Tribute to Patrick Swayze (August 18th 1952 – September 14th 2009)

This month the world is mourning one of its biggest and brightest stars. Patrick Swayze shot to fame in the 1980’s, and starred in numerous movies, the most notable of these being “Dirty Dancing” and “Ghost”. A heart-throb for a generation, Patrick was named as the “Sexiest Man Alive” by People Magazine in 1991.

Born in Houston Texas in 1952, Patrick was the second child of Patsy and Jesse Swayze. In his youth, he trained as a dancer, and made his first professional appearance in “Disney on Parade” as “Prince Charming”. Following this, Patrick Swayze took on the lead role of “Danny Zuko” in the original Broadway production of “Grease”. In 1975, he married actress Lisa Niemi, and they remained happily married until his death. Patrick Swayze made his movie debut in 1979 in the film Skatetown, U.S.A., and from then onwards his career went from strength to strength (see credits below).

In January 2008, Patrick Swayze was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, however he refused to give in to the illness. Patrick continued to work right up to the end. His last project was a TV series called The Beast, which first aired in January 2009. The show was ultimately cancelled, reportedly as Patrick was too ill to promote the series.

On 14th September 2009, Patrick Swayze lost his battle against the disease, but he will be fondly remembered and much missed by millions of fans around the world.

Filmography
Christmas in Wonderland (2007) …. Wayne Saunders
Jump! (2007/I) …. Richard Pressburger
The Fox and the Hound 2 (2006) (V) …. Cash
Keeping Mum (2005) …. Lance
Icon (2005) (TV) …. Jason Monk
King Solomon’s Mines (2004) (TV) …. Allan Quatermain
George and the Dragon (2004) …. Garth
Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004) …. Dance Class Instructor
Whoopi …. Tony (1 episode, 2004)
11:14 (2003) …. Frank
One Last Dance (2003) …. Travis MacPhearson
Waking Up in Reno (2002) …. Roy Kirkendall
Donnie Darko (2001) …. Jim Cunningham
Green Dragon (2001) …. Gunnery Sergeant Jim Lance
Forever Lulu (2000) …. Ben Clifton
Letters from a Killer (1998) …. Race Darnell
Black Dog (1998) …. Jack Crews
Three Wishes (1995) …. Jack McCloud
To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar (1995) …. Vida Boheme
Tall Tale (1995) …. Pecos Bill
Father Hood (1993) …. Jack Charles
City of Joy (1992) …. Max Lowe
Amazing Stories: Book Three (1992) (V) …. Eric David Peterson (segment “Life on Death Row”)
Point Break (1991) …. Bodhi
Saturday Night Live …. Host (1 episode, 1990)
Ghost (1990) …. Sam Wheat
Next of Kin (1989) …. Truman Gates
Road House (1989) …. James Dalton
Tiger Warsaw (1988) …. Chuck ‘Tiger’ Warsaw
Steel Dawn (1987) …. Nomad
Dirty Dancing (1987) …. Johnny Castle
Amazing Stories …. Eric David Peterson (1 episode, 1986)
North and South, Book II (1986) (mini) TV mini-series …. Orry Main
Youngblood (1986) …. Derek Sutton
North and South (1985) (mini) TV mini-series …. Orry Main
Red Dawn (1984) …. Jed
Grandview, U.S.A. (1984) …. Ernie ‘Slam’ Webster
Pigs vs. Freaks (1984) (TV) …. Doug Zimmer
Renegades (1983) TV series …. Bandit (1983)
Uncommon Valor (1983) …. Kevin Scott
Staying Alive (1983) (uncredited) …. Dancer/extra
The Outsiders (1983) …. Darrel ‘Darry’ Curtis
The Renegades (1982) (TV) …. Bandit
Return of the Rebels (1981) (TV) …. K.C. Barnes
M*A*S*H …. Pvt. Gary Sturgis (1 episode, 1981)
The Comeback Kid (1980) (TV) …. Chuck
Skatetown, U.S.A. (1979) …. Ace Johnson

The Ring (2002)

Based on the Japanese novel and film by Koji Suzuki the American remake of “The Ring” is creepy and atmospheric right from the start. It centres on an unmarked videotape which appears to curse anyone that watches it…

The story begins with two teenage girls, Katie and Becca, who are spending an evening together at Katie’s home. Their conversation turns to what appears to be an urban myth, that of the videotape. The story goes that when anyone watches this, the phone will ring, and an eerie voice will simply say “seven days”. In exactly seven day’s time, the viewer will be dead. Katie then reveals that she has actually watched this tape a week ago! After a series of teasers, Katie meets her fate, as do the others she watched it with. They all died in bizarre circumstances, and all at exactly the same time.

