Bob Hoskins, the British actor who starred in The Long Good Friday, Who Framed Roger Rabbit and many more, has died aged 71. His agent said that he passed away on Tuesday, surrounded by his family, suffering from pneumonia. He retired in 2012 following a diagnosis with Parkinson's disease in the autumn of 2011.
One of Britain's best-loved actors, Hoskins was known for his gruff bonhomie, and career that spanned more than 30 years. He first found fame on the small screen in Dennis Potter's Pennies from Heaven, and then in cinemas as a London gangster-turned-businessman in The Long Good Friday (1980).
Hoskins had leading roles in Brazil (1985), Mona Lisa (1986), Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988) and Mermaids (1990) and Super Mario Bros (1993) – which he described in a 2007 Guardian interview as "the worst thing I ever did".
Many will also remember him fondly for a series of adverts shot in the late 80s and early 90s for BT with his catchphrase, "It's good to talk". He teamed up with Shane Meadows for Twenty Four Seven (1997) and A Room for Romeo Brass (2000), and winning much acclaim for his role in Atom Egoyan's Felicia's Journey (1999).
Most recently, Hoskins was seen in Made in Dagenham, Snow White and the Huntsman and Outside Bet. On the set of that film, about the Wapping newspaper dispute in the mid-80s, Hoskins told the Guardian why he kept on working: "There's always someone who rings up and says: 'Now Bob, before you go, there's a cracking little swansong for you'."
Hold yourself together, (T)Eddy----it's only IMWAN
Joined:
02 Jul 2009
Posts:
11767
Rather than mention Roger Rabbit, I think I'll point out one of Bob Hoskins' roles---a working-class sod-of-the-earth Iago in the BBC production of Othello in the 80's. Who played Othello? The Welsh actor whose name gets sometimes confused with Hoskins---Anthony Hopkins.
Hold yourself together, (T)Eddy----it's only IMWAN
Joined:
02 Jul 2009
Posts:
11767
I visited Robbie's Facebook page, and obviously he's going to have a different take on Bob Hoskins' than Roger Rabbit's sidekick. He recommended a movie I've never heard of before, but I need to rent from Netflix:
What's weird about seeing this movie is that it's obviously from the 80's, because Hoskins looks EXACTLY like Eddie Valiant in this trailer. (Minus the period clothing and American accent, of course.)
Hold yourself together, (T)Eddy----it's only IMWAN
Joined:
02 Jul 2009
Posts:
11767
The fact that this movie was mentioned along with Who Framed Roger Rabbit should have clued me into it's importance, but The Long Good Friday was Bob Hoskins' breakout film. Roger Rabbit was 1988, but Good Friday was 1980. Now it's possible that the reason I never heard of this film is because I'm clueless. (This will surprise nobody at IMWAN.) But I suspect another reason is that before cable TV, Blockbuster Video, and Netflix, there was a time when a popular British film could be released in Europe and most people in America would have no idea about it. Now word of mouth about British films or TV shows (and I'm not just talking Doctor Who) can spread very quickly.
I owe at least that much to Bob Hoskins to try to see this movie. When I do, I'll post what I think about it...
Roger Rabbit came out when I was ten. I feel like that was one of the first films to clue me in on the idea of acting as a craft. The subtleties of acting are largely beyond a ten-year-old, but not the fact that, "Hey, in real life that guy was acting opposite NOTHING." I remember a documentary at the time in which Hoskins talked about how he actually studied his own child for that role, the way she would interact with imaginary friends as if they were entirely real.
And on the DVD commentary they talk as well about how in the years since Roger Rabbit, because of CGI advancement and such, it's become so commonplace for film actors to have to relate to a green screen and nothingness, and how really so few people if anyone do it as well as Hoskins did in "Roger."
The performance really does hold-up, at least for me. The whole animated world of that movie is real because of Hoskins. It's remarkable stuff. He was great.
Roger Rabbit came out when I was ten. I feel like that was one of the first films to clue me in on the idea of acting as a craft. The subtleties of acting are largely beyond a ten-year-old, but not the fact that, "Hey, in real life that guy was acting opposite NOTHING." I remember a documentary at the time in which Hoskins talked about how he actually studied his own child for that role, the way she would interact with imaginary friends as if they were entirely real.
And on the DVD commentary they talk as well about how in the years since Roger Rabbit, because of CGI advancement and such, it's become so commonplace for film actors to have to relate to a green screen and nothingness, and how really so few people if anyone do it as well as Hoskins did in "Roger."
The performance really does hold-up, at least for me. The whole animated world of that movie is real because of Hoskins. It's remarkable stuff. He was great.
Which just goes to show that no matter how much sophisticated technology and imagery a movie has, it's still the people involved that make it work.
I guess having to shadowbox monsters and play opposite special effects is an awfully important skill for today's actors. They have to do so much of it.
_________________ The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls who, when he found an especially costly one, sold everything he had to buy it.
Users browsing this forum: Google [Bot] and 1 guest
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot post attachments in this forum
