couple of days. We anticipate our weekend to be very busy. We look forward to it, of course,” he added.