Rob's Confirmed New Role - Eric Parker in Cosmopolis

Dun dun duuuun! Drama heard around the Twidom in the form of Rob's new role in movie drama "Cosmopolis" based on the book by Don DeLillo.

Here's what Business Insider has to say about the project:

Described as a study of capitalism in a slightly futuristic metropolis, the drama will find Pattinson playing Eric Packer, a financial wunderkind who risks his entire fortune to bet against the yen on a tumultuous trading day. The young man's decision backfires and he becomes a possible assassination target during a 24-hour odysseyacross Manhattan.

If the movie is anything like the book the movie's based on, it should be awesome. First of all, the lead is a 28-year old billionaire who entertains "highly sexed women" while his wife is merely an extra he sees outside the limo he's riding around in all day (one thing we hope they change - please don't let this be another Phonebooth).

His bet against the rise in the yen apparently "parallels his own fall," as he loses his clients millions of dollars, and interestingly, he enjoys it; "relishing being unburdened by the loss of so much money." This brings us to another reason why we like the idea of this movie. The book is written as a modern re-interpretation of Ulysses, so it could be smart. Also, John Updike wrote a scathing review of the book in the New Yorker, and Walter Kirn (who wrotethe book, Up in the Air) had an equally critical take in his New York Times review.

Their criticism is primarily that:"barely corporeal cerebral entities occupy the pages" (Kirn)"the sounds they produce are so monotonous... that it's a mystery why they're even bothering" (Kim)"DeLillo’s sympathies are so much with the poor that his rich man seems a madman" (Updike)Good books almost never turn into good movies, so this bodes well. They better change that last bit though. Otherwise, this'll just be another Wall Street 2.

Hmmm.... now I have no objections to Rob playing a schmexy genius Manhattenite - it's almost an ironic progression of Tyler in Remember Me - but I'm already mentally associating this with various Shia LaBeouf roles.

However, I haven't read the book yet - Rob's judgement is usually solid - we shall see!

- Lorabell