Fate sticks its foot out to trip all the characters in all the worst ways in "Remember Me," a grave romantic drama with grandiose thematic intentions. Framed in a portentous manner with a calamitous ending that will only come as a surprise to those who haven't been paying attention, the modestly scaled film delivers some moving and affecting moments amid a preponderance of scenes of frequently annoying people behaving badly. It is precisely the young female fans of star Robert Pattinson who will react most wrenchingly to this doomed romance, which should enjoy a short but sweet B.O. life.
Pattinson is in heavy James Dean mode here as a reckless, unwashed, chain-smoking, intensely confused pretty boy named Tyler who, as Dean did in "East of Eden" and "Rebel Without a Cause," has major father issues. Turning his back, at least for the moment, on his family's wealth -- dad Charles (Pierce Brosnan) is a mighty Wall Street lawyer, while classy mom Diane (Lena Olin) has remarried and is raising precocious 11-year-old artist Caroline (Ruby Jerins) -- Tyler rooms with crude low-life Aidan (Tate Ellington) while occasionally attending NYU classes between drinking bouts.
Coulter's second feature film is Remember Me, a romantic drama set in New York City starring Twilight's Robert Pattinson and Emilie de Ravin ("Lost") as Tyler and Ally, two young people from different worlds who meet under odd circumstances. Both have had great losses in their lives and both are dealing with daddy issues, Tyler with his rich selfish businessman father played by Pierce Brosnan and Ally with her overprotective police detective father, played by Chris Cooper, but somehow they're able to find a middle ground and fall in love.
ComingSoon.net had a chance to sit down with Coulter to talk about his second movie. Unfortunately, there's one aspect of the movie we really wanted to discuss with him, but even knowing about it before seeing the movie really takes away from its impact. Even so, here is what we ended up talking about with the director in our exclusive video interview:
* How he ended up with the script and why he decided to make it his second film * The fact that the movie's based on an original screenplay rather than adapted from a book * How hard was it to convince financiers and a studio to back the film * Getting Robert Pattinson on board and how that helped with financing * Whether or not he considered casting New York actors for the roles * How he was surprised to learn Emilie de Ravin was Australian * How he wanted to approach the movie compared to "Hollywoodland" * Talking about creating some of the settings for the story * He talks about his next project, directing an episode of HBO's "Boardwalk Empire" And More!
Bottom Line: A strong romantic drama in which Robert Pattinson and Emilie de Ravin really shine.
"Remember Me" is a smart, engaging drama about young love flourishing amid sadness and loss. The story ends on Sept. 11, 2001, in New York, which, depending on your point of view, further underscores the sense of loss implicit in the movie's title or is an unnecessary dramatic ploy to end the film with a devastating twist of fate that immediately connects with every audience member. But to return to the original point: "Remember Me" is a smart, engaging drama about a romance.
With the "Twilight" franchise's Robert Pattinson topping a fine cast -- the actor executive produces as well -- "Remember Me" should attract strong opening-weekend audiences. However, it will find its legs with women young and old who will spark to a romance without the off-color humor and male boorishness that so often accompanies romantic fare these days. Summit Entertainment can expect above-average boxoffice.
In an opening sequence 10 years earlier, a subway mugging turns violent as the World Trade Center's Twin Towers loom ominously in the distance, a dramatic foreshadowing that fortunately does not continue into the rest of the movie. But it does establish the suddenness of tragedy, especially as it affects two families at the center of the film.
Allen Coulter, directing a script by Will Fetters, then proceeds to unfold a story about two young people who share little in common except an inexplicable tragedy in each of their lives from which neither family has fully recovered.
Tyler (Pattinson) comes from Park Avenue comfort, but his brother's suicide has pulled a rug from underneath him. He is a lost soul, and it's not clear he is going to snap out of his funk anytime soon. His divorced father (Pierce Brosnan) has grown tired of his melancholy and disaffection, but his mother (Lena Olin) still has faith in him.
Tyler has two entirely different sources of succor: his kid sister (Ruby Jerins), whom he adores, and his roommate, Aidan (Tate Ellington), who has enough wild-man spirit to get Tyler out of his routine and into a few parties and bars. By the way, Tyler has a way with women.
Ally (Emilie de Ravin) is from a blue-collar family in Queens. Her father (Chris Cooper), a cop, clearly has not recovered from the murder of his wife. On the surface, Ally is less damaged, but one suspects she simply hides her pain better.
