James Caan Movies-Best to Worst-With Adjusted Box Office Results/Grosses
74James Caan in 1999's Mickey Blue Eyes...Caan has been starring in movies for almost 50 years.
The other day I received a comment on my Al Pacino hub talking about James Caan(1940-). After reading the comment it occurred to me that although James Caan is one of my favorite actors, I had yet to do a hub on him. So this hub was written to correct that horrible error I have been making for the last 10 months.
I think the first three movie stars I became aware of as a kid were, John Wayne, Michael Caine and James Caan. Four Caan movies from the 1970s really caught my attention as a kid.....Brian's Song(one of the best television movies ever), The Godfather(I was not allowed to watch it....but all kids knew about the toll booth scene), Rollerball(I never really understood the movie as a kid, but it was a supercool movie), and Freebie and the Bean(it seems this movie played on ABC's Sunday night at the movies every 6 months).
As I got older I tried to watch as many of his movies that I could get my hands on....so far I have seen 37 of the 57 movies listed here. My favorite James Caan movies(not already mentioned) are A Bridge Too Far, Kiss Me Goodbye, Bottle Rocket and The Gambler(not the Kenny Rogers tv movie). As always this hub will list Caan's Top Ten box office hits, his Top Ten critic/audience movies and rank all 57 of his movies by Movie Score. And then you get Ten Possibly Interesting Facts about James Caan.
James Caan and Barbra Streisand in 1975's Funny Lady....Caan's 6th biggest box office hit with 164.60 million in 2011 adjusted dollars.
James Caan's Top Ten Box Office Hits in 2011 Inflated Dollars.
Rank Movie Year
| 2011 Adjusted Box Office(mil)
| Co-Stars
|
|---|---|---|
#1The Godfather (1972)
| 624.90 million
| Al Pacino/Marlon Brando
|
#2 Elf (2003)
| 229.00 million
| Will Ferrell
|
#3 Dick Tracy (1990)
| 194.80 million
| Warren Beatty/Al Pacino
|
#4 Eraser (1996)
| 182.10 million
| Arnold Schwarznegger
|
#5 A Bridge Too Far (1977)
| 181.30 million
| Michael Caine/Sean Connery
|
#6 Funny Lady (1975)
| 164.60 million
| Barbra Streisand
|
#7 Get Smart (2008)
| 144.70 million
| Steve Carell
|
#8 Silent Movie (1976)
| 135.20 million
| Mel Brooks
|
#9 Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
| 132.80 million
| Computer Animated Movie
|
#10 Freebie and the Bean (1974)
| 126.40 million
| Alan Arkin
|
James Caan in 1990's Misery....ranked as his 4th best movie according to critics and audiences.
James Caan's Top Ten Movies based on critics and audience voting at IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes.com, Yahoo movies.
Rank Movie Year
| Critics Audience Rating
| Co-Stars
|
|---|---|---|
#1 The Godfather (1972)
| 95%
| Marlon Brando/Robert Duvall
|
#2 El Dorado (1967)
| 87%
| John Wayne
|
#3 Brian's Song (1971)
| 85%
| Billy Dee Williams
|
#4 Misery (1990)
| 84%
| Kathy Bates
|
#5 Thief (1981)
| 84%
| Willie Nelson
|
#6 Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
| 79%
| Computer Animated Movie
|
#7 The Gambler (1974)
| 78%
| Lauren Hutton
|
#8 Silent Movie (1976
| 77%
| Mel Brooks
|
#9 Elf (2003)
| 76%
| Will Ferrell
|
#10 Bottle Rocket (1996)
| 76%
| Owen Wilson/Luke Wilson
|
James Caan in 1972's The Godfather....easily his best movie role according to Movie Score.
James Caan's 57 movies ranked by Movie Score. Movie Score is box office results + critical reception + award recognition. Perfect score would be 100.
