Fans may have known Robert Pattinson better as Edward Cullen, the bloodthirsty character from the Twilight films, for almost a decade – and in the years after he hit big at the box office as the coordinate of that franchise, he’s utilized his star power to earn interesting parts in edgy, difficult indie films.
Pattinson, though, is Batman as of 2022. Or, at the very least, one of those Batmen. Not just Batman, but an appreciated Batman in Matt Reeves’ terrific, somber remake of the Caped Crusader as a budding crusader seeking out the Riddler while striving to transform from a symbol of terror to a beacon of hope.
With a new smash franchise on the horizon for Pattinson, we’ve evaluated the actor’s finest flicks, from the dreamboat fog of Twilight mania to presenting one of the Dark Knight’s darkest iterations yet.
The Batman (2022)
Pattinson, like all of the performers selected as Batman, was brutally condemned by some fans before even donning his cape and mask. Pattinson, like most Batman performers, delivered as the Caped Crusader, bringing us the most wildly driven Bruce Wayne ever seen in Matt Reeves’ The Batman. During his second year of attempting to eliminate Gotham of criminality as Batman, Pattinson’s Bruce is jolted awake by The Riddler, who sees Batman as a fellow vigilante and feels an affinity with him. It’s one of the finest Batman movies ever created, and Pattinson plays an important role in it.
Streaming Partners:
Amazon Prime Video
Max
The Lighthouse (2019)
You best bring your classy game when a movie is a two-man act, and the other performer is Willem Dafoe. Pattinson achieved all of that and more, thoroughly immersing himself in the part of an assistant lighthouse keeper who goes insane after being imprisoned on a remote island under a demanding, flatulent supervisor. Pattinson commits to the gloom and even finds humor in the part, screaming sea shanties with enthusiasm, never sacrificing his Maine accent, and wearing magnificent facial hair. Pattinson, a fan of Robert Eggers’ “The Witch,” approached the director about collaborating, and one believes he has found a collaborator he’ll return to over and over, as the director challenges his star to go for broke, practically emptying his entire being on screen.
Streaming partner:
Amazon Prime Video
High Life (2019)
Pattinson takes the role of protagonist in Claire Denis’ English-language debut, continuing his trend of tough, contentious work with directors. The film depicts a group of Death Row prisoners who are transported into space to collect energy from a black hole. It is both perplexing and wonderful. Nothing positive can happen in a space movie or a Denis picture. Soon enough, there is murder, self-harm, and even spaghettification. Pattinson’s Monte, on the other hand, isn’t like the others; for one thing, his crime was to kill the guy who killed his dog. He’s also purposefully celibate, being the sole guest not to utilize the ship’s so-called “f-k box.” However, Juliette Binoche’s infatuated Dr. Dibs sedates and rapes Monte, leaving him with a kid. Pattinson’s moments with his child are equally as compelling as those in which he is alone, chatting to himself. And, despite the fact that the film is narrated in pieces, moving around in time, Pattinson’s acting keeps it on track.
Streaming Partner:
Available to rent.
Damsel (2018)
Pattinson finally agrees to make a full-fledged comedy. Of course, because it’s Pattinson, it’s an odd little humor that also manages to be a feminist Western. Pattinson plays Samuel Alabaster, a naïve, lovesick suitor seeking his adored Penelope (Mia Wasikowska), who has been taken prisoner in the 1870s. Samuel embarks on a voyage full of unforeseen, often absurdist twists, accompanied by a pastor named Henry and a lovely small horse named Butterscotch. It may be one of Pattinson’s most joyful performances, as the actor demonstrates that he can play bright-eyed and also melancholy. The film by David and Nathan Zellner revels in subverting Western clichés and traditions, demonstrating that perhaps not every damsel in distress wishes to be rescued.
Streaming Partner:
Hulu
Good Time (2017)
Pattinson delivered a flawless performance, summoning all of the brilliance, charisma, risk-taking, and devotion exhibited in his past work to play a bank burglar Connie Nikas in Josh and Benny Safdie’s unsettling, unrelenting thriller. There are echoes of the icy resolve seen in “Cosmopolis” when Connie pulls his developmentally delayed brother Nick (played by Benny Safdie) out of treatment to assist him in a robbery. Cedric Diggory’s charm is on show as he sweet chats both his lover and an outsider he encounters on a bus for assistance. And Connie’s night on the run is full of the single-minded drive that turns to despair as things unravel that characterizes so many of his characters.
Streaming Partner:
Netflix.
Amazon Prime Video.
Hotstar.
Voot.
Twilight (2011)
Skeptics may complain all they want, but there’s a reason the “Twilight” films created stars of its two leads, and there’s a purpose Pattinson knocked out numerous other candidates for the coveted part. And for those who completely disregard the filmmaking’s quality, there’s even more reason to admire the performers who have to carry off many whoppers of narratives. While Edward Cullen spends most of the previous three movies downcast and dour, “Breaking Dawn” is where he comes into his own. He marries his life’s love (ironically), becomes a father, and eventually loses his loving wife. The moment in which he attempts all he can to resurrect Bella, even biting her in order to pass on poison, is full of sadness and rage, and it is some of his greatest work in the whole series.
Streaming Partner:
Netflix
Hulu