Ashley Greene of New Moon Fuels 2-Part Breaking Dawn Rumorby Larson Hill

Although New Moon fever continues to sweep the globe in its second Twilight week at the box office, the promo push for New Moon was in full force in the days leading up to the Twilight Saga sequel, as Ashley Greene also did her part to help put New Moon over the top.

With New Moon still atop the box office, Entertainment Weekly sat down with Twilight Saga actress Ashley Greene days before the release of New Moon to see what the Twilight vampire had to say about New Moon. In the EW interview, Ashley Greene revealed that her closest friend in the New Moon cast is Kellan Lutz, who Greene says was a friend for five years before the Twilight Saga craze. with New Moon surprising everyone at the box office, Ashley Greene also mentioned that the Twilight fan response to New Moon has greatly increased since Greene did press for Twilight.

Looking ahead to the remaining Twilight Saga films beyond New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn, EW asked Ashley Greene who she would like to see direct Breaking Dawn. Interestingly, unlike responses to the same Twilight question from Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene would like to see a new spin. “I just went to MoMA [NYC's Museum of Modern Art] and they were honoring Tim Burton, and I saw a whole compilation of his films and artwork and I just think hes an extraordinary artist. I think itd be really cool to have his spin on it, because its a very odd book, theres some very weird moments. he would actually put a really weird and cool twist on it.”

However, the most significant Twilight Saga comment from Ashley Greene about Breaking Dawn speaks to the rumors of Breaking Dawn being split into two parts. “And if we could do it the right way,” Greene told Entertainment Weekly, “itd be great to have two films. you definitely want to get all the important parts in there and you know how hardcore and passionate the fans are about it, so one might be difficult and there would be something left out. so if we could do it right, itd be great to have two films.”

Tell us what you think. will Breaking Dawn be split into two parts?

For the full interview with Ashley Greene of New Moon, head this way to EW.

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Tiger Woods was a hot topic on Twitter this weekend, and that meant he became a trending topic in Twitter-Wood. somehow his Cadillac Escalade has become a subject of interest too, particularly with one “Harper’s Island” actor who pointed out that the golfer wasn’t driving a Buick.

“Toy story 3″ director Lee Unkrich, meanwhile, retweeted some great shots of homemade models based on the Disney-Pixar series, they’re mighty impressive. Also impressive has been the performance by “New Moon” in theaters this month, but Jim Carrey took note of the movie’s rabid fans and issues a warning in response. Check out those tweets along with sad news from Emmy Rossum, how to get to Sesame Street and Sarah Silverman’s reaction to “Precious.” It’s all waiting after the jump in the Twitter-Wood report for November 30, 2009.

Twitter Pic of the Day:
@rainnwilson RT @m4zdaman @rainnwilson Rainn Wilson’s high school photo twitpic.com/r9ee4
-Rainn Wilson, Actor (”The Rocker,” “The Office”)

@Chris_Gorham Wait, Tiger doesn’t REALLY drive a Buick?! I think I need to go lie down.
-Chris Gorham, Actor (”Trivial Pursuits,” “Harper’s Island”)

@JimCarrey Kids… enjoy new Moon, but don’t file your teeth into sharp points without permission from your parents. }}
-Jim Carrey, Actor (”A Christmas Carol,” “Bruce Almighty”)

@leeunkrich Awesome homemade Toy story models by @peejou: twitpic.com/rloer, twitpic.com/rlpcw, twitpic.com/rlpki
-Lee Unkrich, Director (”Finding Nemo,” “Toy story 2″)

@kevin_nealon Word has it that Tiger will be starring in the remake of ‘Misery’.
-Kevin Nealon, Actor (”Anger Management,” “Weeds”)

@SarahKSilverman I can totally relate to Precious because once like four years ago I bit the inside of my cheek and I was like OWWWW!!
-Sarah Silverman, Actress (”The School of Rock,” “The Sarah Silverman Program”)

@ShannonElizab twitpic.com/rio4l – I’m sitting behind Patrick Ewing-pretty cool!
-Shannon Elizabeth, Actress (”American Pie,” “Jay & silent Bob Strike Back”)