Rank
| Movie Year
| 2011 Inflated Box Office (Millions)
| Cogerson Movie Score
| Critics Audience Rating
| Oscar®Noms / Oscar® Wins
| Box Office Rank for Year
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st
| The Godfather (1972)
| 624.90
| 91.68
| 95%
| 11 / 03
| #1 highest grosser of 1972
|
2nd
| Dick Tracy (1990)
| 194.80
| 67.65
| 63%
| 07 / 03
| #9 highest grosser of 1990
|
3rd
| Elf (2003)
| 229.00
| 66.63
| 76%
| 00 / 00
| #7 highest grosser of 2003
|
4th
| A Bridge Too Far (1977)
| 181.30
| 61.80
| 73%
| 00 / 00
| #13 highest grosser of 1977
|
5th
| Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
| 132.80
| 56.87
| 79%
| 00 / 00
| #23 highest grosser of 2009
|
6th
| Misery (1990)
| 115.30
| 54.30
| 84%
| 01 / 01
| #19 highest grosser of 1990
|
7th
| Funny Lady (1975)
| 164.60
| 54.16
| 45%
| 05 / 00
| #7 highest grosser of 1975
|
8th
| Silent Movie (1976)
| 135.20
| 53.99
| 77%
| 00 / 00
| #5 highest grosser of 1976
|
9th
| Eraser (1996)
| 182.10
| 53.50
| 47%
| 01 / 00
| #14 highest grosser of 1996
|
10th
| Get Smart (2008)
| 144.70
| 50.19
| 59%
| 00 / 00
| #20 highest grosser of 2008
|
Rank
| Movie Year
| 2011 Inflated Box Office (Millions)
| Cogerson Movie Score
| Critics Audience Rating
| Oscar®Noms / Oscar® Wins
| Box Office Rank for Year
|
11th
| Freebie and the Bean (1974)
| 126.40
| 48.02
| 65%
| 00 / 00
| #12 highest grosser of 1975
|
12th
| El Dorado (1967)
| 86.70
| 47.66
| 87%
| 00 / 00
| #13 highest grosser of 1966
|
13th
| Honeymoon in Vegas (1992)
| 67.60
| 39.78
| 61%
| 00 / 00
| #41 highest grosser of 1992
|
14th
| Chapter Two (1979)
| 106.50
| 39.04
| 49%
| 01 / 00
| #22 highest grosser of 1980
|
15th
| Rollerball (1975)
| 77.10
| 38.70
| 67%
| 00 / 00
| #33 highest grosser of 1975
|
16th
| Thief (1981)
| 32.60
| 35.73
| 84%
| 00 / 00
| #66 highest grosser of 1981
|
17th
| Alien Nation (1988)
| 48.50
| 35.41
| 59%
| 00 / 00
| #42 highest grosser of 1988
|
18th
| Comes a Horseman (1978)
| 32.60
| 32.84
| 74%
| 01 / 00
| #69 highest grosser of 1978
|
19th
| Cinderella Liberty (1973)
| 39.80
| 32.51
| 65%
| 03 / 00
| #41 highest grosser of 1974
|
20th
| The Gambler (1974)
| 9.50
| 31.07
| 78%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 98 of 1974
|
Rank
| Movie Year
| 2011 Inflated Box Office (Millions)
| Cogerson Movie Score
| Critics Audience Rating
| Oscar®Noms / Oscar® Wins
| Box Office Rank for Year
|
21st
| Brian's Song (1971)
| 3.20
| 30.21
| 85%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 93 of 1971
|
22nd
| Mickey Blue Eyes (1999)
| 53.30
| 30.20
| 52%
| 00 / 00
| #64 highest grosser of 1999
|
23rd
| Kiss Me Goodbye (1982)
| 42.90
| 28.35
| 57%
| 00 / 00
| #48 highest grosser of 1982
|
24th
| Flesh and Bone (1993)
| 18.30
| 27.79
| 66%
| 00 / 00
| #111 highest grosser of 1993
|
25th
| The Glory Guys (1965)
| 15.10
| 27.65
| 65%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 85 of 1965
|
26th
| The Program (1993)
| 44.50
| 27.36
| 49%
| 00 / 00
| #66 highest grosser of 1993
|
27th
| Slither (1973)
| 13.50
| 27.02
| 70%
| 00 / 00
| #86 highest grosser of 1973
|
28th
| The Rain People (1969)
| 8.70
| 26.36
| 70%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 89 of 1969
|
29th
| The Killer Elite (1975)
| 35.00
| 25.43
| 53%
| 00 / 00
| #53 highest grosser of 1975
|
30th
| Bottle Rocket (1996)
| 0.80
