Val Kilmer embodies the lightness of a mellow Southern Californian, and his presence pulls you out of dark thoughts. Devastatingly handsome.

Kilmer is anything but easy to figure. I've quickly learned that to pose him any question is to invite an obtuse, not always coherent, frequently entertaining discourse that might touch an any theme from the poetic angst of Shelley to the power of the love beads he favors.

He is, as I was warned by people who know him, a piece of work: by turns sarcastic and friendly, puffed up and self-spoofing, sincerely grounded and almost calculatingly off-centered.

The great thing about Kilmer’s silences, one quickly learns, is that they’re merely the prelude to a non-answer or a joke. Calculated pauses happen to be the cornerstone of his dry comic timing.

Self described as shy, Kilmer is introspective and philosophical, qualities that may be masked by his matinee idol exterior.

There is something strangely innocent, even beguiling and charming about Kilmer. This despite all the rumors. . .

What does exist is a pattern of exacting standards, a relentless pursuit of excellence, often to the point of exhaustion, and the liberal use of the “why” word.

Val Kilmer is almost unnervingly placid. . . No matter what, Kilmer’s voice remains as level as his gaze. His distinctively lush mouth. . . holds only an amiable smile.

When Kilmer glides into a room, he fixes your eyes with a steady gaze, holds out his hand for a warm, firm shake and talks in a whispery voice that sounds both friendly and sincere.

Kilmer is not just another pretty face. A poet in his spare time, Kilmer projects a mercurial charm, and his musings reveal both a keen mind and a high-strung artistic temperament.

Val Kilmer, the tamed savage.

His chiseled good looks and dramatic intensity have earned Val Kilmer a place in movie history as one of cinema’s most devoted and charismatic actors, yet he remains an enigma, at once sarcastic and friendly, sincerely grounded and almost calculatedly off-center, meticulously well-spoken but still so difficult to pin down.

Bright, polite, sensitive, articulate – his literary references over 90 minutes range from Isak Dineson to Jung to Irish poetry – Kilmer is an interviewer’s dream.

He’s an engaging character. And, though the language may occasionally get a little convoluted, his passion for the things that mean a lot to him comes across loud and clear.

Kilmer is not a mirror-gazer, although with his shocking blond hair, mischievous green eyes, impudent smile and expensive Armani suit, he could pass for a rock star.

Kilmer is a man interested in ideas. And admirer of Shakespeare, Van Gogh, Jesus Christ, Jacques Cousteau and the English poet John Donne. . .