@emmyrossum Today is a very sad day for our family. our dog Chrissie died at the age of 15. bit.ly/5MIBJJ
-Emmy Rossum, Actress (”Dragonball Evolution,” “Dare”)

@johnaugust UP screenplay is only 100 pages. For 2010, I’m writing short and going to bed earlier.
-John August, Writer/Director (”Big Fish,” “The Nines”)

@FINALLEVEL twitpic.com/rl6m7 – Daily Pic: Just got back from England.. name this Rap CEO I bumped into at Harrods London!
-Ice-T, Actor (”New Jack City,” “Law & Order: SVU”)

@MJMcKean on my way to Sesame Street. Literally. Turns out it’s in Queens.
-Michael McKean, Actor (”This is Spinal Tap,” “Adventures of Power”)

Don’t forget to follow @MTVMoviesBlog on Twitter for all the latest updates and colorful commentary from the world of movies.

Though they didn’t walk away with any slabs of timber under their arms, it could be argued that Death Cab for Cutie were the all-stars of the 2009 mtvU Woodie Awards. The awards show that celebrates independent music of all types welcomed back a true rags-to-riches story in the quartet, who toiled tirelessly on the margins for years before graduating to arena-rock size and scope. They delivered the evening’s centerpiece performance, a run-through of their current single “Meet me on the Equinox,” which has garnered the band quite a bit of attention as it’s on the soundtrack to current box-office juggernaut “The Twilight Saga: New Moon.”

In fact, the band’s newfound vampire-assisted success is just another twist in what has been a career full of unusual turns. “I don’t think we’ve ever done anything like this, where it’s a real dynamic, changing thing,” explained guitarist and resident “Twilight” fan Chris Walla. “I love it. I was at the premiere two nights ago and it was great. The movie is awesome.” Walla even approves of the film’s campier aspects. “There are a lot of shirtless dudes,” he admits. “When the shirtless-dude factor happens, it seems a little wink-wink, nudge-nudge. but it’s a high beefcake quotient — an HBQ.”

Death Cab for Cutie’s stunning (and fully shirted) rendition of “Meet me on the Equinox” — as well as other jaw-dropping performances from Matt and Kim, the Dead Weather, Passion Pit and the Clipse — can only be seen on the 2009 mtvU Woodie Awards, which air this Friday, December 4, at 10 p.m. on MTV, MTV2 and mtvU.

You’d think with a tween daughter at home, Welsh actor Michael Sheen would have been declared a hero after landing a role in the super- hot “Twilight Saga.” But when Michael stopped by “The Bonnie Hunt Show” today to talk about the series, he revealed that his 10-year-old’s reaction wasn’t quite what he had expected.

“It’s a sort of double edged sword though,” Michael explained about his role as “New Moon” dastardly vamp Aro. “I remember when I was her age, things I was really into, the last thing I wanted was my dad being into it as well. when I first told her, we were eating some food and I said, ‘Look, I’m going to be in the next film. I’m going to play Aro.’ And she was lifting the food to her mouth and she froze, and I thought, ‘What is she doing?’ and a tear started rolling down her cheek. And I thought, ‘That’s nice. That’s exactly the reaction I want.’ And then she punched me.” of course his daughter’s reaction turned from distraught to elation once she realized she’d be attending the film’s big premiere.

When Bonnie asked Michael how many times he’s been questioned about Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson making out on set, the actor unsurprisingly played coy, changing the subject. “Everyone worked very hard,” he replied. “It was quite weird for me to be on a set where everyone is so young and beautiful. It made me feel every one of my 2,000 years.”

Like many of Hollywood’s talented actors, Michael has a long resume rife with odd jobs, including a stint as a paperboy and a fast food worker. “I was a terrible paperboy,” he said. “I didn’t like getting up in the morning. my mum would have to do the route.” He’s come a long way since, having even recently received an award from the Queen of England, whom he’s had much fictitious experience with playing former British Prime Minister Tony Blair several times. when he finally met the “real” Queen, he quickly learned about her brusque way of ending conversations. “The thing that the Queen does which you don’t realize until you meet her, because presumably when people meet the Queen they can get very flustered and sort of rabbit in the headlights, she puts her hand out and presumably people carry on talking or keep shaking her hand. so she does this thing where she takes your hand and shoves you away!” All hail the Queen, indeed!

