by Joseph Michell, undergraduate student at Bath Spa University
Introduction by Dr Rebecca Feasey, Bath Spa University
Joseph Michell’s article entitled ‘Robert Pattinson: An Actor’s Conscious Diversion of Career Trajectory’ offers a fascinating and potentially unique example of a contemporary star who has successfully managed to reinvent their original star image. After all, it is routinely the case that contemporary A-list performers struggle to maintain both their critical and commercial success when they transition through the role, genre or persona that made them famous (Dyer, 1979 and Geraghty, 2000).
The research picked up on seminal debates as they were introduced in a Level 5 module in Film & Screen Studies at Bath Spa University. The course takes as its starting point questions around how and why film stars emerged; the social, political and economic importance of stardom and an acknowledgement of the shifting entertainment landscape in which contemporary performers work.
The case study might be considered exceptional, so too was the student’s learning and teaching journey. The module ran at a time when teaching withing the broader Film and Media department was moved online, so that in-person lectures were replaced with a virtual alternative, and vocal seminars were replaced with online spaces, chat boxes and breakout rooms. Students were able to access all content materials and the subject librarian worked tirelessly to ensure that students on the module had access to a myriad of digital materials, including the entire BOB database, but nonetheless, students found themselves working in strange and unusual ways, times and spaces.
Students spoke of their work on Curated Public Playlists and Viewfinder articles as a meaningful focal point for their energy at a time when little else was in their control. Having a limited sense of what lay ahead in the forthcoming weeks, months or year meant that being able to focus on a star, performance and medium of choice offered some comfort and a positive, pro-active and educationally informed distraction.
This ViewFinder article is an exceptional piece of work in any given year, but it remains doubly so during pandemic conditions … enjoy.
Robert Pattinson: an actor’s conscious diversion of career trajectory
Robert Pattinson is a British film-star who, after reaching astronomical levels of fame as a result of his role in the ‘Twilight’ and its sequels, began to take on increasingly unusual and challenging roles. He is representative of the zeitgeist of film-stardom, but equally subverts and disavows the ‘star’ denotation at every chance he gets. As a result of his unusual dedication and tenacity to define his own career and star image, he has emerged a well loved and highly regarded film-star. In my Box of Broadcasts playlist I chart his journey from leading roles in accessible ‘teen’ movies, to his more ‘serious’ films, by arthouse directors. I hope to represent the enigmatic, elusive and contradictory nature of one of our most influential film-stars; Robert Pattinson, who seems to me, as representative of contemporary popular culture as James Dean was to his generation. In this playlist, including interviews, reviews and curated clips, I hope to elucidate Pattinson’s appeal and complex, kaleidoscopic ‘star image’ (Dyer 1979).
Stardom theorist Christine Geraghty proposed three ‘categories’ of the star. First; ‘Star-as-celebrity’: a star ‘whose fame rests overwhelmingly on what happens outside the sphere of work and who is famous for having a lifestyle’ (Geraghty 2000: 187) . The second, ‘Star-as-professional’, describes a star who’s known for their specific role within the industry, when ‘an actor’s presence in a film seems to correspond with his or her professional role’ (Naremore 1990: 262). The final category, ‘Star-as-performer’ is ‘defined by work and is often associated with high cultural values of theatrical performance’ (Geraghty 2000: 188). At the outset of his career Pattinson would have fit most aptly as a ‘Professional’, with leagues of fans knowing him only as the heartthrob star of the franchises they adored. At the same time he seemed to dip into the ‘Celebrity’ category, especially when the high profile scandal of his then girlfriend and co-star Kirsten Stewart’s affair and the pair’s subsequent breakup, “The cheating story that rocked the showbiz world and devastated the ‘Twilight’ fans” (Most Shocking Hollywood Moments 2012). Midway through the ‘Twilight’ saga, Pattinson began to appear in films such as ‘Cosmopolis’ (2012), an ‘aggressively unlovable’ film (The Culture Show 2012), and ‘Bel Ami’ (2012) whose hedonistic protagonist is boldly introduced in the early clip from the film in my playlist (Bel Ami 2015). Increasingly he resembles the ‘performer’ (Geraghty 2000: 188) in the seriousness and commitment with which he treats his, carefully curated roles. Pattinson’s propensity to alternate between the categories and invoke them all at once leads me to propose a new category for him and stars of his ilk: the Star-as-autonomist. I’m placing particular significance on Pattinson’s active role in forging his star image and career, a process he has wilfully expedited. “Cinema history is littered with great, great movie stars who started out as vapid teen heart-throbs, and it’s taken Brad Pitt twenty years to (…) actually become a measured, calm actor (…) so let’s give ‘R. Patz’ a chance” (Danny Leigh clip 2012). It’s not as though he has done a ‘180’ turn on his previous appearances and persona, just that he has had the wherewithal and commitment to re-contextualise his work in these roles, and ensure that any press interaction, or future roles, affirm his narrative of progression and his indefinability as a star persona.
