RIP, Sir Ian Holm
Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2020 3:33 am
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/j ... bo-baggins
Death is inevitable, especially for the elderly, but this makes me sad. Ian was a very good actor, undoubtedly one of the best character actors ever. And I don't like that term, character actor. It seems to diminish the accomplishment. Think of how many movies were spiced up and made more enjoyable by the performances of actors not playing the major role. But I digress.
Of course, most of us will always think first of Ian as Bilbo, but that was a role very late in his career. Probably the first movie I saw him in where he really stood out was Alien, where he played Ash. But the first thing I probably ever saw the he was in was the miniseries Jesus of Nazareth, where he played a Temple scribe who schemed with Judas to bring Jesus before the Sanhedrin. At the time I first saw that, my primary thought was, this is a made-up part...there is no scribe named Zerah in the Bible. But watching it subsequently and knowing how movies add roles to facilitate the story-telling, it is notable for being another very fine performance from Ian. Seriously, did the guy ever give a bad performance?
Another notable role was Sir William Gull in From Hell. He was the kindly old doctor who was a physician to the Royal Family. But only towards the end is it revealed that he is Jack the Ripper. So Ian played two very different personalities, one you'd be honored to know, and one you'd want to stay the hell away from. And of course he was the priest in the Fifth Element and the voice of Chef Skinner in Ratatouille, so he was very good in comedic roles too.
I could go on at length about him, but suffice it to say, he'll be missed.
Death is inevitable, especially for the elderly, but this makes me sad. Ian was a very good actor, undoubtedly one of the best character actors ever. And I don't like that term, character actor. It seems to diminish the accomplishment. Think of how many movies were spiced up and made more enjoyable by the performances of actors not playing the major role. But I digress.
Of course, most of us will always think first of Ian as Bilbo, but that was a role very late in his career. Probably the first movie I saw him in where he really stood out was Alien, where he played Ash. But the first thing I probably ever saw the he was in was the miniseries Jesus of Nazareth, where he played a Temple scribe who schemed with Judas to bring Jesus before the Sanhedrin. At the time I first saw that, my primary thought was, this is a made-up part...there is no scribe named Zerah in the Bible. But watching it subsequently and knowing how movies add roles to facilitate the story-telling, it is notable for being another very fine performance from Ian. Seriously, did the guy ever give a bad performance?
Another notable role was Sir William Gull in From Hell. He was the kindly old doctor who was a physician to the Royal Family. But only towards the end is it revealed that he is Jack the Ripper. So Ian played two very different personalities, one you'd be honored to know, and one you'd want to stay the hell away from. And of course he was the priest in the Fifth Element and the voice of Chef Skinner in Ratatouille, so he was very good in comedic roles too.
I could go on at length about him, but suffice it to say, he'll be missed.