Did you catch Michael Sheen’s appearance on “The Bonnie Hunt Show”? what was your favorite part?

FAN

I was disappointed by the Twilight fans on the movie’s premier night. Maybe it was my own fault for getting so hyped up by the media attention, but I thought that my “New Moon” midnight premiere experience was going to make me laugh with ludicrous costumes or fake blood.

But no. Not one crazed, fanged fan was seen. Instead, I found myself surrounded by a bunch of normally-dressed people waiting patiently to see a movie. Perhaps my experience will reign unique among others who witnessed the midnight unveiling of the film, but the crowd was, in fact, unremarkable to me – as was the film.

Notably, I am affected for the worse having read the novel itself, but I felt let down by the ultimate storytelling of this movie. I never feel as if I have a completely clear or fair sight of the movie, having already read the books. It’s undeniably difficult to sufficiently compress more than 500 pages of such a widely-loved book – no one will ever be totally satisfied.

This second film focuses greatly on Bella Swan attempting to readjust her life after her first love, Edward, abandons her. His abandonment leaves her with more than just a broken heart. Bella is literally a cold, lifeless shell of her former self – until Jacob Black, a childhood friend, re-enters her life and distracts her from her depression.

When it comes to handling the subject of Bella’s depression, cinematic renditions were made that perhaps removed some of the intensity of Meyer’s written word.

Much of the dialogue in the book progresses through Bella’s internal monologue; in the film, Bella wrote several unanswered e-mails to Alice. Translations such as this were a pleasant artistic move from director Chris Weitz. While I may not have been ultimately satisfied with the final translation of “New Moon” to film, it is by the same old saying – the book is better than the movie.

The fact is, by being unhappy with the film, I may find myself extradited to the Twilight minority. Not many Twi-hards care if the movie is a dead ringer to the book – they’d rather gaze at the beauty in person instead of pages. “New Moon” will flourish at the box office – greatly in part to the pained, beautiful face of Robert Pattinson. That is why, despite what emotional marks “New Moon” may have missed with fans, it will almost certainly hit the one with a dollar sign.

FOE

Before watching “New Moon,” several people told me the movie was “better than the first,” which didn’t really matter to me because the first “Twilight” film, like the books, was total garbage.

But I found the statement true – in some respects. The movie was less of a hastily-thrown-together series of shots of Kristin Stewart biting her lip and Robert Pattinson glaring from underneath his eyebrows and more of the crew trying to do a good job with the dismal source material they had to work with.

I will concede that the film had its moments. It accurately captured the awkwardness of high school social interaction, but I have a feeling this was an accident due more to the stiff dialogue found in the novel than anyone involved being in touch with their teenage selves. And Dakota Fanning made a pretty creepy vampire, but even that wasn’t as eerie as Bella and Edward’s creepy, codependent relationship.

“New Moon” opens with Bella having a weird dream. Useless slow motion shot of Edward approaching, blah, blah, fast-forward to Jacob Black, who spent his summer growing biceps.

A series of events happens that serves no other purpose than to advance the plot so the story can sustain itself. Nothing about this movie is organic or natural (I even have my suspicions about that forest).

But the movie helped me narrow down what in particular I hate about the “Twilight” “saga.” It’s not so much the pointless liberties taken with vampire/werewolf lore or that the final book in the series is the worst book I have ever read, and it’s not even the lack of faith the books have in the human race (Bella can’t wait to shed her teenage woes for the perpetual thirst for blood).

This installment presents the alternative to lifeless, creepy Edward: Jacob. It’s kind of a useless plot device, because by the end of the first book you know which one Bella’s going to end up with. I suppose Meyer wished to extend the life of the series, and what better way than by introducing a conflict that doesn’t even stand a chance?

