As a new feature to this column, the popular Twitter duo "Bestie" and "411" of KStew411 will be presenting intermittent opinion pieces on the current exciting goings-on that surround Kristen Stewart at any given moment. Fans know that Stewart is currently working on The Twilight Saga: Eclipse and filmed The Runaways (a biopic wherein she portrays Joan Jett) this summer.
So, in this piece, entitled "Portraying Joan Jett is the kind of role young actresses dream of" or, perhaps better dubbed, "Why Kristen Stewart totally needed the mullet," the subject of the efficacy of Stewart's new haircut for the film is tackled, KStew411 style. Take a look.
A popular topic of conversation around gmail the Team 411 office is Kristen Stewart’s dedication to her craft and the roles she takes on. At only 19, she has already worked with Jodie Foster, Robert DeNiro, Meg Ryan, Sharon Stone, James Gandolfini, and Donald Sutherland. She’s been directed by the likes of David Fincher, Jon Favreau, Sean Penn, and up-and-coming names like Greg Mottola and David Slade. Sure she’s talented, and yes, she has a reputation for being very professional. But a big part of what makes her so in demand is her pure dedication to delivering her best each time she goes in front of a camera. In 2002’s Panic Room, Kristen’s character suffers diabetic shock. In 2007’s The Cake Eaters, she plays a teen dealing with a rare degenerative nerve disorder. Her resume is loaded with characters that made physical demands on her, roles that were comprised of making we the audience believe she suffered. Kristen has always been lauded for her ability to communicate her character’s experiences in such a physical way.
So who was really surprised when she cut her hair into a mullet and dyed it jet black in order to play Joan Jett?
Apparently a lot of people were, and still are, shocked by this decision. I guess it’s because I am a fan of Kristen first, and Twilight second, that I completely understood her decision. Did it make me want to run out and get a mullet? No. Did I admire her dedication to such an important role? Yes.
Because let’s face it. Portraying Joan Jett in a biopic about legendary teen punk rockers The Runaways is a big deal. I’m not sure Twilight fans really understand this. Every time pictures of Kristen out with the Joan-hair surface, or in Bella’s busted wig for Eclipse, someone feels the need to tweet at me, Why did she do that???!!!1 why couldn’t she wear a wig for runaways? Bella’s supposed to have pretty hair!!!1!! Isn’t that kinda the point, though? Joan Jett is punk rock. Punk rock is about rebellion. What’s more rebellious than an up-and-coming actress cutting off her pretty-girl hair for a mullet? It’s pretty much the biggest [middle finger] Kristen could give to the idea of being just another cute starlet on the cover of a magazine.
And look, I get it. For Twilight-first fans, Bella is more important than Kristen. And I also know not all Twi-fans feel that way, but I still hear this, months after she cut her hair, and it still bugs everyone on Team 411 to hear it. Examining Kristen’s resume, it’s pretty clear that a project like The Runaways is more indicative of the sort of long-term career Kristen is establishing. Yes, Bella is the role that made her world famous, but it’s parts like Joan Jett that will cement her reputation as one of the finest actresses of her generation.
Portraying Joan Jett is harder than bringing Bella to life. Why? Because Joan Jett is a real person. A real person who is still alive. Who was on set nearly every day of filming. Let’s think about that. You’re in a movie, playing a legendary rockstar. Said legendary rockstar is not only alive and producing this movie, she’s on set damn near every day, looking over your shoulder. No pressure, right? When filming one of the Twilight movies, Bella Swan is not sitting behind the camera, watching Kristen’s every move. Kristen did a number of things to make the role of Joan Jett her own. She wore a pair of Joan’s old shoes, had one of Joan’s old guitars. She learned how to play and sing a number of The Runaways’ songs. But at the end of the day, she said it was cutting her hair into Joan’s famous mullet that made her feel like Joan. No one berates Nicole Kidman for wearing a prosthetic nose as Virginia Woolf in The Hours, and people applaud when actors like George Clooney and Matt Damon gain weight for roles. Christian Bale has made his career in chameleonic physical changes. Yet when a nineteen-year-old girl gets a bad haircut so she can play a 1970’s era punk rocker, the world derides her decision and makes fun of her for it. I say we stand up and cheer for Kristen’s decision to wear bad hair for months on end in order to be as realistic and true as possible in her role.
Check out the video below, passed along by #KStew411 follower
Amanda Bell The Examiner
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