Sara Gruen's bestselling novel Water for Elephants comes alive on the big screen with Robert Pattinson (best known for the Twilight series) and Oscar-winner Reese Witherspoon (Walk the Line) in the lead roles. Pattinson stars as a veterinary student days away from graduation when he loses his parents in a tragic accident. Leaving school behind, Jacob winds up jumping a train - a choice which forever changes the course of his life. The train is part of the Benzini Brothers Circus, and with nowhere else to go and no form of income, he takes a job as the show's veterinarian despite the fact he never completed his finals.
Jacob is immediately infatuated with the show's star, Marlena (Witherspoon), a fact which doesn't sit well with Marlena's obsessive husband, August (Christoph Waltz). August's a cruel man who's abusive to his wife and the show's animals, and as Jacob and Marlena grow closer, August's violent outbursts threaten to tear the Benzini Brothers show apart.
Together for a press conference in support of the 20th Century Fox film, Pattinson and Witherspoon discussed the appeal of the project, slipping back in time to the 1930s, and bonding with Tai the elephant.
Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon Water for Elephants Press Conference
What was the impression you got from reading the book that made you want to do a film adaptation?
Reese Witherspoon: "I liked the structure of the book. I like how, all through the book, there was this man’s remembrance of his life and his life experiences. One of my favorite parts of the movie is Hal Holbrook’s part of the movie where he’s reminiscing. I thought that was great."
Robert Pattinson: "I think I’ve just always had a bit of an affinity for that era. I always wanted to do a movie around that time. And, I think it was just very solid, how she [author Sara Gruen] created the world there. I just wanted to be a part of it."
How did you approach becoming a person from another time period?
Robert Pattinson: "There was a comprehensive creation of the world. I’ve never worked on anything so detailed. There was an embankment with a train track on the top. All the trailers were on one side, and then the circus world was on the other. Once you walked over the tracks, there would be a camera, but that was the only thing from the 21st century. You could stand on the tracks and look over at everything, and you were in the '30s."
"We were out in the middle of the desert in Fillmore, and there was nothing else around. There was an orchard. We were in the '30s. Jack Fisk, the production designer, used authentic pegs and the ropes. Every single thing which built the world was all totally real. And, authentic period underpants do actually help as well. I actually wore them every single day. Jacqueline West, the costume designer, was unbelievable. Almost everything was real. Every pair of jeans were all from the '20s and '30s. It was crazy."
Reese, did your costumes and look really help you in finding this character?
Reese Witherspoon: "Yeah, certainly. I debated about whether or not I was going to wear a wig. Ultimately, after lots of discussion and screen-testing, I decided, 'I’m just going to cut my hair. I’m just going to dye it white. I’m just going to do it.' It was really transforming for me. I didn’t even recognize myself. It’s a real gift, as an actress, to have people around you who are artisans that are the best at what they do, creating period costumes for you and set design. It’s a very collaborative medium. You’re only as good as the people that you collaborate with, so we were very lucky to have the best people in the business designing the film."
How was it to wear such body conscious costumes? Did you do anything to physically prepare for that?
Reese Witherspoon: "Well, I was training a lot with the circus training, riding the elephant and riding horses, so I was pretty busy. I’ve made a conscious effort, throughout my career, to not end up in a bathing suit in a movie, and here I was in this movie, wearing a leotard for the majority of it. It was horrifying! But, it was inspiring to have Jacqueline West design them. They’re beautiful. It was a different time, when women loved their curves and enjoyed being voluptuous and all that sort of thing. All of the costumes in the film are very flattering for women."
What do you love so much about this time period?
Reese Witherspoon: "The unknown, I think."
Robert Pattinson: "There’s a wildness to it. I think that’s why I like that period. After that, it’s just white picket fences. It just gets progressively more boring. But, it’s the end of the Wild West. It’s why kids still want to be cowboys, even in England."
What was it like to work with Tai the elephant, especially in the beginning?
Reese Witherspoon: "[Director] Francis [Lawrence] and I went out and visited Tai - probably three or four months before shooting - and he brought a camera. I was like, 'Why did you bring a camera?,' but he took pictures of me, every moment of the first experiences I had of meeting her and her picking me up. And then he sent me the pictures and I was like, 'Oh, my gosh!' I really have this memory of the first time I met her. I was terrified. I screamed. I like animals, but this was a completely unique experience."
