WHO ARE YOU
A day and a night in the life of Val Kilmer
THERE’S A WINDING STRETCH OF SUNSET THAT GLISTENS AND TURNS, WEAVING
past the clinking wine glasses of Beverly Hills, past the glossy Hollywood billboards and the rock n’ roll
dives, heading east towards the hills. At the intersection, you can see it. It’s buried in a corner, but the
sign gives it away. The first time you try to reach the Chateau Marmont, you may just pass it by. Look
both ways; make a Uturn; beware of pedestrians...and cops.
Some say the Chateau is haunted. John Belushi died here. Jim
Morrison dangled near death from the roof to a window in an
upstairs suite. But today, it’s only six in the evening, much too
early for Hollywood ghosts. As I step out of the old elevator and
walk down the corridor, I pause, about to knock on the door to
a room that’s only haunted, at the moment, by the very live
presence of Val Kilmer.
Or maybe not.The personng the door is a photographer
named Ali, and then there’s the tall blonde publicist. A
sweet little boy with a dirtyblond bowl haircut pops his head
out of the bedroom door and shakes my hand.
I walk to the main room, where every wall, table, and most of the
floor is covered in collages: photos and remnants from the film
Wonderland, in which Kilmer stars as the cokeaddicted porn star John
Holmes. Somebody is standing in jeans and a shortsleeved shirt, smiling
and waving at all the art plastered around, affecting amazement at
how all these images just happened to
wind up in his room. Somebody who
introduces himself to me as Val.
Val Kilmer. The subject of so much Hollywood debate. Ask
your local Blockbuster employee about Kilmer, and depending on
the employee, you’ll be sent home with either Heat or Batman
Forever. Ask some “Hollywood insider,” and they’ll try to bend your
ear with stories from “a good friend of a friend” who related some
incident about how crazy Kilmer is — or how cold. Look at some
of his old interviews and you’ll find the cutting quotes from directors
who refuse to work with him ever again. Ask an actor who’s
worked with Kilmer in one of his recent films, however, and you’ll
get a different story. Hushed respect on how wonderful he was to
work with, how generous he is. Mention his name to someone on
the street, and their eyes will light up. “I like Val Kilmer. He’s cool.”
Which raises the question:Who is this guy, anyway?
When the room clears and I sit next to him on the couch,
Kilmer begins the interview by interviewing me. “So, have you
always wanted to be a writer?” I’m not sure if it’s a genuine question
or a sly twist on the redundant
acting questions he’s usually asked.
Since this is Kilmer, maybe it’s both.
Before too long, I know I will somehow step into the mire of
weightier questions, but for now, I will settle for turning that
question on him. Because the Juilliardtrained actor actually has
a lot to say on the subject.
The first thing to understand about Val Kilmer is that he is an
actor who’s passionate about his craft.“There are very few rules, but
number one is you must not bore your audience,” Kilmer says in a
low voice, hesitating to find the right words. “[Acting] is a very selfinvolving
thing. I think no matter what, there’s a desire, and sometimes
it’s chronic or uncontrollable, to communicate, to tell a story.
It’s very important in all cultures…our species must make sense of
itself…to help us understand life.You destroy every television in the
world, and we’ll go right back to where we were 10,000 years ago,
sitting around a fire and telling stories.”
You get the sense that Kilmer takes not only acting seriously,
but also the motivation behind the drive to act. He talks about his
role in Wonderland in relation to storytelling itself. The film centers
around the gruesome killing spree on Wonderland Avenue in
Laurel Canyon during the summer of 1981. John Holmes, who
instigated the murders, was also an alleged participant. Shot in just
24 days, Wonderland is told in Rashomonstyle scenes, as each character
has a different take on the events. In the film, Holmes denies
he’s had any handson part in the attacks. Does Kilmer believe that
Holmes was guilty? “Oh, yeah. He was high. But you know,
addicts are trying to escape the pain of mortality…we all are.
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