Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Heath Ledger Remembrance Forum

Heath Ledger Tributes and Obituaries...

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Fran:
Re:  Margaret Pomeranz's The tragedy is that you feel that Heath wasn't at the peak of his career, he'd achieved a lot but you felt that more wonderful work was still to come.

I think she was trying to say that Heath just kept getting better and better, with each performance becoming more and more amazing.

If Heath was already at the peak of his career, then the only place to go would be down.  In her opinion, he still was moving up and even better stuff was yet to come.

It's complimentary, IMO, but it could have been worded better.

ennisD:
I am sorry if this has been posted before. This is probably the most amazingly beautiful video tribute to Heath.

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UpwlBGFK10[/youtube]

I hadn't really cried and still find it hard to believe that Heath is no longer with us. This vid is the first one that actually made me cry like a baby. It is a wonderfully crafted tribute. My sincere condolences to his family and loved ones. Hugs to all of you.

Meryl:

--- Quote from: ennisD on January 31, 2008, 07:37:51 pm ---I am sorry if this has been posted before. This is probably the most amazingly beautiful video tribute to Heath.

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UpwlBGFK10[/youtube]

I hadn't really cried and still find it hard to believe that Heath is no longer with us. This vid is the first one that actually made me cry like a baby. It is a wonderfully crafted tribute. My sincere condolences to his family and loved ones. Hugs to all of you.
--- End quote ---

Ach, so sad and beautiful.  Ennisjack.com totally got it right.  Thanks for posting that, ennisD.  :'(  :'(  :'(

Aloysius J. Gleek:
Gorgeous.

After the stills (with beautiful music), at 8:29, there is video of the 421 Broome Street Memorial; I can see that the video was taken in the late afternoon on Wednesday, January 23, 2008, but no later than fairly early on Thursday, January 24--I know the individual offerings so well (The Hat, The Boot, etc.)--

If I may, I'd like to copy the video and post it again in the 421 Broome Street thread, if it hasn't been done already.

It's not just to be the completist in me, but because Kelda and her friend George have made a link from IMDb. It seems important, some how.

Thanks, ennisD. Thanks, Meryl!

xxx
John

Ellemeno:
Could Ledger be screen legend?
By Chris Kaltenbach | Baltimore Sun Movie Critic
February 1, 2008

Hollywood legends are a funny thing. They're not always a matter of longevity; if they were, there would be no more revered figure in movie history than Lillian Gish, and how many people younger than 40 have even heard of her? They don't necessarily reflect youth snuffed out before its time; Brad Renfro's recent death, though undeniably tragic, hasn't guaranteed him a spot in the Hollywood firmament. And they don't necessarily have much to do with the quality of the work. Deborah Kerr was an extraordinarily gifted actress with a surprising range, but you don't see her image turning up on key chains and Internet tributes.

Heath Ledger had made only 13 films outside his native Australia when he died way too soon last week at age 28, and he spent fewer than eight years on the international film scene. But his death has had a profound impact on filmgoers, especially younger fans who, no doubt, saw a kindred spirit in the complex, conflicted characters he brought to the screen.



The response has been extraordinary, both for its depth and its apparent sincerity. In our media-obsessed world, the death of any celebrity strikes a resounding chord, one often out of sync with that person's fame or cultural impact. Witness the out-of-control media circus that ensued for weeks after the death of Anna Nicole Smith, a one-time Playboy model and reality-show star whose death garnered more attention than that of former President Gerald R. Ford.

Ledger's death hasn't achieved that garish level, despite the attempts of various TV celebrity magazines and entertainment show hosts to fan the flames. His fans' affections seem genuine, their respect for his work well-earned, their grief over his sad fate heartfelt.

"I tried to watch 10 Things I Hate About You, but I don't know why I just started to cry and turned it off," one visitor to imdb.com's message board wrote earlier this week. "I'm back to being distraught and crying every time I hear about Heath or watch one of his movies," said another. "I guess it's really sunk in that he's not coming back ... "

Another post, written a week after his Jan. 22 death, began with the simple word "why" repeated 18 times.

It's certainly true that Ledger had talent, and that it had barely been tapped. His performance as a jail guard unwilling to follow his father and grandfather's racist example in Monster's Ball so moved actor Daniel Day-Lewis that he had to fight back tears while recalling it during Sunday's Screen Actors Guild Awards show. Ledger's Oscar-nominated turn in Brokeback Mountain, as a cowboy in love with another man who constantly denies himself the happiness we all deserve, resonated with audiences and helped a gay love story bring in more than $83 million at U.S. box offices.

Perhaps it's too early to measure Ledger's lasting impact. It hasn't even been determined yet how he died, whether it was an accidental drug overdose or suicide, or even whether the pills found scattered on the floor around his body were the primary cause. In recent days, a video has turned up that apparently shows Ledger at a Hollywood party, talking about drug use. What effect might that video have on his legacy?

It's telling that the actors to whom Ledger is most often compared in the wake of his death, are Marlon Brando and James Dean. Brando was a true original, a determined nonconformist who brought a startlingly gritty, realistic acting style to movies that revolutionized the medium. When his onscreen character in The Wild One, a motorcyclist for whom anarchy appeared nothing short of a career choice, was asked, "What are you rebelling against," his answer was, 'Whaddya got?" A whole generation nodded in agreement.

For his part, Dean rocketed to stardom in 1955's Rebel Without a Cause, playing a chronically misunderstood, outcast teen. Two films later, Dean was dead, killed when his speeding Porsche collided with another car on a California road - just hours after a state trooper had given him a speeding ticket.

Brando and Dean spoke to members of younger generations who felt chronically out of touch with their elders, who felt disconnected from the values they espoused and the traditions they held dear. Ledger, who specialized in young characters asked to grow up too fast, uncertain of their footing and wary of those offering help, seems to have been cut from much the same cloth.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/bal-to.kaltenbach01feb01,0,6749332.story

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