BEAUTIFUL CREATURES

Twilight first introduced us to the idea of glittery vampires infatuated with humans. And now there is Beautiful Creatures; a tale of love so forbidden that it brings about a curse between a ‘witch’ and a mortal. Dubbed the next big teenage supernatural hit, it’s fun and wildly entertaining if you were born after 1997. The film starts with such potential: a sweet teen love story between the young witch Lena Duchannes (Alice Englert) and mortal Ethan Wate (Alden Ehrenreich). Then things go a bit sour after the 40-minute mark with forceful Southern accents and a whole bunch of special effects. For what seems to be an important and dangerous rite of passage, the second half of the film lacks momentum and complexity. Still, it’s a better love story than Twilight … which may not be saying much. (SP) **