A complex mass of information makes up our understanding of a star. Indispensable film theorist Richard Dyer referred to this conception of a famous individual as their ‘star image’ (Dyer 1979) and proposed that it is ‘made up of (…) promotion, publicity, films and criticisms and commentaries’ (Dyer 1979: 60), all of which you will find in my playlist. In considering how we come to know and understand a film star, we recognise the unusual intentionality of what Pattinson releases to audiences and fans. While the ‘vibe’ he puts across is messy and disorganised, the “reluctant movie star” (Shipwrecked 2011: The Island 2011), his creating a coherent personality in-keeping with his role selection, is measured and deliberate. The star’s image and the way we relate to them is a significant appeal of films and their supplementary material, ‘star image is probably the most seductive method that narrative cinema has developed in order to catch and bind its audience’ (Medhurst 1986: 347). One consistency through Pattinson’s dynamic catalogue is sensuality and sexuality - a cornerstone of star culture, but something Pattinson has carried through into his serious work - these cerebral explorations can be found within the playlist in ‘Cosmopolis’ (Cosmopolis 2019) and ‘High Life’ (High Life 2020). His supposed attractiveness is empirical, and filmmakers can’t attempt to nullify it. Barry King explains ‘behavioural and physical attributes have been read and will be read as cues to personality (…) the range of characters an actor may attempt is limited by the given-ness of her or his physical and behavioural attributes’ (King 1998: 172). When someone is voted the worlds sexiest man (Glamour 2012) even the most artistically driven filmmaker has to acknowledge they are working with a person whose status extends beyond that of the traditional film-star into what Martin Shingler refers to as a ‘zeitgeist icon’ (Shinger 2012: 150). These stars ‘capture their era for us in a range of ways … the preoccupations, values, conflicts and contradictions of a particular culture’ (Shingler 2012: 150). An early trademark of Pattinson was his inclination to run his hands through his iconic, messy hairstyle, a behavioural puzzle piece of his star image. We see it in my clip from ‘Remember Me’ (Remember Me 2014); high fitting white t-shirt recalling James Dean, “See that’s why chicks dig you man” his homely friend says before Pattinson turns ruminative and he ruffles his hair. “What is the fascination with this guy’s hair ?” (Shipwrecked 2011: The Island 2012 2012).
Being above all else, ‘a great character actor’ (Riley 2020) is the ultimate key to unlocking Pattinson’s celluloid redemption arc. His performance as Edward in ‘Twilight’ is accomplished in a number of ways; not least his steadfast commitment to the straight-faced seriousness of the source material. This is exemplified in the clip from ‘Twilight’ (Twilight 2008) in the playlist. This fact is often undermined but it is important in understanding the journey from mainstream adoration to high-cultural respect. He reached new levels of sensitivity and physicality in Claire Denis’ ‘High Life’ (High Life 2020) - ‘a sophisticated, emotionally discriminating performance that is rooted in small physical processes’ (Kaufman 2019). A key turning point is when Pattinson became recognised for the ‘Method’ characteristics of his performances. Method acting involves aperformer ‘feeling his/her way into a role from the inside, temporarily identifying with a character or in a widespread distortion of the approach, actually becoming the character while playing him/her’ (Dyer 1970: 141). In some of his most recent films, the extreme side of the ‘method’ hinted at in Dyer’s quote, was undeniably Pattinson’s approach. He talks about exploring New York in character in preparation for ‘Good Time’ (Mark Kermode’s Secrets of Cinema 2020), even worked in a carwash in character, and “actually committing crimes” (Pattinson 2017). While filming ‘The Lighthouse’, Pattinson span in circles before each take and put stones in his shoes to increase discomfort (Bradley 2019). “I spent so much time making myself throw up. Pissing my pants” (Pattinson 2019). In ‘The Lost City of Z’ (The Lost City of Z 2021) Pattinson is said to be ‘unrecognisable’ (Kermode and Mayo’s Film Review 2017), adding to a growing list of transformative performances where Pattison plays characters unlike any he’s attempted before. This commitment, variety and skill in turn begins to feed into and influence the ‘star image’ - ‘because the Method’s rhetoric seeks to substitute the psyche of the actor-person for that of the actor-character, our presumed knowledge of the actor-person is constantly in play when we experience a ‘Method’ film, star or celebrity text (Marshall cited in Svec 2010: 303).
I hope my playlist demonstrates Pattinson’s talent, the variety of characters he has played with great success, as well as the qualities that link all of his roles to his carefully created and maintained ‘star image’ - the ‘Star-as-autonomist’. The wide selection of film clips and periphery material should shed light on how a film star generates, affirms, and often modifies. I hoped to display the malleable nature of the film star. The way our perception of a star can actually change a great deal over a short amount of time if they offer us the incentive to reconsider or adjust our preconceived notions of them. Most significantly I wanted to draw attention to the very active role film stars can have in this process of alteration. A film-star like Pattinson proves how an actor can utilise their fame to make wise, considered choices about the roles they take on. This playlist acts as a close reading of a career which is still in its relative infancy, but one which is sure to attract debate and discussion in years to come. Even if Pattinson retired now, he would be leaving a fascinating body of work, rife for examination. The next stage of his career is uncertain and represents another unexpected left turn. From his leading role in Christopher Nolan’s epic blockbuster ‘Tenet’ (South East Today 2020), to his turn as the caped crusader in the upcoming ‘The Batman’ (Good Morning Britain 2020). It’s hard not to feel he may be setting himself the gargantuan personal challenge of overcoming the typecasting inevitably arising as a result of playing the world’s most famous hero. Pattinson’s career remains riveting, whatever the subsequent years bring.
Access Joseph's BoB Curated Playlist here.
About the Author
Joseph Michell is an undergraduate student at Bath Spa University studying ‘Film and Screen Studies’ Single Honours. He has a particular interest in European cinema and experimental film.
Bibliography
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