#allocine

So I somehow managed to find this interview with Jenna Coleman discussing The Cry for French TV channel Allocine. I don’t think it’s a recent interview, but it’s the first time I’ve seen it. 

Fionn Whitehead

Robert Pattinson: "I'd love to work with Godard"  

AlloCine France talks to Robert Pattinson about High Life. By Brigitte Baronnet - published on Nov 8, 2018

At the San Sebastian Festival's release of "High Life", we were able to talk to Robert Pattinson at length: the reflection of his Twilight experience, his choice of films and directors and his desires...

 It's been a long time since you've been waiting to work with Claire Denis!

Robert Pattinson :  High Life was for me a priority project.  It's a project that goes back a long time ago.  I think I was going to do The Lost City of Z and these two projects almost overlapped.  It seems to me an eternity ago.  It was clearly a long time ago.  I think there are 3 directors for whom I will be ready to cancel everything.

What attracts you to directors like Claire Denis or David Cronenberg?  You seem very determined on what you want to do.  You also shot the debut feature film by director Brady Corbet

I'm always a little concerned when it's a first film because I do not know how to interpret the work of the director.  But for Brady, I've known him for so long.

I like people who leave their own mark like Cronenberg, Denis ... We felt something very special, it's as if they have a world of their own in which the film encompasses. 

 Who approached who first?

Cronenberg really came out of nowhere.  It really changed everything in my approach to directors.  He came to me at random, I had never met him before. The other day, I found an exchange of emails that I had with my agent, when he had just offered me the role, in which I told him: "I do not know what I am doing, I shouldn’t do it, I will mess up everything."  I did not remember all that.

With Claire, I knew I wanted to work with her for years before meeting her.  It took ages before we managed to meet, and then for the film to be made.

I used to think I needed to have more control.  You think you’ll have more direct relationships with the audience than with the directors. For example, Bel Ami. For this particular film, I thought about it in terms of audience expectations. With Twilight, I had a very feminine audience, so I found it would be fun to play a role of this seducer who used women.  But afterwards I thought I shouldn’t trust this approach.

Coming back to Cronenberg, I really did not know how to do the movie. I was not sure I understood everything.  I even avoided talking to Cronenberg, and then I finally explained to him that I was not sure what the film was about.  And he replied, "Yeah, me neither!"  (laughs ) I said, "But I mean?..."  "Well, that's a cool thing, isn’t it?"  That film had a big impact for me.

When there are directors like that with whom you really want to work with, how important is the role for you?  Are there directors for whom you would play any role?

Yes, with any director whom I want to work with, I will play any role. You will not be on the losing end in this situation if you choose the right people to work with.

Where does this fascination for auteur cinema comes from and for directors like Claire Denis or Cronenberg?

I do not feel like it's art-house movie every time.  These are big names with whom I work for, so for me it's a bigger level than independent art film.  I do not feel like being in a super obscure film.

But I don’t see why I will turn to blockbusters.  Often we do not really know the directors of these films.  I think the really mainstream movies are pretty boring, as if I've seen them all before. When I receive these scripts, it's as if they're following a formula. It does not matter.  But I would like the directors I work with to have more viewers.  The audience earlier was more adventurous.

But you draw the public with your name ...

Yes, like 10 people! (laughs) I don’t know, but yes I would.  The majority of people who will go see the movie are people who love Claire.  But I hope that it creates a sort of expectation when they watch the movie, finding that I'm trying to make interesting choices.

You seem attracted to European cinema ...

I find it quite difficult to choose purely American films.  But yes, it's important. It gives a different tone to my career.  In Europe, the industry is different. And you get to go to Cannes too. That my films are played in European festivals means a lot to me.

Are there other French or French directors with whom you would like to work with?

I would love to work with Godard.  But he is very difficult to reach!  (laughs ) I always liked Jacques Audiard.  There is also Catherine Breillat, Leos Carax, Erick Zonca ... There are plenty!  It's impressive when you find yourself in the same room with Claire Denis for example.  I'm so happy to have worked with Claire Denis, but also because we really feel it's a Claire Denis film.

Is High Life exactly what you imagined? I did not know what to expect.  I did not have expectations in the good sense of the word.  Because when you see movies like Beau Travail, you can feel so much, without necessarily understanding everything.  I just know it's great.  I had complete confidence in what Claire wanted.  But I found the film funnier than I had imagined.  I laughed the first time watching it.  Maybe someone somewhere will find it funny too!

You started very young, how do you reflect upon your career after working with Denis, Safdie, Cronenberg ...

For me, there is no better career than I could dreamt of.  To have this crazy blast with Twilight was very fun ... I really liked doing all the Twilight movies. It was a great Twilight experience, then this direct transition that allowed me to do exactly what I wanted to do right after, I could not have asked for more! To be given the opportunity to work with a collection of filmmakers and films... When I was doing Twilight, I was asked if I was afraid to be typecast.  Each time I said no.

But with Twilight you have experienced what is perhaps the craziest and harshest aspect of Hollywood, being a celebrity ...

But if you have no expectations, it's still pretty easy to deal with.  If you do not wait for someone to treat you a certain way, it doesn’t matter. When all that happened, it was pretty intrusive, but at the same time, there were lots of people around me, I had a group of friends or people I had been working with for years, with whom we all took it with a lot of hindsight and humor.  I took it with humor.

 High Life: "We are not trying to please everyone"

Translated via google translate with some edits.