'The Twilight Saga: New Moon' (PG-13):(out of four)

Die-hard fans who wanted more romance out of the first "Twilight" film a year ago will get their wish with "New Moon." The problem is, by shuttling the original film's brooding, gothic horror aspirations in favor of syrupy, melodramatic teen heartache, the film drives a stake into any ambitions of capturing any audience beyond high school girls.

Based on the second "Twilight" novel by author Stephenie Meyer, "New Moon" finds Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) on her 18th birthday -- a milestone that officially makes the Forks, Wash., teen the older woman to her eternally 17-year-old vampire love interest Edward (Robert Pattinson). But the couple's hopes for a long life together are quickly dashed: An attack on Bella by Cullen clan member Jasper (Jackson Rathbone) and growing suspicion in the town about the Cullen family members' unchanged physical appearances makes Edward realize that Bella simply doesn't belong with his kind. Deciding to flee with his family from Forks, Edward demands that Bella forget about him forever.

Stuck in the doldrums for months, Bella begins to emerge from her shell thanks to her burgeoning relationship with her childhood friend, Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner). But just as romance begins to bloom for the couple, Jacob's destiny as a werewolf in the mysterious Quileute tribe emerges, forcing Bella to be alone once again.

After Edward has visions of Bella's death from her despair, the vampire decides the only way he can be with his eternal love is to sacrifice himself to the Volturi, the oldest and most powerful of covens. The problem is, the Volturi is located in Italy, and Bella is the only person who can stop him from proceeding with his plans.

The biggest surprise to come out of "New Moon" is that Kristen Stewart, who moped her way around a lifeless performance as Bella in "Twilight," is much better here as her relationship with Jacob grows. Stewart's not Oscar material, by any means, but she clearly is putting much more effort into the angst of girl torn between the two very different worlds of the vampires and the werewolves.

The big key is that Stewart has far better chemistry with Lautner than Pattinson -- thanks mostly to Lautner's undeniable charm and looming physical presence. Lautner's bulked up considerably for the film to meet the demands of his evolving character, and the good thing is, he clearly has brains to go with his brawn. He shows a bit of range, too, first as an innocent, good-natured kid who wants more than friendship with Bella, and then as a reluctant boyfriend who denies himself his true feelings of love once his werewolf hormones kick in.

Taking Stewart's place as the flatliner in the "Twilight" films is Robert Pattinson, who sleepwalks through a listless, one-note performance as Edward. And in a film that's hinged on the romance between Bella and Edward, that's not a good thing. Of course, he doesn't have nearly as much screen time as Lautner or Stewart to explore any character development, but director Chris Weitz does his best to make up for the character's absence in the narrative by including him in ghost-like forms throughout the film to communicate his feelings to Bella.

While the first "Twilight" film had plenty of vampire action with the inclusion of a trio of evil bloodsuckers and a primer of how the Cullen family came to be, "New Moon" is really more about the transformation of Jacob and his werewolf brethren. The problem is, with a relatively modest budget compared to most other Hollywood blockbusters, the computer generated wolves don't quite live up to expectations. While they may come off as real some of the time, they look completely unnatural in their settings.

The vampires' biggest moments come with Bella, Edward and his sister Alice's (a likable, perky Ashley Greene) confrontation with the Volturi near the film's conclusion. In almost a bait-and-switch move (the trailers lead you to believe the Volturi are prominent in the film), however, the coven only appears for about 20 minutes an hour and a half into the film. But apart from a deliciously evil turn by Michael Sheen (Tony Blair in "The Queen") as Volturi head, Aro, the scene boils down to the same sorts of otherworldly leaps and vampire body-slams that were on display in "Twilight."

While "New Moon" lacks in action, the film at least has some inspiring moments of comic relief -- particularly when Bella accompanies both Jacob and her high school friend, Mike (Michael Welch) on a date to B-movie action flick. Billy Burke, who delivers wry, fatherly advice as Bella's father, Charlie, is also good for a laugh; and Rathbone also shows glimmers of comic potential as Jasper, a character who clearly knows his thirst for Bella's blood is a big no-no.

Unfortunately, "New Moon" has its share of unintentional laughter, too -- especially in a future vision sequence that finds Bella and Edward prancing around in a forest together. The brief shot, which seemingly channels Adam Sandler's "happy thoughts" in "Happy Gilmore," even made the audience members who were supposed to fawn over the scene -- teen girls -- laugh out loud.

But perhaps the biggest joke of "New Moon" is what the film obviously portends to be. Frequently referencing "Romeo and Juliet" at the beginning of the film, "New Moon" seriously wants you to believe that this tale of star-crossed lovers actually has a shot at being on the same level as Shakespeare.

Now that's a tragedy for the ages.