Dead is the great mystery of life, a mystery we too often ignore. Its nature as a riddle, and as the very antithesis of everything that encompasses our lives, makes it a difficult subject to approach. But as a fundamental fact of life, filmmakers have often commented on it. And these comments are most interesting when filmmakers personify the concept of death. These personifications often take a simplistic turn in the form of grim reaper imagery, raw and without any characterization.
Sometimes, however, these efforts reach a deeper well, with results that cannot be quite put into words. How do you translate an impersonal phenomenon from reality to a living person? How would this personification provoke the same reactions as this awe-inspiring phenomenon—fear, mystery, and unyielding? The cinematic medium has provided some eerie portrayals of Death as a character, whose personalities act as commentaries on the ultimate truth in itself. Here are 9 best portrayals of Death in movies and TV series, ranked.
9/9 The Adventures of Baron Munchausen
The 1988 Adventure Fantasy Movie The Adventures of Baron Munchausen follows John Neville as Baron Munchausen in a fantastic series of adventures that completely blur the line between imagination and reality. Throughout the film we see Baron Munchausen deliver impossible feats. All this while a skeletal Grim Reaper, complete with wings and a scythe, is on his tail. The fantastic feats of imagination allow the aged Baron to escape the reaper, but the moment he begins to doubt himself, death draws closer. Munchausen represents the magic of the imagination, the only thing that can keep the reaper at bay in this imaginarium.
8/9 “Rendezvous in a Dark Place” – The Twilight Zone
The Iconic Supernatural Series the twilight zone has had a few episodes over the years that personify death. A memorable one is the 60th episode of the third season, titled “Rendezvous in a Dark Place.” This episode is memorable not only for its portrayal of Death as a character, but also for the unique treatment that Death receives. It features Janet Leigh as an elderly woman who is literally obsessed with Death, eventually coming face to face with him when a burglar dies in her home. Stephen McHattie as Death convinces the viewer of his timeless nature, with an enigmatic, dutiful look in his eyes.
7/9 The Mask of the Red Death
The Mask of the Red Death, directed by Roger Corman, is a venerated adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s story. It is arguably the best of Corman’s Poe adaptations. In the film, Vincent Price plays Prince Prospero, a wealthy Satanist who hosts a banquet in his castle amid a deadly plague known as the Red Death. The events in the film move in a strangely hypnotic way; all the while, the Red Death is deploying the castle while playing cards. Constructed in this film as a heavily allegorical character, Death fits a perfect threat against the senseless debauchery that takes place at Prospero’s banquet.
6/9 Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Famous creature actor Doug Jones portrays probably the most visually stunning version of Death in Hellboy II: The Golden Army. The imposing figure of Death in the film is a perfect representation of the Guillermo del Toro aesthetic. Their presence in the film is relatively brief, as Hellboy is taken to the Angel of Death by his girlfriend, Liz, after sustaining a fatal wound. The Angel, an unmoved steward of time and fate, offers her a choice: to save Hellboy, but at the same time seal the destruction of the world at his hands. Despite the high stakes of the conversation, the Angel presents the terms with a soothing performance.
5/9 the sandman
“Eventually I learned that all they need is a kind word and a kind face.” This quote summarizes everything you need to know about Death in the latest Netflix series the sandman. Kirby Howell-Baptiste offers a nice interpretation of the source material in the series. Like in the Neil Gaiman comics, Howell-Baptiste’s Death is completely involved in human preoccupations and finds joy in the little things. But her screen presence is also striking and otherworldly, befitting such a hefty personification. The enigmatic look with which she conveys her identity to every soul she collects may convince you that she could really be the personification of Death.
4/9 “The Hitch-Hiker” – The Twilight Zone
“The Hitch-Hiker” is one of the earliest episodes of the twilight zone — the 16th episode ever, in fact. Inger Stevens appears in the series as Nan Adams, a woman who drives solo across the country. The journey takes a scary turn when she encounters the same hitchhiker at every stop. The episode masterfully builds on a sense of tension and paranoia, until it is revealed that the hitchhiker is none other than Death, who comes to pick her up after she died in an accident. Leonard Strong’s performance as a hitchhiker is brilliant and sets the tone for the episode, as his inscrutable eyes seem to radiate more than just pedestrian horror.
3/9 Meet Joe Black
Meet Joe Black offers one of the most commendable personifications of death in recent cinema. The 1998 film was based on the 1934 film Death takes vacation, and with Brad Pitt as Death. The film follows Death as he seeks to better understand the world of the living, all the while remaining an uninvited guest to Anthony Hopkins’ Bill Parrrish. Pitt’s version of Death is gentle and has a childish naivety. At the same time, he carries with him a sublime and timeless quality, making his performance as Death hard to forget.
2/9 The seventh seal
The seventh seal is the ultimate classic when it comes to personifications of Death. Created by the influential filmmaker Ingmar Bergman, the film is on many renowned lists of best movies of all time. Bengt Ekerot’s portrayal of death in this film has become a timeless cinematic image – an authoritative face clad in a black cloak, playing chess against a mortal playing for his life. The film begins and ends with striking images of Death, first as he sits down for a game of chess and finally as he leads a horrifying death dance across the horizon. In such a way, Death shadows all the events that occur in the film, presenting them as a spiritual quest meaningless against the immutable time.
1/9 supernatural
Julian Richings is arguably the most memorable actor in the fantasy drama series, supernatural. Over the course of 15 seasons, the series personified every major divine concept, including God himself. But none were as compelling as Julian Richings’ rendition of Death. The actor possessed his role with an unrelenting look of utter fatigue and disinterest in the affairs of mortals. He managed to uphold Death’s powerful gravitas through even the most banal scenes, including lengthy expositions and munching on cheap fast food. The total conviction with which he portrays Death in every context and line of dialogue makes him a fitting topper in this list.