10 Awesome Obscure Alan Rickman Roles You Probably Missed
9. Closet Land
As the Sheriff of Nottingham, Rickman was a real badass, and as Hans Gruber he totally re-worked the template for the Hollywood bad guy. In fact, for kids born in the 1980s, it was probably the face of one of those two legendary villains that you saw when you switched the bedroom light out at night. Still, if you think youve seen Rickman at his most terrifying, try Closet Land on for size. An independent film made in 1991, just after Die Hard and Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves had propelled him onto the global stage, Rickman plays a secret policeman tasked with interrogating - and eventually torturing a female childrens author accused of hiding anti-government propaganda in her books. Set largely in one room and featuring pretty much every emotional, physical and spiritual torture method you can think of, the movie was never destined to be a family-friendly, box office smash, but aided by a fantastic script and an excellent co-star in Madelaine Stowe, it does show Rickman at his absolute best: dark, intense and sinister, the 45 year old actor turns a limited story about state control into a larger than life tale of heartbreak, guilt and regret.
