Well, this was a surprise. Bill Paxton has sadly passed away at the age of 61 due to complications of surgery. Many people in the 1990s and 2000s would recognize his face and say that this underrated actor was "the guy from this movie or that movie." But, I say he is Bill Paxton because he was in many good movies and many underrated performances because he was such a natural presence on-screen. However, many people paid attention to him because he created some memorable characters or characters that lived on in memorable movies. He had such small roles in the beginning in Commando, Stripes, Impulse and Streets of Fire that James Cameron, a prolific and young up-and-coming director would hire him for a small role in The Terminator but would work with him in two other movies: two in which it'll be on the list. So, here are my favorite 5 Bill Paxton performances:
Aliens
Remember Hudson? Remember when he says, "Game over, man. Game over." Well, he was one of those soldiers that could have been one-dimensional, being arrogant and pretentious. However, he was arrogant but had some charm and humor underneath his bad-ass personality of being a soldier kicking some alien butt alongside Ripley and some other soldiers. Also, he is the only actor to play characters who have been killed by an alien, a predator and a Terminator.
Apollo 13
Even though he, Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon floats in space and is in peril for most of the time, he holds his own against his other cast-mates and also in the material. He plays astronaut Fred Haise in this unforgettable true story about how this mission to the moon was derailed and has to return home to Earth. All three have chemistry as they transition from three individuals to a team to a whole team with the help of Mission Control. He delivers a nuanced performance in director Ron Howard's movie.
Twister
It is a cheesy disaster flick full of some cliched characters and storylines but it is too much fun as you buy Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt as tornado-chasers or tornado hunters. However, there is a bit of depth to his character, less depth than Helen Hunt's character. Because he is a weatherman and is engaged to a reproductive therapist, many of his former co-workers think he is "back in the game". However, the funniest scene for me is why he is nicknamed "The Extreme". It is a bit dated but it is one of the most fun disaster movies in my opinion.
A Simple Plan
This is a very underrated movie by director Sam Raimi and also underrated performance from Paxton about three men finding a bag containing about $4 million dollars. The question is raised as to what to do with the money? However, they keep the money in secret but Hank, Paxton's character, reveals the discovery to his wife, Sarah. This movie is about doubt, lies, deceit and murder that could lead to turmoil for their friendship. It is a movie that you should see that is somewhat reminiscent to the Coen brothers' masterpiece: Fargo.
Frailty
This is also another underrated movie from Paxton from both an acting and directing standpoint because he also directed this movie. It is a psychological thriller that takes a demonic narrative to another level as a religious father thinks it is fine for him to kill humans who are disguised as demons and there is suspense between him and the two boys that is riveting. It is a solid gem of a psychological thriller that persuades you to watch it again after it is over.
I could name other roles that he has done from Weird Science (a character that I liked but a movie that I hated), One False Move, Tombstone, True Lies, Titanic, U-571, another film that he directed: The Greatest Game Ever Played, 2 Guns, Edge of Tomorrow and Nightcrawler. But, you can say this: he had a versatile and fantastic career. He will be missed.
Here are some clips:
Apollo 13
Twister
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