John Cazale was a supporting actor in the 70s that accomplished something that no other actor has: All the films he acted in was nominated for Academy awards best picture. Also, all of them has a rating of 8,0 or higher on IMDb. Sadly, he died when he was only 42 years old in terminal bone cancer. As he only acted in five films, this list is rather about ranking his performances than picking out the five best ones.
#5. The Conversation
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| Stan |
Not a bad performance, it's just that he didn't get much time on screen.
"It's curiosity. Did you ever hear of that? It's just goddamn human nature."
#4. The Godfather
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| Fredo Corleone |
"Papa!"
#3. The Deer Hunter
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| Stan |
The story behind this performance makes it his best in a way. All the scenes in which Cazale participates was filmed first because of his illness. The studio wanted to replace him but the director Michael Cimono and Cazales collegue/lover Meryl Streep threatened to leave the production if they did. Also, it is said that Robert De Niro paid for his insurance so that he could take part in the movie. John Cazale died shortly after completing all his scenes.
"Some fuckin' friend. You're some fuckin' friend, you know that?"
#2. Dog Day Afternoon
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| Sal |
Great performance as Al Pacino's sidekick in this funny bank robbery movie.
"Tell the TV to stop saying there's 2 homosexuals in here."
#1. The Godfather: Part II
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| Fredo Corleone |
In the second part of The Godfather, Fredo Corleone gets much more attention than in the first part, and Cazale does not disappoint. Amazing performance.
An example of what a great actor John Cazale was is this scene from The Godfather II:
"Taken care of me? You're my kid brother and you take care of me? Did you ever think about that? Hah? Did you ever once think about that?"
An example of what a great actor John Cazale was is this scene from The Godfather II:
One of my fav actor, subtle and convincing acting and he died a legend.
ReplyDeleteI agree, but he should have continued as a living legend instead.
DeleteI don't think one can NOT like John Cazale. A very talanted actor who not only was a tremendous actor, he was also a part of FIVE films that went on to receive Oscar nominations for Best Picture. But the fact that he never received an Oscar nomination for his own performances is puzzling...
ReplyDeleteI agree, he's very likeable and plays likeable parts in all his movies. His characters are like Donald Duck. A mess and that's why everybody likes him :)
DeleteThe Godgather: Part II should have given him a nomination if nothing else!