Tribute to Alan Rickman

What are the odds that the world would lose two iconic performers days apart?
Glam rock icon, David Bowie passed on on January 10, 2016 at age 69. Today,
January 14, 2016, one of the greatest actors ever, Alan Rickman, passed on too at
age 69. Both died of cancer.

My first introduction to the acting genius of Alan Rickman was on June 9, 1990
when I first saw John McTiernan's 1988 action movie classic, Die Hard. That was
the movie that weaned Bruce Willis off his "she loves me, she loves me not"
persona inspired by his David Addison character in Moonlighting and launched
him as a believable action movie star.

It was also the movie that gave the movie world one of its most memorable and
beloved movie villains, Hans Gruber, brilliantly portrayed by Alan Rickman.
Typically, action movies are not known for acting chops. The attraction, really, is
for testosterone - fuelled violence to vicariously satisfy a craving for wanton
violence and mindless destruction that would be near-impossible and illegal to
satisfy if translated in reality. So, when a theatrically - trained actor is cast in a big
- budget action movie opposite a big name Hollywood star, the goal is for the
former to bring acting credibility to the movie whilst the latter brings the Star -
power to secure box office success.
Alan Rickman brought the acting chops in his inimitable portrayal of Hans Gruber
and created in him a villain that the American Film Institute ranked No.46 in its list
of 100 greatest movie villains. Truth is; Hans Gruber belongs in the top 10 of the
greatest movie villains.

From the opening scene when Hans Gruber and his merry band of terrorists
sauntered out of the elevator in Nakatomi Plaza to the strains of classical music
playing in the background and gate crashed the Christmas party to his request for
Mr. Takagi to identify himself, from the scene he shot Mr. Takagi and informed
the other hostages that Mr. Takagi would not be joining them for the rest of his
life, to the scene he accidentally encountered Bruce Willis 'John McClane and
pretended he was one of the hostages and introduced himself as "Clay, Bill Clay",
from the scene he shouted in exasperation at Karl to "shoot the glass" to his fall
from Nakatomi plaza in slow motion, Alan Rickman put on an acting clinic and
imprinted his acting genius with great lines delivered in that measured tone of
voice that was his trademark and delivered a range of emotions with the most
eloquent facial expressions. That Die Hard is today considered an action movie
classic and its sequels a disappointing follow up to an iconic heritage is wholly
attributable to the insurmountable standard set by Alan Rickman.

He turned in another scene -stealing stellar performance in 1991's Robin Hood:

Prince of Thieves dwarfing the star power of Kevin Costner and acting chops of
Morgan Freeman. That otherwise dull movie was saved by the riveting, even if
maniacal, portrayal of the Sheriff of Nottingham by Alan Rickman, and of course
the evergreen soundtrack rock ballad by Bryan Adams.

One of movies' true greats has departed to straddle a deserved pedestal in the
pantheon of cinematic gods.

Rest in peace, Alan Rickman, and thank you for the beautiful memories.