tMF | The Movie-Fanatic

Larry411 and I were busy exchanging tweets early today. Our topic - Australian actor Xavier Samuel, who will play Riley on the 3rd installment of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. I find this character quite interesting, to say the least.

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The wiki on Twilight characters has the following about Riley:

As a vampire, Riley is tall and muscular with bright red eyes and blond hair. Victoria bites and changes Riley when he is approximately Bella's age in Eclipse. Once Riley ages and gains some control, he helps to lead Victoria's army of newborn vampires. He performs his work faithfully because of his love for Victoria, which she pretends to return. However, in a battle between the army of newborns and the Cullens at the end of Eclipse, Edward voices Riley's concern that Victoria has been lying to him. [ read more ]

There is something tragic about the character. How would you feel if you love someone and you're only being used and that you'll soon die without having to actually feel being loved? I remember Xavier in September - which happens to be a dramatic film which "tells the story of two 16 year old boys, one black and one white, whose pure and unaffected friendship begins to fall apart under the pressures of a changing social and political climate." Xavier did an exceptional job in the movie, so I'm not wondering why they cast him for the role of Riley - he is perfect!

More of Xavier Samuel, some exciting movie clips and photos after the jump!

Xavier Samuel, the actor: Xavier graduated from The Flinders University Drama Centre in 2005. He has an extensive theatre background. Plays include Hamlet, Two Weeks with the Queen and Osama the hero. Xavier's television roles include a guest appearance in McLeod's Daughters and he has been in a number of films, Angela's Decision, the critically acclaimed 2005 drama 2:37, Newcastle, The Loved Ones and Road Train.

As Riley: It might be a minor role, but as the saying goes, there are no 'small roles' only 'small actors'. I can't wait to watch how Xavier will portray Riley on the big screen.

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So now the question, Do you think he has what it takes to make it big?

Case in Point: September - For Xavier Samuel, history likes to repeat itself. Just when you thought it must be hard to do auditions and compete with more established actors, then the fact comes out that Samuel is used to that. In September, arguably Xavier's best movie to date, the casting was just as hard as in Eclipse:

The casting process for the role of Ed (Xavier's character) was extensive and the team screen tested hundreds of young actors, often seeing up to sixty people in one day. The producers knew they weren't going to use a "name" actor so wanted to give each candidate a fair shot. "We would have auditioned probably every white kid in Australia that could possibly fit the mould, well over two hundred," says Peter "until we finally found Xavier. It was months and months of auditioning. It was hard but in the end we finally got Clarence and Xavier together and they worked beautifully. Obviously the film has to be carried on their shoulders so it was a crucial decision".

About the Film: September is a humane, cinematic and intricately drawn coming-of-age story - a visually stunning character film about two 16 year old boys, one black, one white, whose pure and unaffected friendship begins to fall apart against the backdrop of a turbulent and pivotal moment in Australia's past.

Set in Western Australia in1968, Ed and Paddy have been best friends for as long as they can remember, having grown up together on Ed's family farm. They spend their afternoons together being boys; laughing, reading, smoking and then building their own make-shift boxing ring in the wheat fields where they spar each day and dream of future glories.

But Ed is white and Paddy is Aboriginal and the changing social and political climate threatens to fracture what was a rock solid friendship.

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Says Xavier on the movie's theme:

The beauty of the friendship is that it doesn't harbour any of the prejudices that the outside world has. There's innocence in their relationship that's not tainted by the outside world. They manage to be friends regardless of what's happening around them.

September is set in a time of social and political change in Australia. Even as late as the 1960s, indigenous Australians were treated with great inequality because of the colour of their skin. Aborigines were not routinely counted in the Census and their rights as citizens were regularly ignored. Prior to the 1967 referendum they were not legally regarded as Australian citizens.

Watch a clip featuring Xavier Samuel and his co-star Clarence John-Ryan, who plays Paddy, Ed's best friend and who happens to be an Aborigine.

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Case in Point: Newcastle - Says Larry Richman:

I first saw Xavier as a troubled high school student in 2:37 at the 2007 Santa Barbara Film Festival. Many compared the film to Gus Van Sant's Elephant. He played another confused teen in Newcastle. In my review I wrote, "It’s always hard to single anyone out in an ensemble cast but this film touches the heart more than anything by the performances of Lachlan Buchanan and Xavier Samuel as Jesse and Fergus. Their relationship is both heartening and heartbreaking in turn, and it only works because the onscreen chemistry is so palpable. Their commanding presence says that these guys have a bright future in cinema. [ read more ]

You can read Larry's film review here.

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I still think September remains his best project, but Newcastle is not too far behind. In this film, Xavier plays a gay character. As an added perspective, here's Howard Feinstein's review via Screen Daily:

At the center of Newcastle is Jesse (Buchanan), 17 and blonde, almost always shirtless. Like the rest of his buddies and most of his family members, he surfs. He does little else, in fact, although at the end of the film he does emote about being responsible for the death at sea of his loser older brother Victor (Reshad Strik). He isn't culpable, but these sequences do afford him the opportunity to display a bit of range. We know Victor is evil: the heavy music cords that come on whenever he and his buddies appear let us know that right away. But Jesse does manage to forge a bond with his gay twin brother, Fergus (Samuel), a goth-like individual. Somewhat gratuitously, Castle has Fergus strip off his long trunks for his friends and their girls to reveal a huge endowment (his back is to the camera); at least they are impressed. [ read more ]

These two films already made quite an impression on me, and I think this young actor can really make it big in Hollywood. It can be a slow, painful process or it can happen overnight. Whatever is the case, Xavier Samuel has cause for celebration.

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What's on your mind? Do you think Xavier Samuel has what it takes to become a big star? Have you seen the movies - September and Newcastle, starring Xavier Samuel? Let us know what you think!
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