Bill Paxton

Bill Paxton (1955-2017)

July 16th, 2016

Hollywood Theatre – Portland, Oregon

The audience is buzzing.  Suspense is in the air.  It feels like 1986.

But it’s not.  It’s 2016 and 30 years later on a warm Saturday night, the Hollywood Theatre in Portland, Oregon is about to screen James Cameron’s legendary Aliens, in a glorious 70 millimeter format.

In one of the greatest Science Fiction films of all time, you have some of the biggest performances that you’ll find in a movie theater.  Hudson, Hicks, Newt, Ripley.  Simple names, but iconic in context.

The film itself exceeds all expectations on the big screen, but the energy of a live, crowded audience brings it to a whole ‘nother level.  Respectful, yet fervent, an audience that seems to love the film more and more, even when it’s for the 500th time.

I asked a friend of mine if he wanted to go.  He responded that he had never seen Aliens before, and for the only time in my 28 year life, I wished that I was sentient during the 1980’s, just so I could see Aliens for the first time in the theater and on the big screen.  Needless to say, he is now a believer.

But the one thing that struck me throughout the night, was that even though everyone already knows all the lines, the amount of laughs that Hudson still gets, is frankly out of this world.

It reminded me of how courageous and fearless an actor, Bill Paxton was.  He was never afraid to be the fool. And that’s why audiences loved him.

Game over man, Game Over.