Fans around the world are queueing up to see the latest film based on author Stephanie Meyers' Twilight novels. The final book chronicling the romance of teenager Bella and vampire Edward has been split into a pair of films. Here's a look at Breaking Dawn - Part 1.
The wedding vows may be traditional, but the bride and groom are most unusual. She is a human teenager, just beginning her adult life. He looks like a teen but is actually a 108-year-old vampire. After their picture-perfect wedding in rain-soaked Washington state, Edward whisks Bella off to Brazil for a rainforest honeymoon that starts when he carries her over the threshold.
BELLA "Is this totally necessary?"
EDWARD "I'm nothing if not traditional."
Their idyllic interlude is all-too short. Bella expected Edward to turn her into a vampire so they could share immortality. But before that can happen she becomes pregnant and the baby could be deadly.
While Bella's new vampire in-laws struggle to save her life, her pregnancy threatens to break the fragile peace treaty with their werewolf neighbors.
The combination of teenage romance and supernatural characters has captivated fans of the Twilight novels and films - most of them young women. Kristen Stewart, who stars as Bella, believes the themes resonate with that audience.
Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn-Part 1
"It's such a far-fetched story and all …but it's really not if you just compare it to somebody who is my age and not in agreement with people that think they are making the wrong decision. That's such a common position," Stewart says.
Robert Pattinson co-stars as Edward. He says, supernatural elements aside, it's basically about the emotions that teenagers everywhere experience.
"He is a 108-year-old guy and he has never achieved anything he has wanted to achieve. He is stuck in adolescence," explains Pattinson. "When you're an adolescent you think nothing is given to you. You think everything is unfair …and he's been living that that for 100 years."
The romantic triangle in the Twilight saga includes Bella's best friend Jacob, who happens to be a werewolf, the mortal enemy of her beloved. He is again played by Taylor Lautner.
Taylor Lautner in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1
"Jacob becomes a man in this one and he has to make a lot of decisions," explains Lautner. "He is being torn between his two families so it was really tough. It was by far the most challenging one for me and it's just very exciting to see him in a completely different light than ever before."
Screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg has adapted all of the Twilight novels. But since the first film in 2008, different directors have taken on each chapter. Bill Condon, who helmed the musical Dreamgirls, takes over for Breaking Dawn.
"Obviously it's my take on the material, but you want to make sure that it doesn't betray what people's expectations are and yet still becomes a full cinematic experience," Condon says.
The Twilight experience ends with Breaking Dawn - Part 2 which Condon also filmed. It arrives in theaters this time next year.