(Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Make all the sparkly vampire jokes you want, but Robert Pattinson has accomplished quite a bit to prove he’s more than just a YA heartthrob. He’s worked with David Cronenberg, Anton Corbijn, and David Michôd, among others, racking up an eclectic variety of roles in the process. Recently, he’s appeared in critically acclaimed titles like The Childhood of a Leader and The Lost City of Z.
This week, Pattinson adds another impressive feature to his resume in Good Time, a Certified Fresh drama from Ben and Josh Safdie about a New York City criminal who spends an increasingly dangerous night attempting to free his younger brother from jail. Pattinson spoke to RT about his Five Favorite Films, initially focusing on characters on the run until we opened it up a bit more, but we also reflected back on the last time we interviewed him, just prior to the release of the first Twilight movie back in 2008.
There’s this movie called Le Souffle. It was called Deep Breath. It’s a f—ing amazing movie. It’s about a teenage boy who is kind of expelled from school, and he has to live with his uncle, I think, in the French countryside. I remember watching it when I was maybe 18 or 19, and I just loved the performances in it so much, and I think it’s kind of like a kid who’s on the run from himself in a way. I think it’s kind of quite related to Good Time as well. It’s just incredibly, beautifully shot. Yeah, that’s one of them.
Did you ever see Arizona Dream? Johnny Depp and Vincent Gallo? I love that movie. Johnny Depp’s character is technically on some kind of run. It’s just very funny, and I love Vincent Gallo in it so much. It was also another early influence. I love Gallo’s performance when he’s talking about how all the greatest actors have New York accents, and he’s demonstrating to Johnny Depp’s character how to order drinks as a true New Yorker. It’s funny.
Julia, the Tilda Swinton movie. Also, I think [the director’s] name is Erick Zonca. I think that’s one of the great performances, and it’s kind of criminally underseen. Is underseen even a word?
What was the other one? The Beat That My Heart Skipped, the Jacques Audiard movie. I remember watching that at 20 or 21 or something. Actually, no, I must’ve been younger because I watched that the first time I came to New York, and Romain Duris in that — watching his performance was kind of… Like, “That is a performance which I would love to get anywhere close to.”
Did you ever see this movie Headhunters? It’s an insane chase movie that goes very, very, very dark. I just love one of the central driving forces behind the main character is just that he thinks he’s too short. [laughs] I love it when a story, when you really break down someone’s essence, and that is their fatal flaw. It’s just so simple.
RT: Just for the fun of it, I want to tell you what you picked last time. In 2008, you picked One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The Exorcist, the Godard film Prénom Carmen, Corky Romano, and then you picked Ivans XTC, the Danny Huston film.
Robert Pattinson: I mean, to be honest, that’s probably still pretty close to what my five favorite films would be. I was just watching Corky Romano again. [laughs]
RT: And actually, when you talked about Godard last time, you also mentioned Arizona Dream, and you specifically talked about ordering drinks the way Vincent Gallo does as well. It’s clearly something that stuck with you.
Pattinson: [laughs] That’s how little I’ve developed in 10 years. I’m exactly the same.
Good Time opens in limited release this Friday, August 11.
With the season 7 premiere coming July 16, Game of Thrones dominates the current pop culture consciousness. What you may not know is that some of the stars of HBO’s hit fantasy series can be found in some truly superb films you may have missed. Here are 14 Certified Fresh theatrical gems starring the GoT cast.
More Game of Thrones season 7 coverage:
This is a good week to binge-watch some TV, because Netflix has added the latest seasons for a nice mix of critically acclaimed, fan-favorite series, from its own original political drama to a CW superhero show. Then we’ve also got a recent Marvel Studios hit and a few smaller films you may have missed. Read on for the full list.
Felicity Huffman and Timothy Hutton return for the third season of this anthology crime drama on ABC, which takes place in North Carolina and focuses on issues of sex trafficking, forced labor, and drug abuse.
Available now on: Netflix
Melissa Benoist stars as the titular superhero in the CW’s lighthearted series. Season 2 not only features the introduction of her famous Super-cousin, but also includes a crossover event with The Flash, Arrow, and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.
Available now on: Netflix
Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright star in Netflix’s original drama about a ruthless politician and his ambitious wife, who go to extreme lengths to preserve their power. Season 5 was released in its entirety today.
Available now on: Netflix
The demon-hunting Winchester brothers (played by Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) continue their quest to fight evil wherever they find it in this long-running CW series.
Available now on: Netflix
Benedict Cumberbatch stars in this Marvel superhero film as a famous surgeon who suffers a terrible car crash and seeks healing from a mystical guru who teaches him much more than he bargained for.
