A Tribute to David Bowie and Alan Rickman

Hey, guys. So I didn’t get the chance to address this last week, but…it was a rough week, huh? We lost a rock icon and a legendary actor in one fell swoop–both Brits, both age 69, both to cancer. It’s uncanny, really, that we should lose two such well-known and well-loved individuals so close together and in such similar ways. I think everyone is still kind of just absorbing the fact that they’re gone. That said, I wanted to take a minute to celebrate the lives of these men here in my own little way.

David Bowie (1947-2016)

Admittedly, I have seen very little of Bowie onscreen. I have, of course, seen him as the Goblin King in Labyrinth–arguably his most memorable role. Honestly, it’s been forever since I’ve seen Labyrinth, but now I really, really want a rewatch. Bowie makes that movie. Case and point, the clip below.

Also, in a more random and much smaller role, Bowie is pretty delightful as the walk-off judge in Zoolander. Because of course David Bowie would be the judge in this situation.

And did anybody else totally forget that he plays Nikola Tesla in The Prestige? Again, this is another one I need to watch again–especially now.

I know he had some other roles here and there, but what we’re really going to miss him for, of course, is his wonderful music. I could choose from all kinds of hits, but here’s my personal favorite:

R.I.P. Mr. Bowie. You are a legend, and you will be deeply missed.

 Alan Rickman (1946-2016)

While the loss of David Bowie was very sad, the loss of Alan Rickman hit me right in the gut. This is an actor who was attached to a beloved franchise–an actor I grew up knowing as Professor Severus Snape, one of the best villains to ever grace the big screen. Rickman’s sophisticated bass, his trademark sneers, and the delightful grumpiness he instilled in Snape made the character an instant fan favorite. Watching Harry Potter now will be all the more bittersweet knowing Rickman is gone. But here’s an excellent clip highlighting some of Snape’s most glorious moments:

After Snape, the first thing that comes to mind for me as far as famous Rickman roles is Die Hard’s Hans Gruber. It took me far to long to experience the joy of villainous Gruber. In fact, the first time I ever saw Die Hard was just a little over two years ago for my Resolutions series (and you can read that here). I should’ve watched years ago because not only did I really like it, but Rickman is on point. The best Die Hard villain by far. I wish I could find a compilation clip, but here’s Gruber’s first encounter with Bruce Willis’s hero, John McClane:

Though we don’t actually get to see him in the flesh, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Rickman’s hilarious voice work as depressed robot Marvin in Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. The movie as a whole is extremely bizarre, but if you’re a Rickman fan, it’s totally worth it for him.

Just one more. Even if his character is pretty much the worst person in the film, I am still fond of Rickman’s sleazy Harry in Love Actually. You hate him for what he does, but Rickman’s honest portrayal reveal him for what he is: human and flawed. And he even manages to sneak in this pretty funny scene with Rowan Atkinson:

There are so many other Rickman characters I could reference. Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd. The Blue Caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland. Metatron in Dogma. And those are just the ones I’ve seen. I need to go watch Galaxy Quest, Sense and Sensibility, Bottle Shock, and so many more pronto. I only wish there were future Rickman performances to look forward to. R.I.P. Mr. Rickman. I don’t know if the Harry Potter fandom will ever recover from the loss of their beloved Professor Snape.

Anyway, just wanted to take a day to acknowledge these two. Hope I didn’t get anybody too down in the dumps with this! I’ll be back tomorrow with something much happier–another guest film resolution! See you then!