Heath Ledger

Your opinion on his death?

(RIP Heath)

HEATH DIED ALL HIS GUYZ!!!!  NO CONTINUES MAN, NO CONTINUES!


In short im not the slightest bit bothered.

It seems tragic that such a talented young actor (and a seemingly decent person) had to die such a senseless death, especially leaving behind a young daughter.

Besides his acting abilities, I hope that people will remember how he never made a fool of himself in the press or in front of the paparrazi, and how much he loved his little girl.

I'm pretty sad about it. He was a wonderful actor.

it's no sadder than any other premature death.  he was a talented young man, but i don't see this as any more tragic than the young people who die in car crashes, etc. every day of the week.

He is freaking hot. i cant marry him now.

Eh he gave more to society then say most drunken teens have or 20 somethings (whatever age he is) so i wouldnt say just as tragic as one of those deaths.... but then again im one to weigh human life and worth...

I am really sad about Heath Ledgers death, I really like him as an actor, I will miss seeing what else he could have done.

 

not every kid who dies in a car crash is drunk, puppy, contrary to what your experience as a shining example of youth may be.  just like not every celebrity who dies in a hotel room has OD'd on smack.

I think they're going to find it was the Ambien that killed him. That stuff is NASTY. The list of potential side effects just keeps growing longer each year.

I was on it for a long time, after it first came out. It caused all kinds of weird side effects that are only now being listed - or have yet to be listed but I'm fairly confident it was the drug.

There are stories about people who take Ambien, and in a sleep-walking state - unknowingly swallow the rest of the bottle.

Apparently also some people are using it recreationly ... which I really DON'T advise: that stuff is NASTY, NASTY. Very dangerous. Much more dangerous than anyone is letting on.

Let's see... what are my other speculations (I have had way too much time on my hands lately!!)...

The masseuse: either she is really a call-girl (hence no license) or an illegal (hence she hesitated to call 911). OR... she was busy flushing illegal drugs down the toilet to clean up the scene.

Just generalizing.  But the point stands  regardless of the way the death was carried out.

well, if you're talking contribution to society, it's likely that ledger would have made more movies.  good entertainment value, no doubt, but not something we'll miss the way we would, say, a potentially innovative surgeon, brilliant novelist or playright, or social activist.  either way, we'd be speculating, but there will be more movies without heath ledger.

pgeorgian - i agree Ledger's death is just as sad as the death of anyone dying young, but I think you misunderestimate the power of the arts in comment #11, especially given ledger's role in brokeback mountain.

it's an important movie, but who's to say it wouldn't have had just as much impact with another star?  i tend to give the writers, directors, and even producers more credit than the actors for the creation of great film. 

pgeorgian, I don't remember your age, but can't you relate to... I dunno.. John Lennon dying... or John Bohnam? Didn't make much of an impact for me, but I remember when Bohnam died my sister and most of my friends freaked out... I think it was the realization, when you are young and in your prime, that young people could die.

I mean.. I do get your point too... for me, that realization didn't come with any famous person's death... it came when my best friend was plowed over by a drunk driver during his college graduation week. :-(

But I can understand why 20-somethings would be upset.

ALSO, I think you minimize a good actor's contributions. It's not just "entertainment value" - it's art. Acting is just as important an art as a brilliant novelist or playright, and no less a contribution as a social activist or innovative surgeon.

I would not want to live in a society without art. Including actors. What good is a playright, without an actor to bring the lines to life???

i agree, and it might have made an even bigger impact with a different star. all the same, the star needs to a) be open to the role b) convince the audience and c) fill the seats. Ledger (and Gyllenhaal) did that.

the producers have to have the balls to shell out the money, but they don't have to contribute any specific talent to it.

Actually, I am probably the only person who says this, but I thought Brokeback Mountain sucked. It was never meant to be a full-length film; it should've stayed the short story that it was.(*)

However, the saving grace of the movie was the acting. I thought Ledger was quite talented.

(*) For me it compares somewhat to Bridges of Madison County, except that book was absolutely horrendous pap that should never have wasted any trees (I laughed my way through it, it was written so poorly)... however, as a film it worked rather well... and Meryl Strep was a huge reason for that.

i'm almost 40.  john lennon - there's no comparison.  but the specific comparison i'm talking about here is a girl i know who died in a crash just over a year ago, 3 weeks short of her 18th birthday.  i don't know what she would have accomplished, but i know what her death did to her friends, parents, and sisters.  and--no--i can't honestly weigh the two and find that heath ledger's death is a worse thing.

listen, i wouldn't want to live in a society without art, either.  and if all the actors (and i use the term in a genderless way) suddenly died in their sleep, it would be a terrible thing.  but one actor--like one writer, one teenager, one doctor, or one painter--is one life.

anyway, have you ever seen a really well written film with one weak performance (my mind goes to robert sean leonard in much ado about nothing)?  the film can still hold its own.  ever seen a really talented actor in a badly-written film (think claire danes in T3)?  it's crap.

so, yeah, for art value, i put my stock in the writers.

first off, there is no comparison to john lennon.

when i was in 8th grade, kurt cobain died. for the next 5 or 6 years, i lost at least one friend or acquaintance per year in a driving accident. cobain's death might have been a shock to my generation, but couldn't compare to the personal shocks that came afterwards. it is just one life regardless, but if you feel some sort of connection to it (regardless of whether it's personal or superficial), it's going to affect you somehow. 

As others have stated- it's mostly just unexpected & shocking that a person of 28 yrs of age can just suddenly die....  he was young & he was loved & admired by many.

I think it shows us that we are all vunerable to illness, addictions (I'm not trying to say that was the cause, because I don't know) & we are not invincible.

I admired him as an actor & mostly just feel sorry for his family & friends (this is truly tragic for them).  What does sicken me is when the family is not able to grieve without all the speculations surrounding his untimely death & people will make $ off this tragedy.

edit:  When I first heard of his death that day (I had seen it on the news), sadly all the media could talk about were pills all over the room, but then of course it was the 6 prescription bottles in his room, well, who the ____ cares, so he had prescriptions.  Yes it may have had a cause in his death, but his memory & family deserve to mourn in private without all the media speculation!

When I first heard I said, "damn, that sucks."  When I found out he had a little girl I said, "Oh, that poor little girl."  It was kinda suprising, (just like Renfro's death right before that) but I didn't know the guy.  It didn't upset me.  The world didn't stop spinning for a split second like what happens when someone you love dies.  I liked some of his roles but I'm not a fan. 

I'll say this though, when Hunter S. Thompson killed himself I was in a crappy mood for a week and I shed a tear when I watched a memorial for Kurt Vonnegut.  So it goes...