The first time I saw Val Kilmer was in “Top Secret!” (1984). In this Zucker, Zucker and Abrahams spoof of WWII spy movies, he plays Nick Rivers, a blonde, Elvis-esque rock-n-roll heartthrob who gets embroiled in a French Resistance plot to rescue a kidnapped scientist. If memory serves, it’s pretty convoluted, storywise, but Kilmer has song and dance numbers, lots of bad one-liners and tons of cheek and charm. I was immediately smitten. I still own the soundtrack on vinyl.
After this breakout roll, Kilmer enjoyed sizable success in the mid-1980s through the 1990s, with pop culture staples like “Real Genius” (1985), “Top Gun” (1986), “Willow” (1988), “The Doors” (1991), “Tombstone” (1993) and “Batman Forever” (1995). The Joel Schumacher helmed, day-glo, overstuffed movie about the Dark Knight and the absolutely awful “The Island of Dr. Moreau” (1996) sent his career into a downturn. After that he starred as Simon Templar in “The Saint” (1997), the action/adventure remake that no one really wanted or needed. I saw a few of his movies after this — “At First Sight” (1999), “Red Planet” (2000) and “The Salton Sea” (2002) — but he slid off my radar.
People are also reading…
It wasn’t until 2017, and the unwatchable Michael Fassbender crime drama “The Snowman,” that I saw him in anything again. His character, Rafto, isn’t in the film very much, and, if memory serves, his voice was dubbed, so when I saw and heard him, I was shocked. I had no idea he had had throat cancer and had been in poor health. Actually, despite my early adoration of him, I didn’t know much about him, at all, except that he was incredibly talented, had married and divorced Joanne Whalley, oh, and that he had dated Cher.
Anyone who wants to know the “rest of the story” can watch the documentary, “VAL,” now streaming on Amazon Prime. At the beginning, you learn that Kilmer was an early “adopter” of videography, and he took a camera with him everywhere. In his storage space, he has thousands of hours of video and film he’s shot over the years, from short films he made with his now deceased younger brother, Wesley, to candid moments with his ex-wife and children, Jack and Mercedes. He also captured behind-the-scenes footage on set with costars, such as Sean Penn, Kevin Bacon, Marlon Brando, Mira Sorvino and Kurt Russell.
Kilmer was born in California. His father was a real estate developer; his mother was of Swedish descent. He had two brothers — he was the middle child — and he liked to goof around with his younger brother, making videos, until, this brother, at 13, tragically drowned after having suffered an epileptic fit. This tragic event had a tremendous impact on Val Kilmer, and it seems he never got over it. Wanting to be an actor — a stage actor — he enrolled in Juilliard’s drama program. While there, he starred in many productions, even writing a successful play.
He was cast in a Broadway production of “Slab Boys,” but he was repeatedly bumped down to a tertiary role when Kevin Bacon and Sean Penn were added to the cast. (Kilmer has footage of them, mooning the camera.) This would be the first of many career disappointments.
Because of his matinee idol looks and charisma, he was a natural for the big screen, but his personality — he admits to frequently pushing back against authority — meant that he was passed over for many roles. In fact, he wanted so badly to be in “Full Metal Jacket” (1987) that he made several audition tapes and sent them to Stanley Kubrick but to no avail. While working on “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” Kilmer enraged John Frankenheimer so much that the director vowed to never work with Kilmer again. He also admits to having a less than exceptional time in his Bat suit — he wasn’t as much acting as being moved from one scene to the next — so he refused to continue in the franchise. From this, and many other encounters, he would develop a reputation for being “difficult to work with.”
The portrait of Kilmer that emerges, though, isn’t as much a “difficult person,” as someone with high creative standards who wanted what he was doing to be at its best. He didn’t just want to be a face on a teenager’s wall or to be cashing checks. (If IMDB is to be believed, he turned down a LOT of jobs.) Most notably, he comes across as a compassionate, kind, generous … a genuinely good person. Just a few examples: After his father ran up huge debts, and ensnared Kilmer in his shady prospects, instead of taking legal action against his dad, he used all the money he had in the bank to pay off the debt. As a way to raise money for his passion project, “Citizen Twain,” which he wrote and would perform on stage, he sold most of the beloved New Mexico property he had acquired over the years. And to pay the bills, he attends various conventions, where he signs autographs and takes photos with fans. Even though many would see this as humiliating for an actor of his stature, he seems to enjoy meeting those who have given him his career and privilege.
Kilmer has experienced more than his share of heartbreak. While away for a job, his wife, who was the love of his life, served him divorce papers. (And yet, he maintains what seems like an amicable relationship with her.) What’s more heartbreaking was seeing him at a con, while going through treatment for his cancer, and needing to take a break, because he didn’t feel his best. He throws up in a trash can, people help him into the back room, where he lies down, and then, after awhile resumes the meet-and-greet. In the footage included, he also appears to be a loving and devoted father. Today, he lives next door to his daughter, and both children helped with this project.
After watching “VAL,” I found a new appreciation for Kilmer. He seems to be a thespian who became a reluctant star. He has never had it easy. He got knocked down with his cancer — he speaks by covering the hole in his neck and then he rasps out what he’s trying to say — but he never lost hope. Often, he is shown to have a twinkle in his eye and a dance in his step. He hasn’t lost that charisma even though the years have taken his pin-up good looks and his health.
I’m not going to lie, “VAL” brought me to tears a few times. I feel sorry for him; for what more he could have achieved in his life. There are probably many Val Kilmer’s in Hollywood’s history and present. People who fall in love with film and performing in their youth, who believe that Hollywood offers creative opportunities to talented people. But you see, time and time again, it’s not really about talent. It’s about business deals: Marketability and bottom lines. It’s about who can sell a movie; who looks best on a T-shirt or movie poster. Hollywood also wants “yes, thank you” from their actors. Anyone with an ounce of personality and integrity; anyone who questions decisions that “don’t make sense” or pushback against directives, they are going to get a label: “difficult.” And that, in any line of work, is the kiss of death.
If I hadn’t already been a fan of Kilmer, I would be now. Apparently, a company has used A.I. to give him his “voice back.” I hope this helps him realize his dream of getting “Citizen Twain” on film and into a cinema (or on streaming.) I wish him all the luck for the next part of his career. He appears to be one of the rare “good ones.”