Most critics are unconvinced, and even the sympathetic ones hedge. The reviews agree on two things: the film gives its devoted audience what it came for, and it has little to offer anyone else. Where praise appears, it lands on Kristen Stewart, credited by several critics with carrying Bella’s heartbreak, and on the darker, moodier look, which most find an improvement on the first film. Michael Sheen’s brief turn gets a mention or two.
The reservations cluster around pace. Reviewers across the board find the middle section slow, the subplots drawn out and the adolescent angst wearing. The wolf effects draw repeated complaints, and several reviews call the supporting performances wooden. The spread is wide: Variety is alone in rating the sequel as good as or better than its predecessor, while Slant goes furthest the other way, objecting to the romance on moral grounds rather than dramatic ones.
