James Caan, a legendary performer best known for his work in “The Godfather,” died on Thursday at the age of 82, but he leaves behind a screen legacy filled with memorable turns in a variety of genres. Below, we dive into some of the actor’s unforgettable turns on both the big and small screen.
El Dorado (1967)
Caan stars opposite John Wayne and Robert Mitchum as Alan Bourdillion Traherne aka “Mississippi” in this Howard Hawks-directed Western, which was one of his first major film roles.
Brian’s Song (1970)
Caan got his start in television before making films like “El Dorado” and “Countdown,” and had to be convinced to return to TV to play dying football player Brian Piccolo in “Brian’s Song.” The performance earned him an Emmy nomination.
The Godfather (1972)
Caan’s turn as hotheaded Sonny Corleone in “The Godfather” is certainly his most iconic turn, earning him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He would reprise the role in a cameo in “The Godfather Part II.”
Rollerball (1975)
In Norman Jewison’s rip-snorting action movie satire Caan plays Jonathan, the member of the Houston Rollerball team. After the corporate bigwigs ask him to retire, Jonathan refuses, which then leads the league to significantly up the violence of the game as a way of either forcing Jonathan out or killing him in the process. (There’s also the whole mystery of why they want him gone.) Like so many of his performances, Caan is able to ground the somewhat oversized spectacle, injecting his modest humanity and everyman charm. No matter the concept, Caan could make it feel real.
Comes a Horseman (1978)
Alan J. Pakula is mostly remembered for his loose trilogy of brilliant conspiracy thrillers (“Klute,” “All the President’s Men” and “The Parallax View”) but he made all sorts of terrific movies – and one of them was a western that starred Caan. Part of what makes the movie so fun to watch is seeing Caan, one of cinema’s most decidedly “urban” performers, as a World War II veteran who buys a small parcel of land from Jane Fonda and then helps her save her property from an evil rancher played by Jason Robards. Caan’s performance is delicate and understated, fitting in perfectly amongst the gorgeous widescreen photography of Gordon Willis and amongst the larger themes of personal freedom and the role of the west in contemporary America. Worth seeking out, it’s on Prime Video right now.
Thief (1981)
While “The Godfather” is largely cited as Caan’s greatest performance, his career highpoint honestly might be “Thief.” In the film Caan plays Frank, a career criminal, who gets in over his head while wooing a woman who works at one of his “legitimate” business (played by the great Tuesday Weld). “Thief” is the theatrical directorial debut of Michael Mann, who meticulously researched the project (of course) and based Frank on an actual jewel thief who had written a memoir called “The Home Robbers.” It’s because of this that everything feels deeply lived in and authentic (Mann also populated the cast with tough guy supporting performances from Dennis Farina, Willie Nelson, Jim Belushi and Robert Prosky), set against an immortal Tangerine Dream score. And it truly speaks to Caan’s ability to inhabit a role with chameleonic versatility that he was able to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with these guys and feel like a part of that world.
Alien Nation (1988)
Honestly, it’s weird that this had never been attempted before. “Alien Nation” is basically a buddy cop thriller, with a human cop (Caan) partnered up with an alien visitor (Mandy Patinkin under some elaborate prosthetics). While the movie is a bunch of fun, high concept nonsense, it’s a testament to Caan’s power as a performance and his inherent earthiness and believability, that he made the farfetched story come to life in a believable, tactile way. You could argue that the chemistry between Caan and Patinkin is what made the movie so compelling and, by extension, established the concept as the source for a surprisingly long-running franchise that included a TV series, several TV movies, comic books and spin-off novels.
Dick Tracy (1990)
Like almost everybody else in “Dick Tracy,” Caan isn’t in it for very long and he probably did it as a favor to writer/director/producer/star Warren Beatty. At the very least Caan got to play a scene with Al Pacino, his old “Godfather” chum, as one of the city’s underworld figures (in the comic books, he was Big Boy’s lawyer). Caan appears briefly before getting blown up by one of Pacino’s bombs, but it’s fun to see him (and unlike some of the other performers, since Caan isn’t covered in prosthetics, recognize him) in such a heightened, comic book atmosphere.