Jacob is everything Edward isn’t: alive, within a dateable age range, capable of feeling actual emotions. He makes her laugh and they build things together. When Bella cuts her head on a rock, he cleans off the blood without having to restrain himself from brutally murdering her. And yeah, he’s a werewolf, but at least he’s not after her jugular. All along, he is doomed to fail.

What I hate is this: This book series was penned by a woman and features a female “protagonist.” But in this day and age, shouldn’t we discourage young women from defining themselves by men? Can’t we stand on our own? You’d think – with the plot hammering it into her head that she can’t depend on the men in her life – Bella would learn to stand on her own two feet. But she never does. This isn’t a love story – it’s a tragedy of codependency. It’s ridiculously old-fashioned (in the most negative sense of the phrase). When Edward leaves, Bella spends months staring blankly out the window. An extremely small number of high school relationships “work out,” but are any of them worth your soul?

But really, I hated it all. I hated the Kristin Stewart Loud Gasping/Breathing Track, the complete lack of motivation of the characters, Charlie as a self-deprecating father figure when really he could be the voice of reason – and I still hate the vampire sparkle.

Jessica, Bella’s pal that serves as her shallow, blond foil, asks the most poignant question of the film: “What the hell is wrong with you?” Bella doesn’t really have a substantial answer, but I pose the same question to all the misguided fans of Stephanie Meyer’s shallow, misguided venture into the supernatural: What the hell is wrong with you?

-Marie Uhler

The (mostly) good: Kelly Gustafson

On a campus this size, with more than 15,000 undergraduate women, it’s hard to escape talk of what team people are on. no, this is not Team Aniston or Team Jolie, and if you don’t know what I am referring to, you are oblivious to the cultural phenomenon that is “Twilight”.

So much so that Volvo launched an ad campaign recently launching the Web site whatdrivesedward.com. throughout the book series and both movies, Edward Cullen, the epitome of every teenage girl’s perfect boyfriend, drives a shiny silver Volvo, creating free advertising for the Swedish carmaker and adding opportunities to play off of this marketing device.

So when “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” opened on Nov. 20, being a twenty-something girl who read the books obsessively, I was at the midnight showing, along with hundreds of other college girls, and surprisingly, many moms. apart from the only males in the audience who were obviously dragged to the theatres by their vampire-crazed girlfriends, every theatre was packed with girls who had chosen distinctive “sides”.

Team Edward or Team Jacob.

The second installment of the saga was infinitely better than the first. A new director, Chris Weitz, an increased budget, better special effects, and improved cinematography all made the film’s sometimes cheesy script flow smoother. also, the sequel has the advantage of having the first movie to lay the necessary groundwork and build character development, allowing for the “New Moon” chapter to start right away, without repeating what fans already know.

The enhanced results of the second film can also be attributed to the fact that the stakes were raised for the actors in the film. an increased budget meant that Summit Studio expected a lot more out of the previously-unknown actors. Taylor Lautner, who plays the character of Jacob Black, had to gain 30 pounds and then audition for a role he had played in the first movie.

Jacob’s character also contributed to a better movie experience. And not because he’s 200 pounds of tan, muscular 17 year-old. no, really. his character just seems much warmer (108 degrees warmer), and more attainable than Edward’s character. Yes, Edward appears god-like at times, but that just makes him that much less realistic. The development of Jacob’s character in the movie brought out the best of both Lautner and Kristen Stewart, who plays the character of Bella Swan.

Stewart’s acting is so hot and cold that it’s hard to peg her down, but the “New Moon” film made it clear that her strengths lie in her ability to overact. The chemistry she has with both Robert Pattinson, who plays Edward, and Lautner is also vital, and scenes with either of them are usually flawless.

The one fatal flaw I found in the second movie was similar to the flaw that majorly disappointed me with the first: Pattinson’s inability to successfully master a believable American accent. Seriously, you’re famous now. Spend the extra money and hire Tim Monich to be your dialect coach. Minor, yes, but it takes away from what Edward is supposed to be. Capturing the true essence of the books is a daunting task, but it’s do-able.

