Val Kilmer Appreciation Thread

[eledoremassis02]

I'm sure we'll some behind the scenes stuff for Forever

[Silver Nemesis]

I'll definitely check this out. I hope Val has some behind-the-scenes footage from the set of The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996). There was already an excellent documentary on that subject - Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014) – but now I'd like to hear Val's side of the story.

[The Joker]

I'll definitely check this out. I hope Val has some behind-the-scenes footage from the set of The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996). There was already an excellent documentary on that subject - Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014) – but now I'd like to hear Val's side of the story.

Yeah, that story of the supposed one and only conversation Val and Marlon Brando had on the set of Moreau was brief, but absolutely hysterical.

[The Laughing Fish]

I'm sure we'll some behind the scenes stuff for Forever

If anyone is wondering, his son Jack is narrating the documentary. You can easily mistake him for Val.

Very sad to hear Val Kilmer has lost the ability to speak naturally. f*** cancer.

[The Dark Knight]

I'll definitely check this out. I hope Val has some behind-the-scenes footage from the set of The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996). There was already an excellent documentary on that subject - Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014) – but now I'd like to hear Val's side of the story.

I really respect Val. I think he has elements of true genius in his approach to acting and art in general, which can rub some people the wrong way. He seems to be a thinking man who thoroughly studies and rehearses, investing everything he has. He doesn't seem to be a mercenary actor. As per IMDB, surviving members of The Doors claim Kilmer did such a good job playing and singing as Jim Morrison that they could not distinguish his voice from the real Jim Morrison. It's sad what has happened to Val's voice, but I'm grateful he's still alive. He can speak to the world through this old footage. I'll be watching the movie.

[Slash Man]

Bruce could have been active for a longer period of time. I assume the Batman persona is relatively new though, since it was clear from his confrontation with Eddie and Nick that he was actively trying to announce his existence to the criminal underworld, yet he was still not widely acknowledged as being real. If he was active for more than a couple of months before the events of Batman 89, then I'd imagine he was doing so without the Batman persona, similar to the scene in Year One where he first encounters Selina and her pimp Stan.

Another conflicting issue to add to the mix; there is a considerable amount of preparation needed for Batman's arsenal. The construction of the Batcave, the hologram projector, the Batmobile, and especially the Batwing needed a considerable amount of time to build and implement. Let's say Batman has only been Batman for a couple of months; how long did he gradually acquire the parts to build his arsenal? Seeing as it's all fully equipped and working when we see him. This is a bit at odds with the comics, where Batman gradually evolved his tools, build his base, and constructed his vehicles over a longer period of crimefighting. Out of universe, it obviously makes sense for the film that we got it all at once, versus starting out with him not even having a car and batarangs.

Bruce operating as a vigilante before Batman seems to help bridge the gap of Keaton's Batman starting out so late. Though it wouldn't explain all the technology that already has a bat motif built in. This is probably worthy of its own topic at this point.

[eledoremassis02]

[Kamdan]

Has anyone else caught the Val documentary that's now available to stream on Amazon Prime? I skimmed straight to its coverage on Batman Forever and it gave me a new perspective on Kilmer's casting.

We've all heard the story how Kilmer got the call while he was in South Africa and how he said yes without reading the script. For the first time, I thought about just what was going through his head that made him go ahead instead of hesitate.

It was likely explained to him that he would carry on from what Keaton had been doing in the previous films and that gave him a preconceived notion that this film would no different from the previous. He had no idea that this would eventually turn into the lighter and softer film that was released.

Kilmer lamented over the combersome batsuit, which was always cited as what enhanced Keaton's performance, as he suffered from claustrophobia. Val also said that he felt lost between his subtle performance and the over the top-ness of Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones and found himself slipping into what he called "soap opera acting," like when he took hands on hips stances.

After a while, he said that no one would talk to him while he was in costume. Val seems like the type of person who feels like something of wrong if no one is giving him attention while Keaton seems fine if he would be left alone. It goes to show you the different ways the Batman actors react to playing the character.

After soaking this in, it made me think if fans are disappointed in how Batman Forever turned out, just think about how it was for the actors. No wonder he said "DUH!" when he was asked if he dodged a bullet not being in Batman & Robin.

[eledoremassis02]

Val Kilmer has a new voice

[thecolorsblend]

Glad he has at least that to express himself.