DMR - Deweys Movie Reviews - Podcast · DMR

Episode 112 - The Val Kilmer Tribute - 1959 to 2025

April 8, 2025·30 min·5 clips

The host begins by saying this one hits hard. He says Kilmer died after a long battle with throat cancer and that the loss feels gut-wrenching. He describes Kilmer as a huge part of his childhood in the mid-90s and says he deserved far more recognition for how wide his range really was. The episode treats him as someone who mattered across several eras of moviegoing, especially the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s. The host mentions looking at Rotten Tomatoes' special on Kilmer's achievements and best movies, and notes that some of the early 80s titles are ones he has not seen while others he loves. The emotional tone stays up front throughout, with the loss coming back again and again. He then moves into the career run itself. One of the main stops is The Doors, where he praises Kilmer as Jim Morrison and calls the performance extremely realistic. He leans into Morrison's chaos and the drugs and alcohol that caught up with him. Then he shifts to Tombstone, calling it a cracker and one of the best westerns ever put on screen. He talks through the Earp and Doc Holliday story in a loose, conversational way and notes that the competing Earp film with Kevin Costner had the disadvantage of not having Kilmer as Holliday. He calls it one of the all-time great western performances and says Kilmer fully inhabits Holliday as a tuberculosis-cursed dainty who's the best pistol shot of them all. The episode also hangs on a few iconic lines and moments from the movie. Near the end, he widens the tribute beyond one or two titles and folds in the roles people still remember first. He names Iceman. He names Batman. He names Doc Holliday. The whole thing lands as a goodbye to a major talent who could vanish into very different parts and make each one feel specific. The closing mood is sad but grateful, with the sense that his films will live on for generations.

As heard by us

A heartfelt, loose tribute that remembers Val Kilmer through the roles and performances that left the deepest mark.

This episode feels like a sincere, conversational tribute to Val Kilmer. It carries real personal attachment, treating him as a major part of childhood and making clear how wide his reach was across the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s.

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Why you'd press play

Press play for a heartfelt Val Kilmer tribute told like a conversation after the credits roll, with the messiness left in.

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