Katie’s aunt, Rachel (Naomi Watts), a newspaper reporter, is asked by Katie’s mother to investigate, and begins by watching the tape herself. In the course of her investigation, she also reluctantly involves her ex, Noah (Martin Henderson) and accidentally their young son Aiden (David Dorfman). From here on, Rachel’s seven days are counted down, as she races to find a way to save herself and those she cares about…

After the first few scenes (with Katie and Becca) the main part of the story takes a while to get going. However, it then starts gathering pace. The imagery from the tape itself is very disturbing, plus the countdown of Rachel’s seven days gives the movie a sense of urgency. Unlike many horror films, The Ring does not rely on gratuitous violence to scare the viewer. Instead, it concentrates on escalating the tension within the story, as Rachel and Noah race against time to discover the origins of the tape, along with how and why it kills.

If you like a good horror film, this is a must see. This one gave me chills!

Premonition (2007)

Linda Hanson (Sandra Bullock) is a typical housewife and mother. That is until the worst week of her life…

Thursday: While her husband Jim (Julian McMahon) is away on business, Linda drops the children off at school as normal. Later on, she talks to her friend Annie on the phone, then realises she has a message on the answerphone from Jim. He’s talking about something he said to their daughters the other night, which Linda has no memory of. His message is interrupted by him telling her he has a call waiting which he needs to answer.

Following this, Linda receives a visit from the police. The officer informs her that her husband had been killed in a car crash the previous day (Wednesday). She then has to tell her two daughters of the event. At the end of this nightmare of a day, she falls asleep. When she wakes up, she realises that it is now…

Monday: Jim is alive and well! He had not left for his business trip, and events that Linda remembered from the previous day appeared not to have taken place. She begins to believe that his death must have been a bad dream all along, until she wakes up the next day to find that it is…

Saturday: Linda awakes to find an empty glass and a bottle of wine on the bedside table. The bedroom mirror is covered, and there is an empty pill bottle in the sink. The bottle is marked as Lithium, and the doctor’s name on the label is Dr Roth. The pills were prescribed to her, but she had never heard of this doctor! When she goes downstairs, she discovers that today is Jim’s funeral! Is he really dead? In addition to this shock, Linda discovers that her eldest daughter’s face is suddenly covered with cuts, although no one will explain why.

By this point, understandably, Linda doesn’t know what to believe. It appears that she is living through the days of this week in a completely random order. Is she really experiencing premonitions, and if so, could this help her prevent her husband’s death?

This is an amazingly well conceived film, although very complicated. It is probably worth seeing more than once to get the full effect, and you need to concentrate and keep a mental note of which day you are currently watching. You will also then need to put this together with the previous and future days shown in the movie to make sense of the week! This is also brilliantly acted by all concerned. Sandra Bullock’s performance in particular was exceptional. This is a great movie, but remember to keep your brain switched on, as this really requires you to pay attention!

The Name of the Rose (1986)

The name of the Rose is an intriguing historical drama. Set in Italy in 1327, the story concerns mysterious deaths which were taking place in a remote abbey. After the first of these, two visitors arrived, William of Baskerville (Sean Connery), and his novice Adso of Melk (a very young Christian Slater). Quickly realising that this first death was a murder (and not suicide as described) the very intellectual William of Baskerville decides to investigate. William discovers that the murders are connected to an ancient Greek work of literature, and strives to find the book, which has been hidden away, its very existence shrouded in secrecy.

Sean Connery as William of Baskerville and Christian Slater as Adso of Melk

However, before he can conclude his investigation, an infamous and sinister inquisitor, Bernardo Gui (F. Murray Abraham) arrives. He works hard to discredit William, and instead blames the murders on so called heretics and non-existent Satanists.

F Murray Abraham as Bernardo Gui

After a fairly slow start, this film warms up into a compelling murder mystery. The acting from the leading actors is superb (which is what I have learned to expect from both Sean Connery and Christian Slater), and the supporting cast are just as impressive. The setting is perfect, and very realistic. As a viewer, I could almost feel how cold and uncomfortable this 14th century abbey would have been for its residents.

As a murder mystery lover myself, I found this absorbing to watch. This movie had a dark and ominous feel to it throughout, and I would recommend it to fans of both whodunits and period dramas alike.