Robert Pattinson: "I wasn’t scared at all. There was only one moment, when we first saw the whole herd together and Gary, Tai’s trainer said, 'Sit,' literally as if he were talking to a dog, and it sat down in exactly the same way a dog would. Just seeing that, it’s totally incomprehensible. I basically decided to do the movie at that point. I hadn’t read the script or anything. It’s very powerful to think that you can have a relationship with these huge beasts."
Rob, it’s been said that the elephant took quite a liking to you. How does an elephant flirt?
Robert Pattinson: "I don’t know who started that. I’ve been asked about it all day. It sounds really disturbing. I wasn’t flirting with the elephant. I think I had a relationship with the elephant, but it was based purely on candy. I strategically placed mints. I’d suck a peppermint for a bit, and then stick it onto my body, under my armpits and covering my entire chest, and not tell anyone. So, every single time the elephant would be constantly sniffing me and I’d be like, 'I don’t know, she just really likes me. It’s crazy!' But, I think she was just sniffing around for a treat."
Rob, in the film your character lies about being a vet to get a job in the circus. Have you ever lied to get an acting job?
Robert Pattinson: "Oh, yeah, all the time. I don’t know if there’s the same thing in America, but there’s a thing called the Spotlight Form in England, where you have all your talents and accents and everything. You just tick these boxes saying what you’re capable of, as an actor. I just tick everything. I can do any accent in the world. I can literally do any technical skill. I think it’s still like that. I ticked that I can do Lithuanian accents, fluently."
Reese, have you ever lied at an audition?
Reese Witherspoon: "Of course! That’s the whole point. They want you to lie. They want you to tell them that they can trust you and that you’re going to take some of the responsibility away. They like that. That’s what they buy."
Reese, what was it like to have to do the kissing scenes with Rob Pattinson, who is so much taller than you are?
Reese Witherspoon: "What’s it like to kiss a tall guy? I don’t know. In the movies, they put you on a box, and then you kiss the tall guy."
Robert Pattinson: "It was really easy for me. I’ve got quite bad posture and I’ve got a big, heavy head, so it just slumps down, and then she was in the right spot, naturally."
Rob, how was it to do the scenes where you have to shovel the animal poop?
Robert Pattinson: "I don’t mind working with poop, at all. I have a natural propensity to work on big piles of poop. I’m very familiar with it. I don’t know why I wasn’t grossed out by it, at all. Because everything felt so authentic all the time, you just accept it as part of the world. The scene where we were in that train car, there were like 10 billion flies. On any other movie I think I’d be like, 'Let’s just do one take!' But, I was perfectly happy to make a little mound and sit there and eat my lunch."
Reese, what was Francis Lawrence like as a director?
Reese Witherspoon: "I was very excited to work with Francis. I was a big fan of I Am Legend. I just thought he brought a lot of humanity to that film. We had a lot of conversations about research that he had done, which was very extensive. Also, it’s a big undertaking in taking on a very popular novel and having to tell a story with scenes that have no words. Film is a very visual medium and I think he did an incredible job with that. Some of my favorite scenes in the film are ones where we don’t speak at all. We’re just seeing each other, from a distance. I think he told the story beautifully, in that capacity, and really chose those moments well."
Did you enjoy getting to shoot some of the film in Tennessee?
Reese Witherspoon: "Ironically, the only part of the film that I’m not in is the part that they filmed in Tennessee, so I wasn’t there. Because of the weather, they were emailing me going, 'This is horrible!'"
Robert Pattinson: "There was an amazing moonshine day. It was one of the best days of the shoot. Drinking moonshine in 120 degrees, half of the crew was passed out, after one sip. It was amazing!"
Rob, was there anything about Jacob Jankowski’s journey in the film that you personally could relate to?
Robert Pattinson: "I don’t know. I guess I had an experience, when I did a Harry Potter film years ago, and I was just starting to realize that I wanted to be an actor, even though I had already finished three movies by that point. I remember being in Tokyo and looking out the window and seeing the Tokyo skyline. It made me reflect on what had happened in my life, and I was in awe of what road I had taken, by accident. In terms of being mesmerized by a girl, like he is, I guess that happens."
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Water for Elephants hits theaters on April 22, 2011.