| 25.11
| 76%
| 00 / 00
| #211 highest grosser of 1996
|
Rank
| Movie Year
| 2011 Inflated Box Office (Millions)
| Cogerson Movie Score
| Critics Audience Rating
| Oscar®Noms / Oscar® Wins
| Box Office Rank for Year
|
31st
| Dogville (2003)
| 1.60
| 25.07
| 75%
| 00 / 00
| #189 highest grosser of 2003
|
32nd
| Harry & Walter Go To New York (1976)
| 38.20
| 25.01
| 50%
| 00 / 00
| #44 highest grosser of 1975
|
33rd
| Hide in Plain Sight (1980)
| 11.90
| 24.77
| 64%
| 00 / 00
| #110 highest grosser of 1980
|
34th
| For the Boys (1991)
| 33.40
| 24.47
| 48%
| 01 / 00
| #67 highest grosser of 1991
|
35th
| Bulletproof (1996)
| 39.00
| 23.92
| 32%
| 00 / 00
| #78 highest grosser of 1996
|
36th
| Bolero (1981)
| 2.40
| 23.76
| 67%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 150 of 1981
|
37th
| This Is My Father (1998)
| 1.60
| 23.75
| 71%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 212 of 1998
|
38th
| T.R. Baskin (1971)
| 12.70
| 23.54
| 60%
| 00 / 00
| #83 highest grosser of 1972
|
39th
| Rabbit Run (1970)
| 9.50
| 23.42
| 62%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 74 of 1970
|
40th
| RedLine 7000 (1965)
| 25.40
| 22.57
| 50%
| 00 / 00
| #81 highest grosser of 1965
|
Rank
| Movie Year
| 2011 Inflated Box Office (Millions)
| Cogerson Movie Score
| Critics Audience Rating
| Oscar®Noms / Oscar® Wins
| Box Office Rank for Year
|
41st
| Countdown (1968)
| 12.70
| 22.02
| 56%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 92 of 1968
|
42nd
| Games (1967)
| 11.90
| 21.97
| 56%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 82 of 1967
|
43rd
| Another Man Another Chance (1977)
| 4.00
| 21.61
| 60%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 100 of 1977
|
44th
| The Yards (2000)
| 1.60
| 21.44
| 64%
| 00 / 00
| #225 highest grosser of 2000
|
45th
| Lady in a Cage (1964)
| 28.60
| 21.11
| 44%
| 00 / 00
| #46 highest grosser of 1964
|
46th
| The Way of the Gun (2000)
| 8.70
| 21.02
| 57%
| 00 / 00
| #150 highest grosser of 2000
|
47th
| Gardens of Stone (1987)
| 10.30
| 20.77
| 51%
| 00 / 00
| #103 highest grosser of 1989
|
48th
| Middle Men (2009)
| 0.80
| 18.10
| 54%
| 00 / 00
| #247 highest grosser of 2009
|
49th
| Submarine X-1 (1969)
| 9.50
| 17.64
| 45%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 89 of 1969
|
50th
| City of Ghosts (2002)
| 0.80
| 17.50
| 53%
| 00 / 00
| #279 highest grosser of 2002
|
Rank
| Movie Year
| 2011 Inflated Box Office (Millions)
| Cogerson Movie Score
| Critics Audience Rating
| Oscar®Noms / Oscar® Wins
| Box Office Rank for Year
|
51st
| New York I Love You (2009)
| 1.60
| 17.22
| 51%
| 00 / 00
| #218 highest grosser of 2009
|
52nd
| Mercy (2009)
| 0.00
| 16.69
| 51%
| 00 / 00
| #499 highest grosser of 2009
|
53rd
| Henry's Crime (2010)
| 0.00
| 16.54
| 50%
| 00 / 00
| #284 highest grosser of 2010
|
54th
| Journey to Shiloh (1968)
| 2.40
| 16.45
| 46%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 92 of 1968
|
55th
| This Thing of Ours (2003)
| 0.00
| 15.38
| 47%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 250 of 2003
|
56th
| The Dark Backward (1991)
| 0.00
| 15.36
| 47%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 250 of 1991
|
57th
| Gone With The West (1975)
| 2.40
| 12.72
| 35%
| 00 / 00
| Not in Top 100 of 1975
|
Possibly Interesting Facts About James Caan.
