Death of Leon Vitali, the indispensable accomplice of Stanley Kubrick
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The British actor died on August 20 at the age of 74. A man of many talents, he played Lord Bullingdon in Barry Lyndon and assisted the brilliant filmmaker on the sets of shining, Full Metal Jacket and Eyes Wide Shut.
He was the right arm, the indispensable man of Stanley Kubrick. Actor Leon Vitali, Lord Bullingdon in Barry Lyndon, died on August 20. He was 74 years old. A multi-talented acrobat, he assisted the director ofClockwork Orange on films as important as shining in 1980 with Jack Nicholson, Full Metal Jacket with Matthew Modine in 1987 and Eyes Wide Shut in 1999 with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman.
Since the disappearance of Kubrick, Leon Vitali watched carefully over the artistic work of his master and friend. And that’s why the sad news was announced on the official Twitter account of the brilliant filmmaker. The words chosen by admirers of Kubrick and Vitali are as sober as they are moving: “It is with the deepest sadness that we have to tell you that the mainstay of Kubrick’s art passed away peacefully last night. Our first thoughts are with his family and all who loved him. »
Read alsoVitali: “Kubrick knew he would never achieve perfection. But he was trying to get close»
A unique artistic friendship
Leon Vitali honed his first weapons as an actor for British television at the very beginning of the 1970s. Stanley Kubrick very quickly detected his talent, which combined angelism and non-conformism. In 1975, he chose him to play Lord Bullingdon in Barry Lyndon. “Because it was him, because it was me”, such as Montaigne and La Boétie the two brothers crazy about cinema will never leave each other. On shining this friendship will even be sealed for the history of the seventh art with in the credits this exceptional credit: Léon Vitali, personal assistant of the director.
Since Kubrick’s death in 1999, Leon Vitali had continued to bring his mentor’s work to life. In 2004, this heir, as faithful as it is precious, will receive a prestigious prize for this work of cinephilic memory: the President’s Award. A deserved reward which, perhaps more than his roles, gave him one of the greatest satisfactions of his life.
A scene with Leon Vitali (Lord Bullingdon) in Barry Lyndonby Stanley Kubrick in 1980.
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