I would definitely see the film again. no matter its flaws, it’s undeniable the impact that “Twilight” has had on our pop culture. It has defined an era, with vampire spoofs spinning off “faster than pink eye spreading in a preschool”.

The (mostly) bad: Matt Emmons

Last Friday night found me at home with nothing to do. My friends were all gone for Thanksgiving and I had absolutely no way of entertaining myself. this is the only situation capable of spawning my dive in to the murky waters of the Twilight phenomenon. I went by myself to see New Moon. And not even to pick up girls (which I hear is pretty easy to do at these things).

Let me begin by saying that I’ve never read any of the books in the series. I did not see the first movie. all I really know about Twilight is that Robert Pattinson’s six pack is fake and Taylor Lautner was Sharkboy, so you’re not going to hear any “well the movie was pretty good, but it’s nothing like the books” from me.

There’s not much to say but that New Moon was hard to watch. whether it’s the repeated appearance of a cameraman in the mirror during a time lapse sequence or the entire theater laughing when Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) tells a vampire that “things are going to get ugly,” the entire production comes off as almost comical. When the protagonist, Bella Swan *groans at name*, hits her head riding a dirt bike in an effort to make a mental projection of Edward Cullen appear, Jacob rips his shirt off to mop up her blood. he remains shirtless for the rest of the movie. Sometimes he even has a reason to be shirtless. also, I don’t think I’ve ever seen such an offensive amount of chest heaving in a movie. It’s like no one ever catches their breath.

I spent most of the movie trying to figure out when vampires lost their signature fangs, became vegetarians and began showing up in photographs. I spent the remainder of the movie trying to decide at what point werewolves attained the ability to transform at will. I guess that whole “full moon” business is right out the window.

Also, the thought occurs: a beautiful girl whose name begins with “Bell” falls in love with a monster that turns out to be gentle. We’re one talking French candlestick named Lumiere away from being Beauty and the Beast, aren’t we?

I’m going to end with the positive point. THE positive point. The soundtrack was good. New Moon features tracks from the likes of Muse, OK go, Thom Yorke, and Death Cab for Cutie. I only question how so many well respected artists were coerced in to appearing in such a mockery of a film. Maybe Muse’s Matt Bellamy thought the film was a sort of vampire awareness public service announcement. That seems like the sort of thing he’d do.

If you’re a fan of the Twilight series of novels, then you’re obviously going to want to see New Moon because you’ve already been hoodwinked. if you’ve not read the books, or think the entire thing is a joke, then stay far FAR away.

Kimberley French

Every time you kiss her, fake a seizure.

When I was a teenager, I devoted a lot of energy to trying to figure out what teenage girls wanted.

I paid close attention, so as to figure out what to say, how to act and what to buy — what kind of sneakers, jeans, jacket … I even contemplated belt width. one year belts were thick, the next year they were skinny, and if you wore the wrong kind, it meant you didn’t get the memo. you know, the Cool Memo, the one that every cool person gets telepathically and, apparently, simultaneously.

In fathoming such mysteries, teenage boys of my generation were left to fend for ourselves — not like the kids today. No, the boys today have it easy because they have The Twilight Saga: new Moon.

The other day, I sat in a theater full of preteen and teenage girls (some women, too), who screamed with rapture at every ridiculous thing two goofball teenage guys said. at first I thought, “This is cute.” then I realized this is the empirical data I could have really used when I was 15.

So hearken to me, young men. Study New Moon, and you will know truths that eluded Freud (sort of). you will know the rules. you will know what teenage girls want, and you won’t need the Cool Memo. Here are seven bits of wisdom you might glean:

Rule 1: Keep your compliments outlandish. “You have beautiful eyes” just isn’t going to cut it. but as New Moon shows, if you say, “You give me everything by breathing” and keep a straight face, you stand a chance of being perceived as sincere.

Rule 2: Compliment style is important. if you give compliments as though you hope to be complimented in return, you will get nowhere. but as New Moon illustrates, if you compliment the girl with the assumption that her amazing awesomeness is simply a law of the universe, your remarks will not only be well received, she will also admire your perception and discernment.

