Hollywood veteran Sir Anthony Hopkins bagged his second Academy Award on Sunday, April 25, 2021, for his performance as a man grappling with dementia in The Father. 

The Wales-born actor has given over six decades of his life to the entertainment industry but is still in touch with his late father in memory to this day.

In fact, prior to his win at the Oscars, he visited his father's tomb to cite one of the greatest eulogies ever written: 'Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night' by the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. 

Hopkins Visited His Father's Tomb

The actor, perhaps best known for his portrayal of Dr. Hannibal Lectar in The Silence of the Lambs, paid tribute to Richard Hopkins, his late father, in a touching tweet on April 25, 2021. 

The tweet read, "Richard Hopkins, my beloved father, resting in eternal peace...," and came with a short clip of the veteran actor citing the legendary poet.

"Citing" might not be the correct word here; the actor made more of an attempt to cite before the words dried in his throat. 

The words of anger, love, and compassion infused in a timeless art piece has been around for a decade longer than Hopkin's active devotion in the industry but somehow finds the same resonance to this day. 

A Poem Timeless at the Face of Death

In Tom Vitale's words for NPR, the poem is but an angry fist raised at the forever champion, death.

The words in the poem translate to a plea, a request, begging at the feet of a dying father to burn and rave when the darkness of death is almost upon them. 

The emotion is especially poignant this year as the pandemic swept so many lives.

Former U.S. poet laureate Billy Collins reiterated that this poem finds expression in everyone who has experienced someone dying, even though it is in stark contrast against the conventional sentiment: it is not okay to just go quietly. 

As the pandemic rears its ugly head yet again, many people were denied the opportunity to properly say goodbye to their loved ones who were tied to the hospital bed, if they were fortunate enough to find one, that is. And this intense deathbed scene fuels the rage at death even more so. 

This poem, eulogy, sentiment, whatever you call it, is a desperate cry because it has already been established countless times that death will win in the end. 

The Father Made Him Realize The Value Of Life

Knighted by her royal highness Queen Elizabeth in 1993, Sir Anthony Hopkins had previously been awarded an Oscar for his brilliantly deviant role of Dr. Lecter in the 1991 thriller.

He is now also the oldest actor to be honored by the Academy Award, a successor to the late Christopher Plummer. 

The Father narrates the story of an aging man who refused to seek help from his family while he struggles to discern what is real and what is not.

The adaptation of a 2012 play of the same name made Hopkins "very aware of how precious life is."