The cop and Tyler have a late-night encounter where Tyler's righteousness comes up violently against the cop's hardened weariness. Then, in the movie's one quasi-contrivance, Aidan discovers that the cop's attractive daughter shares a class with Tyler. He persuades his roomie into romancing then dumping the woman as a way to get back at her father.
Predictably, the first part works but not the second, where he is supposed to dump Ally. Instead, the two fall in love.
The movie doesn't make a big point out of the grief that overshadows their lives. It's implicit in their actions and manner. They bond in many ways, not the least of which are over fathers at a loss to meet their kids' emotional needs.
The scenes between Pattinson and de Ravin exude genuine charm. One wants these two to get together. They are likable without being saccharine.
The fathers are harder to read. In a decade, neither seems to have developed a coping mechanism, and Tyler's father's indifference toward his daughter is inexplicable.
Fate, in the form of 9/11, casts all of these character flaws and shortcomings into bold relief. This is, after all, a film of memory and loss. One imagines that any of these characters might be narrating the story years later as they seek to remember those final moments before their world so utterly changed.
The production is clean and polished, with Marcelo Zarvos' understated though persistent score and Jonathan Freeman's meticulous cinematography bringing notable sparkle to this heartfelt drama.
Cute article... but a couple of spoilers in there - read with care!
5 Reasons Remember Me's Tyler Hawkins Might Be As Lovable as Twilight's Edward Cullen
From the first time my eyes saw the words "Edward Cullen" in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight book, it was love at first read. Every line out of his mouth made my heart melt just a little bit more. (It went as far as me forcing my mom to read the books so she could get to know her "future son-in-law" -- seriously!)
And when Rob Pattinson was cast to play him in the The Twilight Saga films, my obsession for Team Edward spiked to a whole new level. His brooding looks, those little smiles cracking from the corners of his lips, and the beyond romantic ways he did anything and everything.
So when I first saw the trailers for Rob's new film, Remember Me (opening March 12), I was fully aware this was no Edward Cullen. And in all honesty, nothing about the preview made me want to see the film. Sure, I'm a sucker for a coming-of-age tale packed with romance, but he just seemed so unrelatable.
And then I found out the ending. I won't spoil it for you guys, but accidentally finding out how it concluded made me need to see the film... right away. And luckily enough, last Monday after covering the red carpet premiere of the film and chatting with all the cast and crew about it, I was able to see it right away. And W-O-W.
Let's just say, this is one affective film that will stick with you for the rest of your life. But a big part of it is the way that Rob plays the very-human character of Tyler Hawkins.
So I'm officially launching Team Tyler right now... starting with my Top 5 reasons you might just fall in love with Tyler as much as Edward (I won't go as far as saying more than Tyler...yet...)
1- The lamely adorable way he picks up girls -- just wait until you see him work the charm with Ally (Emilie de Ravin).
2- The too-cute way he says, "Abso-freakin'-lutely!" to his little sister Caroline (Ruby Jerins) when she asks if he'll go to her art show.
3- His heart-wrenching relationship with his deceased older brother... so close that the moment he falls in love, he rushes off to write to him about her at their favorite diner.
4- His determination -- he does everything he can to win Ally a gigantic bear at the carnival... and ends up paying for it!
5- The big brother heart that has him carrying a pink sleeping bag, defending her against mean girls, and reading stories about Greek gods to her in bed to make her feel better. Awww!
So get ready to fall in love with another of Rob's characters (I started way back with Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire!) in a whole new way!
I hate that they asked the 'publicist' of Robsessed (The DVD) for their opinion - a quick google search and they could have found those little tidbits themselves! Anywho... Robert Pattinson: vampire slayer! With his new role, Robert Pattinson hopes to drive a stake through his teen vamp image. But can he do it on looks alone?
No one can say Robert Pattinson — best known as Edward Cullen in the “Twilight” movies — doesn’t suffer for his craft. While shooting “Remember Me,” his new film out Friday, “RPatz” had a near-brush with death. The actor was so besieged by fans on the film’s Union Square set that, to the chagrin of his five bodyguards, they once shoved him off a curb and into the side of a moving cab.
But his latest turn as a depressed New Yorker in “Remember Me” is providing an even greater trial. His first non-vampire role since the “Twilight” series began is a pivotal moment in his career. Will his total immersion in one of the biggest-grossing film franchises ever be the one thing he’s always associated with, or will it be a stepping stone to a bigger career?
The low-key Brit is loath to talk up his own skills; he’s raised self-deprecation to an art form in his bedheaded, aw-shucks interviews. “I wasn’t an actor-y kid or anything,” Pattinson, 23, has said of his London childhood, where his decision to join the local theater club was a bit of a fluke.
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