The Alan Rickman Classic That Will Break Your Heart
Alan Rickman gave us many great performances in his time, but even his staunch fans likely haven’t seen every single film of his. One of Rickman’s smaller, under-the-radar films is the indie Closet Land, which came out in 1991. The heartbreaking drama isn’t available to stream on any major platforms, but those who want to check it out can find uploads of the full film on YouTube.
Closet Land follows a young children’s book author (Madeleine Stowe) who is interrogated by a government official (Alan Rickman) about putting hidden propaganda in her book. The film is almost like a play put on film, with Stowe and Rickman being the only two actors throughout and the vast majority of the plot taking place in one room. It’s an intense character piece that doesn’t really let up throughout its runtime.
Some might say that Alan Rickman’s Closet Land is even a little too intense, and the film got mixed reviews upon its release because of this. While critics generally liked the performances by Rickman and Stowe, the film itself was criticized for being preachy or overly obvious in its message. Even Rickman himself had some critique for the film in retrospect, saying, “When we were making the film, I thought, ‘This could be too relentless,'” and, “I mean, there wasn’t a single joke in it.”
Radha Bharadwaj wrote and directed Closet Land and got the film produced by having the winning submission to the Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting program in 1989. Interestingly, Bharadwaj’s first choice for the Interrogator wasn’t Alan Rickman, as one of her production notes revealed that she was keen to get Sir Anthony Hopkins, Sit Ian Holm, or Peter O’Toole on board to do the film. Stowe and Rickman were eventually cast, and then the film got a $2.5 million budget to start filming.
“When we were making the film, I thought, ‘This could be too relentless. I mean, there wasn’t a single joke in it.”
Alan Rickman on making Closet Land
As you might expect, despite having Alan Rickman attached, the small indie Closet Land didn’t get a wide release, so it has gone relatively underseen to this day compared to other entries to Rickman’s catalog. The film was brought to several festivals, such as the Toronto International Film Festival, San Sebastian International Film Festival, the Women in Film Festival, and the Stockholm International Film Festival.
Universal would end up distributing the film and give it a limited theatrical release.
Fox Video would take over distributing the home release and released the film on VHS six months after the theatrical release, with a DVD coming out in Europe. Madeleine Stowe and Alan Rickman are certainly big enough names for people to be interested in seeing Closet Land on streaming, but it’s not too surprising that it isn’t on any of the major streamers.
The film never even got a wide DVD physical release, so it’s truly one of Rickman’s lesser-known efforts.
The first choice for the Interrogator wasn’t Alan Rickman: Sir Anthony Hopkins, Sit Ian Holm, or Peter O’Toole were considered for the film.
As mentioned, if for no other reason than to revisit the late, great Alan Rickman’s performances, you can find cuts of Closet Land uploaded to YouTube. Probably for the same reason that the streamers don’t have the film, there doesn’t really seem to be anyone going out of their way to copyright strike it off the platform.
So, in a sense, you could watch the film for free (though the quality might not be top-notch).
Alan Rickman in the ’90s
Alan Rickman made Closet Land at an interesting point in his career, as he had just recently starred in his breakout film role as Han Gruber in 1988’s Die Hard. Rickman would also appear in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves shortly after the debut of Closet Land, which was quite a different film for him in many ways. For one, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves was a legitimate blockbuster and ended up being the highest-grossing film of 1991.
Alan Rickman also played the villain role in both Closet Land and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, though he actually got a lot more acclaim for his Robin Hood role as the Sheriff of Nottingham. Rickman’s turn as the Sheriff is fondly remembered as one of his best villain roles, and he was easily the best part of the movie, especially against Kevin Costner’s widely criticized performance in the titular role. As for Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, that film is on streaming, so if you can’t find a way to watch Closet Land, you can watch Rickman’s follow-up film on Apple TV+.
