Yesterday came the shocking news that actor/director/writer Bill Paxton had passed away at the age of 61. The cause of death, as listed to date, was “complications from surgery”. You can read an article about Mr. Paxton’s passing by Holly Yan and Amanda Jackson over at CNN:
Bill Paxton, actor in Twister and Aliens dies at 61
First, my condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Paxton. Last year my aunt passed away and the cause of her death was also “complications from surgery”. That descriptive statement, at least with regards to what happened to her, sounds a whole lot nicer than the hell she -and her immediate family- went through. I very much hope Mr. Paxton and family didn’t go through anything similar to what she did.
The passing of Mr. Paxton does, inevitably, lead one to reflect on the man’s career. One can check out his list of credits on IMDB:
As is the case with actors whose careers span many decades, there are plenty of works they were involved in which, over time, were by and large forgotten. In the case of people like Mr. Paxton, there were highlights which were incredibly, incredibly memorable.
I suspect if you were to focus on one role Mr. Paxton is best known for, it has to be Private Hudson from the seminal film Aliens. While many love to quote the “Game over, man” line, the knife scene, to me, was a highlight. Here audiences quickly realize Hudson’s bravado isn’t all its cracked up to be…yet we cannot hate the man because how else would anyone react to this?
By the time Aliens reaches its climax and Hudson meets his fate, we’re squarely in his corner and lament his passing.
Hudson was perhaps the quintessential Bill Paxton character: At times loud and obnoxious yet very much someone we ultimately root for…even if we know they’re doomed. That’s not to say all his roles were like that. Mr. Paxton’s career included appearances in classic films like The Terminator, Near Dark (where he reunited with two of his fellow Aliens cast-members and played a very fearsome villain), Tombstone, Apollo 13, and Titanic, to name a few. He also directed and had a small role in Frailty, a film that deserves a second look.
Another critically successful film he starred in is One False Move. This movie, ironically enough, may have fallen victim to having a little too much good early word of mouth.
I say this regarding One False Move because, if memory serves, the film was originally supposed to be released straight to video but the critics and audiences who saw it early loved what they saw and this encouraged the studios to give it a full theatrical release. By the time the film made its theatrical release, the early word of mouth was so good that I suspect many people went into the film expecting to see filmic nirvana and wound up being disappointed the film didn’t quite literally blow their socks off.
One False Move is a damned good film but there was no way it could live up to the ultra-high expectations that swirled around it.
As for me, I’ll always remember Mr. Paxton primarily as Hudson in Aliens. I suppose its inevitable. I’ll miss his work and miss the at times wicked charisma he brought to the screen.
Before I go, a trailer to one last film of Mr. Paxton’s I really enjoyed. Trespass, released in 1992, was perhaps director Walter Hill’s last really good film. In many ways it was a typical Walter Hill “B” movie, gritty and action/testosterone filled. This movie also featured a cast that today is very well known. There’s Mr. Paxton, of course, but also William Sadler and the duo of Ice-T and Ice Cube.
It’s a good, gritty little action film and worth catching, provided you can find it…
Rest in Peace, Mr. Paxton. At the very least you’ve left behind a wonderful legacy in film, something many actors today hope they can, too.