14 DAY TRIAL // Robert Pattinson, the handsome British actor who has come to the attention of fans from all over the world with the blockbuster “Twilight,” is in the spotlight again. However, this time, it’s not for his good looks or personal life that he’s the topic of discussion, but rather for his acting skills (or lack thereof), as demonstrated in “Little Ashes,” his latest film.
In “Little Ashes,” Pattinson plays Salvador Dali, the Spanish painter who was so over himself that he believed life itself was too small to contain him – indeed, a challenging part for any actor out there, let alone for someone with so little experience as Robert has. Opposite him is Javier Beltran, who plays Spanish writer Federico Garcia Lorca, but it’s Pattinson’s performance that is getting critics to say that perhaps he should stick to playing the vampire and milking the “Twilight” cash cow for as long as he can and is allowed to.
Although some film critics agree that Pattinson is a bit overwhelmed in the film, but still pretty good, most believe that his time will probably run out once the “Twilight Saga” comes to an end. “Pattinson has been cast, disastrously, as Dali.” Kurt Loder writes in a review for MTV. “In Pattinson’s attempted impersonation, we see the pampered young Dali arriving at the Residencia in a hugely ridiculous frilly shirt and jaw-length bowl-cut hair. Tottering out of his grand car into a bustle of fellow students, he looks like a marionette with a few strings missing, or a rag doll in need of repair. He seems trapped and terrified. But since social reticence is not a quality we associate with the overbearingly outré Dalí, we soon begin to wonder if it isn’t the actor himself who feels desperately out of place in this strange film.” Loder says.
“As soon as Pattinson steps forth with Dali’s famous up-twirled mustaches pasted to his face (they look like a pair of bent centipedes huddled on his upper lip), the picture – such as it’s been up to that point – collapses. The actor is in a hopeless position. […] There’s barely a moment when you don’t feel embarrassed for Pattinson. You want to call his agent to come rescue him from this film. Or maybe just call him a new agent altogether.” the film critic further writes, saying that Robert either made a very bad choice with the film or has just proven he’s no match for this type of film.
Either way, other critics point out, “Twilight” has ensured Pattinson a very loyal fanbase that he will continue to enjoy for a long while from now on. If he’s really looking to avoid reviews this poor, then he should perhaps choose his next projects with a bit more consideration, and not let himself be lured into believing he could do anything just because other people (his agent, in this case) tell him so.