Available now on: Netflix
This documentary examines the lives of juvenile offenders in the California penal system.
Available now on: Netflix
Jake Gyllenhaal stars in this sports drama as Billy Hope, a boxing champ who’s blindsided by personal tragedy and loses his title and his family, but fights for redemption with the help of a committed trainer.
Available now on: Netflix
Sennia Nanua, Gemma Arterton, and Paddy Considine star in this horror drama that explores the moral quandary posed by sentient child zombies.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Aksel Hennie star in this Norwegian crime thriller about a corporate recruiter who moonlights as an art thief.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
This dark comedy focuses on the surreal odyssey that unravels after a man is forced to reconnect with this childhood neighbor.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
Michael Caine and Brendan Fraser star in Phillip Noyce’s adaptation of the Graham Greene novel about the love triangle that develops between a British journalist, a CIA operative, and a prostitute in 1950s Vietnam.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
Tony Jaa explodes onto the big screen in this martial arts winner about an orphan who sets out to recover the stolen head of his village’s sacred Buddha statue from a Bangkok drug lord.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
Joaquin Phoenix and Gwyneth Paltrow star in this drama about a young man who returns to live with his parents and struggles with his feelings for two very different women.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
Gareth Evans, Adam Wingard, and a number of other directors all contribute segments to this second installment of the horror anthology series.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
Chase Williamson and Paul Giamatti star in this sci-fi/fantasy/horror/comedy about a pair of college dropouts who are humanity’s only hope against an interdimensional invasion.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
This week at the movies, we’ve got silly seafarers (The Pirates! Band of Misfits, with voice work from Hugh Grant and Brendan Gleeson); longtime companions (The Five-Year Engagement, starring Jason Segel and Emily Blunt); mafia targets (Safe, starring Jason Statham and Catherine Chan); and a literary gumshoe (The Raven, starring John Cusack and Alice Eve). What do the critics have to say?
Aardman Animations, the folks behind Chicken Run and Wallace & Gromit films, make animated features the old-fashioned way: using stop-motion claymation. And critics say they’ve got another winner with The Pirates! Band of Misfits, a bright, breezy, gleefully eccentric nautical adventure/comedy. A pirate captain named Pirate Captain (Hugh Grant) is on a quest to win the prestigious Pirate of the Year Award; along the way, buckles are swashed, planks are walked, and ships are plundered (ineffectively, but still). The pundits say the Certified Fresh Pirates! Band of Misfits stands as another triumph for Aardman — it’s filled with witty sight gags and inventive visual touches, and it’s likely to amuse both children and their parents.
With their patented mix of heart and raunch, Judd Apatow‘s productions — including, but not limited to, Superbad and Bridesmaids — have scored big with audiences and reviewers. Critics say The Five-Year Engagement doesn’t quite measure up to those standards, but despite some slack pacing, it’s still a pretty warm and honest look at modern love. Jason Segel and Emily Blunt star as Tom and Violet, whose matrimonial happiness is perpetually delayed by everything from bad luck to professional complications. The pundits say The Five-Year Engagement is way too long, and not every gag is a winner, but it’s redeemed by some big laughs and the sweet, believable chemistry between its leads. (Check out our countdown of the best-reviewed wedding movies here.)
Jason Statham is equally adept at roundhouse kicks and existential brooding. And while not every Statham vehicle is created equal, critics say Safe is better than most; though it’s formulaic to the bone, the film is gritty and exciting thanks in large part to its star’s charisma and acrobatics. Statham stars as Luke Wright, an ultimate fighter who botches a fixed fight, drawing the ire of the mafia. However, when he rescues and protects a 12-year-old girl with valuable information in her head, the two are pursued by both mobsters and corrupt government officials. The pundits say Safe is really predictable, but it’s an efficient, tough yarn that should satisfy adrenaline junkies. (Check out this week’s Total Recall, in which we run down memorable movies with matching titles.)
The Raven is an odd (if intriguing) bird: it’s a period thriller in which Edgar Allen Poe helps to track a serial killer inspired by the author’s most macabre works. But, to paraphraseth the titular poem, critics say the result has made them weak and weary, as it vainly tries to borrow from fantastic terrors we’ve seen before. After a series of brutal slayings, a young detective calls upon Poe (John Cusack) to help ensure that the writer’s most homicidal fan will kill nevermore. The pundits say The Raven has a spooky gothic look, but it’s mostly a gloomy procedural that offers few thrills — or insights into Poe’s life and works. (Check out Cusack’s Five Favorite Films here.).)
