R.I.P. Sonny.
Interviewer of reprobate ne'er-do-well musicians of the long-haired rock n' roll persuasion at: www.velvetthunder.co.uk and former scribe at Classic Rock Society. Only vaguely aware of anything other than music.
*** Join me in the Garden of Delights for 4 hours of tune-spinning... every Saturday at 5pm EST on Deep Nuggets radio! www.deepnuggets.com ***
82 is a long life. Good for him! He was a great actor who gave us a lot to consider through his art.
RIP James Caan.
Trivia question since this is a prog site. What is the name of the movie he was in that Tangerine Dream did the soundtrack for?
Do not suffer through the game of chance that plays....always doors to lock away your dreams (To Be Over)
I really like James Caan. Besides the landmark, some decent acting. I agree, 82 is a full life.
What can this strange device be? When I touch it, it brings forth a sound (2112)
Was it Thief? I know the one you're referring to.Originally Posted by Digital_Man
What can this strange device be? When I touch it, it brings forth a sound (2112)
Yep.
Do not suffer through the game of chance that plays....always doors to lock away your dreams (To Be Over)
"what's better, peanut butter or g-sharp minor?"
- Sturgeon's Lawyer, 2021
Thief?
R.I.P. to a great actor.
But he also seemed like one of those guys you'd like to hang out with. Talented, smart, good sense of humor....
Music isn't about chops, or even about talent - it's about sound and the way that sound communicates to people. Mike Keneally
you're telling me!
Dave Sr.
I prefer Nature to Human Nature
Yes, I already confirmed that.
Do not suffer through the game of chance that plays....always doors to lock away your dreams (To Be Over)
The last movie I saw him in was Detachment with Adrian Brody and Lucy Liu. He had a small part as a teacher in a very troubled inner-city school.
RIP.
As far as I'm concerned, James Caan was one of our greatest actors. National treasure. He could stand off to the side and not say anything and enhance the scene. He'd show up in an otherwise ho-hum film like Henry's Crime and instantly elevate it.
James Caan considered Thief his best film, and I stand behind that assertion one-hundred percent. It's a tour de force, especially for a director's (Michael Mann) first. (And, yeah, I can't imagine the film without Tangerine Dream's music.)
RIP.
Rest in peace.
Frog in boiling water
Rollerball! One of the holy trinity of my youth, along with Planet of the Apes and Westworld.
Thief isn't even close to his best film, IMO.
Godfather, Rollerball, Alien Nation, Misery, The Killer Elite off the top of my head without looking anything up.
The guy could pretty much play any role. Anyone remember "Freebie and The Bean" with Alan Arkin? Man, he was hilarious.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
Yes! Thanks for reminding me of that. I hadn't thought about it in many years.
Brian's Song was a great flick I thinks
Far more versatile an actor than his regular typecast as somewhat volatile "fixer" of sorts, he set new standards of certain character performance in a mostly gritty or raunchy environment of drama, transferring onto supporting roles the nobilities of protagonist dimensions usually reserved top players like Steve McQueen. When Caan assumed starring features himself, they were often ambivalent demeanours of psychology (as in Comes a Horseman or the above-mentioned Thief), sometimes channelling figures you never really knew if you were supposed to know or truly see through. Even his much heralded performance in Misery has a lot of that trait to it.
But to be honest, Caan's zenith dwindled with the recession of the 'New Hollywood' era in American film (IMHO). Deep portrayals of fate as bestowed in limitations of the "self" was no longer the main agenda of character acting as the blockbuster revenues surplayed the deeds of man into caricature. Contemporaries such as Duvall and Hackman and to a lesser degree Nicholson mastered the transition neatly, I think, whereas Caan (IMHO) a bit too often would appear in roles which seemed to play deliberately into that typesetting which so defined his delivery during the 70s.
I particularly recall the ending of For The Boys, an early 90s attempt at a period epic conveying the chronicles of a singer couple (teaming him with Bette Midler; Caan indeed being a rather apt singer himself and his character here believed to be based on Bob Hope). When the pair is eventually "reformed" for a last and final swing in the film, the overall impression of unconscious self-parody sits sadly on the shoulders of Caan's shiny tux. By that time he was probably urging for anything but doing routines on bad guys and bullies, of course, so that's something of a redeeming goal in itself.
Anyway; when good he was great, and as as with all fine actors his best inputs still reveal another discovery on each revisit. Not to mention that 'Sonny Corleone' remains one of the most iconic character performances of all time.
"Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
"[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM
R.I.P. Sonny
The Gambler is another terrific 70s Caan, recently remade with Mark Wahlberger
no tunes, no dynamics, no nosebone
He was great in Misery. What a psychological thriller.
Goodbye Sonny. Badda bing!
Lou
Looking forward to my day in court.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks