Moviehole
But the main attraction here is the performances of the three stars. Witherspoon has been very scarce on screen since winning the Best Actress Oscar in 2005 for “Walk the Line.” In the six years before winning the award she appeared in no fewer than nine films. Since, she has appeared in half that number. Her work here is perfectly nuanced in a role that could have quite easily been cliché’d. Waltz is perfect as August in a role that shows us why that Oscar win was so well deserved. But the surprise here, for me anyway, is Pattinson. Quiet and brooding in the “Twilight” films he seems to jump off the screen here, matching Waltz and Witherspoon scene for scene. Who knew this kid could act?? Well done young man. Applause also to the great Hal Holbrook, whose performance bookends the film. And I would be remiss if I didn’t include praise for Rosie the elephant, Queenie the dog and the other animals that help tell the story.
Thanks to Fox, we were lucky enough to see Water for Elephants at the Premiere in New York City last Sunday. Here’s our review of the movie.
Based on the New York Times best-selling novel penned by Sara Gruen, Water for Elephants is set during the Great Depression of the 1930s. The movie plunges you into an era where travelling circuses and big tops were all the rage. Jacob Jankowski (Pattinson,) a veterinary student at Cornell, learns rapidly how life can change with the blink of an eye when his parents die in an accident. Alone with nowhere to go and no money Jacob jumps on a train, which turns out to be owned by the Benzini Brothers, a travelling circus. First seen as an intruder by the owner of the circus, August (cleverly played by Christoph Waltz,) his veterinary skills quickly come in handy and help him find his own place in the circus. When Jacob meets August’s wife Marlena (played by Reese Witherspoon,) he falls under her charm and soon has to deal with the furious temper of a crazed husband.
Ladies and gentleman prepare to be wooed; this is Robert Pattinson like you’ve never seen him before. From laughter to extreme frustration, Pattinson displays a wide array of emotions, showing his worth as an actor. Witherspoon and Waltz also show their amazing Oscar winning capabilities in this movie. As a secondary character, Hal Holbrook plays the part of an older Jacob Jankowski marvellously well. In the fashion of great Hollywood love stories, the transition between “old Jacob” and “young Jacob” is cleverly played.
Water for Elephants is beautifully shot. Francis Lawrence manages to bring an entire era to life on the silver screen. You’ll go through a roller-coaster of emotions, from laughter to tears. For fans of the book, you will definitely not be disappointed, the screenplay written by Richard LaGravenese, stays true to the book.
Definitely a must see! Water for Elephants is simply the most spectacular show on earth…
There’s something endearingly old-fashioned about a love story involving a beautiful bareback rider and a kid who runs off to join the circus. What makes “Water for Elephants” more intriguing is a third character, reminding us why Christoph Waltz deserved his supporting actor Oscar for “Inglourious Basterds” (2009). He plays the circus owner, who is married to the bareback rider and keeps her and everyone else in his iron grip.
The story, based on the best-seller by Sara Gruen, is told as a flashback by an old man named Jacob (Hal Holbrook), who lost his parents in 1931, dropped out of Cornell University’s veterinary school, hit the road and hopped a train that happened, wouldn’t you know, to be a circus train. Played by Robert Pattinson as a youth, he is naive and excited, and his eyes fill with wonder as he sees the beautiful Marlena (Reese Witherspoon) on her white show horse. The owner August (Waltz) is prepared to throw him off the train until he learns young Jacob knows something about veterinary medicine.
Robert Pattinson has nothing but love for his recent experience on the set of “Water for Elephants,” director Francis Lawrence’s adaptation of the popular novel that’s set to open in theaters Friday. It was a far cry from his current job, finishing the grueling six-month shoot for the back-to-back filming of the last two “Twilight” films, based on Stephenie Meyer’s final book in her bestselling series of young adult novels, “Breaking Dawn.”
Pattinson took a moment for a brief phone interview before he was needed on the set of a night shoot for the vampire mega-hit. He seemed downright exhausted. “I’m just arriving at set, thinking I’m going to work all night,” he said. “I’m kinda losing my mind.”
Question: Sorry to hear you’re so exhausted. Can you tell us what your time was like on “Elephants,” with Reese Witherspoon?
Pattinson: It’s easily one of the best experiences I’ve had making a film and it’s by far one of the best experiences in my life. It didn’t even feel like work and a lot of that had to do with Reese. She makes an effort to make it like that. I think she believes that it’s really important to enjoy your work, especially when you have to be there for so many hours every day. I made a great friend out of it.
Question: How did working with the animals impact the environment?
Pattinson: When you have totally unpredictable elements, and there are dangerous elements in every single scene, everyone is in the same boat. If you’re trying to herd up a pack of horses, it doesn’t matter who you are. There is manure everywhere and everyone was filthy all the time. It was an egalitarian set because of that. It’s quite inspiring to be around [the elephant]. It doesn’t really matter what your taste is, everyone is going to like being around an elephant. It’s not like being around another actor some people may not like.
Question: Reese mentioned that she found the paparazzi attention on you unlike anything she’s seen before. What do you think?
Pattinson: She’s trying to sound humble about all this but she’s in all these magazines every week. It’s a circus outside her marriage. Plus, I always see her [in them] buying her sandwiches and going to yoga…. I guess she’s kind of accepted it in a lot of ways…. It’s just a strange situation to be in if you’re a sane person to have that kind of attention put on you.
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