Rule 3: In developing your look, borrow from the classics. Edward could have been just another James Dean wannabe, but he jazzes up his look with a touch of whiteface: Brooding young man meets Marcel Marceau. Original.

Rule 4:Get in shape, today. There’s no getting around it. the respect that Jacob is getting these days is the result of getting seriously pumped up between movies. In New Moon, he comes close to doing the impossible — he almost takes Bella’s mind off Marcel Marceau. That’s right — he almost puts that mime in a box he can’t get out of. Jacob doesn’t have two brain cells to rub together, so it’s not his scintillating conversation. It’s the muscles.

Rule 5: Cultivate an aura of turbulence. When I was in high school, the boy who did best with girls was a guy who was a mix of tough and nutty, with a few phobias, including hypochondria. the one thing he wasn’t nervous about was girls. This kid was so preoccupied with phantom concerns that it never occurred to him to be nervous about the one thing every other guy was nervous about. This gave him an aura and made him into a problem to be solved … kind of like Edward. In New Moon, every other boy in the school is worried over how to ask out Bella. Edward is worried about death in life, a guarantee of damnation and the distinct possibility that at any moment he might rip open someone’s neck. This gives him an extra something, despite having a complexion slightly paler than Munch’s The Scream.

Rule 6: Keep saying, “I will protect you.” if you see New Moon, you will notice that everyone wants to protect Bella. you will also notice that every time someone announces that he will protect Bella, the girls in the audience scream and Bella looks pleased (in an introspective sort of way). So if you’re a teenage boy, you might want to throw “I will protect you” into conversations, apropos of nothing. just toss it into the mix and see how it goes over. Can’t hurt.

Rule 7: Every time you kiss her, fake a seizure. With most guys, when they kiss a girl for the first time, they want to seem as if they know what they’re doing. even if they feel as if they might have a seizure, they don’t show it … and that’s where they go wrong. Case in point: Edward in New Moon. Every time Edward kisses Bella, he starts moaning and fretting like James Cagney in White Heat. he looks as if he is about to go into an apoplectic shock — and instead of laughing at him, Bella thinks he’s great. who knew this could work?

Perhaps Edward knows this because he has tried it before. After all, he has been a teenager for approximately 96 years. his whole shtick might be a scam, the result of decades of intensive study, years of trial and error at high schools all over the world.

Most of us have just four years to get high school right. This guy has had a century.

mlasalle@sfchronicle.com

Michael Sheen is best known for his roles as Tony Blair in The Queen and David Frost in Frost/Nixon. so it was a bit of a surprise that this serious actor, with a great ability to transform completely into real-life characters, would want a role in the frothy Twilight series. EW.com chatted with Sheen about his New Moon experience.

What made you want to sign on to this project?
I knew about the whole Twilight thing, primarily through my daughter, who’s 11 and is a big fan of the books. She’s read the books many, many times. And I knew how much people got into them. These weren’t just books you read. she was really into it. that was my introduction to it. I read the scripts and the book myself and saw the first film. And I thought it was a wonderful story and a great character. And then [director] Chris Weitz sent me a really lovely letter. it was a terrific thing to get involved with.

What was your daughter’s reaction to your playing Aro?
It was a whole mixture of things. she was very excited to think I was going to be a part of this, but she also thought her father was taking over something that was hers. But she got over that pretty quickly and was in the end just excited about going to the premiere really.

That’s what it all boiled down to, her chance to meet Robert Pattinson?
Yes, but actually her favorite is Ashley Greene.

Ashley spoke very highly of her time working with you.
She’s lovely. They all were very nice but they kind of treated me like an elderly uncle. They were all on their best behavior when they are around me. I just want to be down with the kids but that doesn’t really work out to well.

You have great command of the scene with the Volturi and you can tell that those other actors had great respect for you.
It helps coming into something where they all know each other and have already done one movie together. They’ve also been involved in the whole phenomenon together so I think they’ve bonded a lot. so when you’re coming in to do a big scene like the one we did in the film, it helps if the character you are playing is higher status than the other ones. at least it gives you a bit more confidence. so that certainly helped.

