I know that everyone and their little sister have already weighed in on the Twilight movie adaptation's casting decisions, but I can't help but throw in my two cents as well.
Of anyone in the whole world, I think the person who best embodies the vampire's combination of excessive beauty and inherent scariness is Jonathan Rhys Myers. There's certainly something other-worldly about him. Unfortunately, Twilight couldn't really capitalize on Jonathan's clear vamp-ish qualities, because he doesn't really fit any of the book's characters. Perhaps one of the other myriad of vampire related films and shows will be able to take advantage of them at some point.
I'm not sure entirely which Twilight role they should have given him, but I'm convinced that Ed Westwick should have been in the movie. These photos prove that he's got the pale, beautiful, and brooding thing down. Masterfully.
Personally, I don't have a problem with the casting of Twilight's leads. Kristen Stewart is okay by me, and I think she fits Bella pretty well. And Robert Pattinson has certainly turned out to be quite the find. What confuses me is the supporting cast. And namely that several members of the supporting cast were featured in the sub-par season three of The O.C. I don't think Josh Schwartz even liked that season, so why would anyone look there for casting inspiration? And if you had to scavenge amongst The O.C. season three actors, why wouldn't you pick Willa Holland or Johnny Lewis or Eric Mabius, who were definitely the bright spots among the new cast members that year? Why would you pick Volchok and Sadie and Caitlin's boarding school boyfriend? The choices just seem bizarre to me.
Frankly, I imagine I'll always hold some sort of grunge against Cam Gigandet for playing the guy who killed Marissa Cooper and Nikki Reed for her stint as whiny Johnny's annoying jewelry-making cousin. Ick. It's been years, and I still don't even like to think about that whole debacle. What's especially weird about Nikki's casting is that she's playing Rosalie who is supposed to be tall and blond and Nikki is neither of those things. And it's not like tall blondes are rarities in Hollywood, right? I would think you could walk down the sidewalk and swing your arms around and hit 20 or 30 of them.
But this necessary hair dying thing seems to be a trend with the Twilight casting selections. The blond kid from 90210 (Kellan Lutz) had to dye his hair brown. Peter Facinelli had to dye his hair blond. It seems like they were trying to force certain people into certain roles whether they really fit or not.
Peter Facinelli, for instance. I like Peter; I thought he was great in Damages. But I don't think I'd necessarily classify him as "more handsome than any movie star," which is what Dr. Cullen is supposed to be. (And especially not when he's got this freaky blond hair and white makeup.) My suggestion for Dr. Cullen, and I'm pretty confident about this one, would be Ryan McPartlin a.k.a. Chuck's Captain Awesome! I cite his appearance in Mad Men as proof of his handsomeness. I mean, Betty Draper wouldn't put down her gimlet and have a tryst in the back room of a bar with just any guy, right?
Oh, and I've also been pretty turned off to Elizabeth Reaser in general by her messing with poor Alex on Grey's Anatomy and her love of combining Ugg boots and shorts in The Ex List.
I am kind of excited that Rachelle Lefevre landed a role in the film. She keeps popping up in various television shows I watch, and I always wonder what else I've seen her in before I remember that it was Big Wolf on Campus. Yes, I'm admitting that I used to watch Big Wolf on Campus.
So, anyway, my copious television watching has certainly colored my opinions about the Twilight cast. Will any of this stop me from going to see the movie at my earliest convenience? No, it absolutely will not.
(photo: Twilight Official Movie Site)
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