Misery (1990)
This 1990 Stephen King adaptation has only grown in stature (and relevance) since it was first released, with Caan playing a famous author who gets kidnapped by an obsessed fan. Kathy Bates won the Best Actress Oscar for her turn, but Caan delivers a performance that’s a bit more sensitive than the gruff exterior for which he’d become known.
Honeymoon in Vegas (1992)
“Honeymoon in Vegas,” written and directed by the great Andrew Bergman, is probably best remembered for the Flying Elvis, a group of skydiving Elvis impersonators that factor into the movie’s chaotic third act. Or maybe they remember Nicolas Cage’s performance, which oscillates between unhinged and more recognizable. But Caan’s performance, as a cunning, somewhat villainous character who gets Cage’s fiancé (played by an adorable Sarah Jessica Parker) to agree to marry him, is just as noteworthy, if not nearly as splashy as the other aspects of “Honeymoon in Vegas” that make it so memorable. Watch it again. Caan isn’t asking for much but he commands every scene he is in just by the benefit of who he is. He doesn’t take up space; he inhabits it.
Bottle Rocket (1996)
It says something that Caan, who did an early film with Francis Ford Coppola and starred in Michael Mann’s first movie, that he was still willing to take chances with unproven talent this late in his career. “Bottle Rocket” was Wes Anderson’s very first movie and featured the acting debuts of both Luke and Owen Wilson (Owen also co-wrote the screenplay). It’s a story of smalltown Texas dipshits who are looking to be criminals; it’s softer and more focused than the rash of post-Tarantino crime comedies that were litering the independent cinema scene back there. And Caan lends real weight and authority as Mr. Henry, a criminal type that the boys interface with. In a film made at this scale, Caan looms even larger.
Eraser (1996)
Caan is so good in “Eraser,” Chuck Russell’s mid-‘90s Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle, that it’s a shame that he didn’t appear in a string of big budget movies as the hammy villain. (Maybe John Lithgow was monopolizing those roles at the time.) Caan plays a U.S. Marshall who turns on his fellow Marshall (played by Schwarzenegger). The largely incomprehensible script involves the Witness Protection program, an evil computer company and the sale of high-tech weaponry (those “rail guns” were admittedly pretty cool). Caan is the perfect snarling bad guy, who is deeply annoyed by Arnold’s repeated attempts at heroism. It’s a fun, somewhat underrated R-rated action movie from the period with a few terrific set pieces and, obviously, one gem of a James Caan performance.
Las Vegas (2003-2007)
Of course Caan’s first foray into episodic television would be a huge hit, running for more than 100 episodes and establishing him as an actor who could do just about anything. Caan plays Ed Deline, who works security at a fictional Las Vegas casino called the Montecito. This is Caan in full-on tough guy mode; his character was a former CIA agent and he quickly rises in the ranks of the casino. It wasn’t exactly heavy lifting, but in a show that could easily spin into melodrama, his weightiness kept it grounded.
Elf (2003)
“Elf” is a yearly holiday classic at this point, and while James Caan and Will Ferrell isn’t an obvious pairing, their dynamic works for this Jon Favreau-directed comedy. The film plays on Caan’s persona as he fills the role of a gruff and intimidating publisher who discovers he fathered a child who was raised by elves. Needless to say, he’s not too keen on his grown son’s shenanigans.
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” took the beloved 1978 children’s story and made it bigger and more complex without ever losing the heart and fun of the original tale. Caan played Tim Lockwood, the father of the lead character, inventor Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader). Flint is, of course, responsible for the food that rains down on his town. And much of the movie’s emotion comes from the relationship between Flint and Tim, the kind of begrudging acceptance and unspoken love. (Caan’s character doesn’t say much, which adds so much to the character.) While Caan would reprise his role for the sequel, “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2,” it’s the first film that’s really special. And the performance of Caan’s that really soared.