What do you think audiences are responding to with Twilight?
I think it’s a whole combination of things coming together. especially for adolescent girls and also for older audiences, Stephenie [Meyer] takes the incredibly powerful experiences you have as a teenager and treats them absolutely fearlessly and gives them the respect they deserve. the first book and film are about the first time you fall in love. And New Moon is all about the first time your heart is broken. These are some of the most powerful experiences you can have in your life, regardless of your age. And there is a tendency to kind of trivialize those things as you get older, to kind of be patronizing about those things. And Stephenie treats them absolutely seriously. she also, very cleverly in a way, said that the vampires are stunningly gorgeous as a way to lure their prey. That’s very clever because in casting the film you have very beautiful people who are very good as well.

Photo Credit: Mike Coppola/FilmMagic

Nothing like a role in Twilight to break you into show business. That’s the case for Ashley Greene, who had spent most of her time in Hollywood as a hostess in an L.a. restaurant prior to her fame-making role as Alice Cullen. The Floridian native just finishing touring the country in support of New Moon and she’ll start filming the horror film Apparition in Berlin in February. We chatted with Greene days before New Moon started breaking records.

Are the reactions to Twilight the same all around the country?

I was impressed in Chicago, actually. Chicago was really, really intense and loud and I think it was one of the bigger responses that we had. but there’s always a lot of people, a lot of passion, a lot of screaming, a lot of crying. so really it’s all measured in terms of how deep the screaming goes.

Was it much different than last year?

I guess it’s more intense. I’m much more comfortable with this whole thing. I didn’t really know what to expect at all when I first got into it. it was my first gig, and so it was a little crazy and I was really nervous. and so now you know the fans are there because they love you and they support you.

What was your most memorable fan encounter?

I’ve had a couple people make me scrapbooks, and that’s kind of an incredible thing because I’m in a midst of this whirlwind right now so there are a lot of things that I miss because we’re in this Twilight bubble and it’s just go go go. so probably a year after this is all done, we can sit back and look at the scope of it. so it’s nice for them to put a collection of my career and what I’ve been going through together. That’s really special.

Why do you think fans are so obsessed?

I think with vampires, you can’t really go wrong. for generations, vampires have been a hit because they’re unobtainable, mysterious, sensual, dangerous, kind of sexy. Then Stephanie Meyer added a Romeo-and-Juliet love story to this fantasy world. Edward happens to be a vampire but he’s very much that gentleman who opens doors and says everything a girl wants to hear and he’s basically the epitome of perfection. and then you have Bella, this normal, everyday girl, which a lot of us are, and she steals this vampire’s heart. so everyone wants their Edward and everyone wants to be Bella.

How has playing Alice Cullen changed your career?

I didn’t really have a career! so that’s how it changed. but now I’m doing what I want and I know I’m going to continue to work. This is it; this is the rest of my life. I can walk into rooms and talk to directors and producers that I couldn’t get into their doors before. and I can actually sit down and speak to them like a human being and not be terrified of them. That, and of course, the fact that people care what kind of coffee I drink and who I’m dating and where I’m going. nobody knew my name before and nobody cared and then all of a sudden in a course of a year, everything has changed.

And what is the downside?

The only downside is when people stop realizing you are human and you’re not perfect. but it’s part of the territory and I wouldn’t trade it.

What was your first reaction to New Moon?

The tone, the color schemes, and the warmth of it is beautiful. I think [director] Chris Weitz did a really fantastic job. and then after seeing Taylor [Lautner], I was really impressed. I mean, he’s a 17-year-old kid and he committed and gained 30 pounds and transformed into a completely different person than he was in the first one. He carried this film, and I think that’s a hard thing to do, especially when you’re up against this character Edward. It’s a lot to live up to, and I think he did it justice and he did a fantastic job.

What was your favorite scene to film?

Going to Italy and being part of the Volturi scene was great. Dakota Fanning is fantastic. I was watching her movies before I was even acting. and I got to work with Michael Sheen and he’s an incredible, phenomenal actor and it was great to be able to learn from him and watch him do the scene and watch how it translates to the screen.

He gives that scene a lot of gravitas.

It was so easy for him. He controls the scene. I haven’t worked with an actor of that caliber yet who can do something like that. it was really cool to see.

Who’s your closest friend in the cast?

Kellan Lutz. We’ve been friends for about five years, before this whole Twilight thing even happened. We had the same agent starting out so we’ve basically been friends since we both moved to L.a. We’re together 12 hours a day, every day for like three months at a time.

Is there a role out there you’d really like to play?

I would have loved to do Alice in Wonderland. being a Bond girl would always be fun. We had a lot of action in Eclipse and I’d definitely like to continue down the action road. I want to do a romantic period piece, but those are really hard to get made because they’re very expensive and there’s not a huge demographic. and far, far down the road, probably when I’m in my 30s, I would love to play a North Country/Erin Brockovich type of a role like Charlize [Theron] and Julia Roberts did because they’re inspirational and they’re about very strong women that changed basically the course of history. That would be a really fun role to play, they really affect people. That’s one of the bigger benefits of acting, that you get to affect people.

If you could pick the director to helm Breaking Dawn, who would it be?

I just went to MoMA [NYC's Museum of Modern Art] and they were honoring Tim Burton, and I saw a whole compilation of his films and artwork and I just think he’s an extraordinary artist. I think it’d be really cool to have his spin on it, because it’s a very odd book, there’s some very weird moments. He would actually put a really weird and cool twist on it. and if we could do it the right way, it’d be great to have two films. you definitely want to get all the important parts in there and you know how hardcore and passionate the fans are about it, so one might be difficult and there would be something left out. so if we could do it right, it’d be great to have two films.

Photo Credit: Jordan Strauss/Getty Images

China, somewhat of a new player on the international space scene, apparently wants to make up for the time it lost in front of the United States, Europe, and Russia. Having successfully launched its first unmanned lunar probe in 2007, the country is currently aiming at a 2010 deadline for the launch of its second scientific device, which it hopes to have operational as early as possible. The first orbiter, named Chang’e-1, managed to transmit back the first pictures of the Moon’s surface in January 2008. The Chinese space agency also plans to send its first taikonaut to the surface of Earth’s natural satellite by 2020 at the latest. The country has already demonstrated spacewalk capabilities, so now it’s just a matter of developing the necessary technology to construct the carrier spacecraft that would deliver its crew to the surface of the Moon. By 2050, the same basic plan shows, the country would like to have its own, permanent base on the satellite, from which to conduct experiments. The goal is highly ambitious, even with China’s massive funds and interest in such explorations.

The goal also leaves analysts skeptical because the country only exhibited space capabilities in 2003, on October 15, when taikonaut Yang Liwei went to space aboard the Shenzhou-V spacecraft. Since then additional flights have been conducted, but the technology used still poses a high degree of uncertainty. The first and only spacewalk was achieved in September 2008, with three taikonauts aboard the Shenzhou-VII spacecraft. but the Chinese government is sure that the risks are worth the possible scientific and strategic returns, Space Fellowship reports.

The Chang’e-2 and Chang’e-3 spacecrafts will aim to ensure this is the case right on the scene. The former is a second orbiter, while the later is a lunar lander, which is scheduled to touch down in the Sinus Iridium (Bay of Rainbows) region. The lander will look for usable resources on the surface of the planet, and it will also conduct a thorough analysis of its target zone’s topography. Chang’e-3 is not scheduled to be launched until 2013. most likely, the take off will occur from the Xichang space center, in the southwestern part of the country. a Long March 3B delivery system is the most likely platform.

The chief designer of the first probe, Ye Peijian, says that Chang’s-2, the orbiter scheduled for the 2010 launch, will be more advanced than its predecessor. The orbiter will carry “a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera on board, which has a much higher resolution than the camera on China’s first lunar probe. [The new spacecraft] will orbit 100 kilometers closer to the Moon [than the first probe] and will be equipped with better facilities. we expect to acquire more scientific data about the moon with increased accuracy,” the expert says, quoted by China Daily.