1. 1971's Brian's Song was originally a made for television movie, but was such a popular hit on television that the producers actually released Brian's Song to theaters.....it did perform well when people had to pay to watch the movie. James Caan received an Emmy nomination for his role.
2. James Caan played football at Michigan State University back in 1956 before transferring to Hofstra University. Caan was also a rodeo performer for many years and has a black belt in karate.
3. During his long career, James Caan has only received one Oscar® nomination(The Godfather) but he has helped numerous actresses receive Oscar® nominations...Marsha Mason in 1973's Cinderella Liberty and 1980's Chapter Two, Bette Midler in 1991's For The Boys, and Kathy Bates in her Oscar® winning performance in 1990's Misery.
4. James Caan has received more love from the Golden Globe® people as he has received 4 Golden Globe® nominations. Those four movies are 1965's The Glory Guys, 1972's The Godfather, 1974's The Gambler, and 1975's Funny Lady ...he has yet to win one.
5. James Caan has directed one movie in his career....1980's Hide in Plain Sight....a forgotten gem of a movie that is based on a true story. In the movie Caan's children go into the Witness Protection with their mom and stepfather....leaving the real father with no way to see or contact his children.
6. James Caan has been married four times. Those four marriages have given Caan a daughter named Tara, and four sons named Scott, Alexander, James and Jacob. Caan is currently not married. His son Scott Caan is also an actor, he can be seen on the CBS show Hawaii Five-O as well as the Oceans Eleven trilogy.
7. During one of his divorces, James Caan moved into one of his good friend's house....that friend was Hugh Hefner and the house was the Playboy Mansion.
8. James Caan has turned down some very famous roles....some of these roles include....Blade Runner, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Kramer vs Kramer, MASH, Star Wars, Superman and One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest.
9. From 1982 to 1987 James Caan briefly retired from the movie business, during this time frame he coached a Little League baseball team, there was one incident where his team's weakest player hit a home run that won a game. Caan claims this is one of the greatest moments of his life.
10. James Caan is the 74th actor/actress to receive a Cogerson career review hub page. My Greatest Actors/Actress Table has two separate tables....the first table ranks the 74actors using all of their movies. James Caan comes in at #69 on that table one spot behind of #68 Angelina Jolie. The second table only looks at the actor's Top Ten Movie Score Movies. On that table James Caan comes in at #48....just behind #47 Barbara Stanwyck.
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I have only seen him in a couple of things, I think. He seems interesting but it's obvious he never got the kind of leading man attention he deserved. That's an interesting point you bring up about Brian's Song. I think the TV movie is making a comeback. TNT's starting mystery Tuesday nights with flicks based on famous mystery novels. Voted up and interesting as usual.
Hey RealHousewife...his peak was easily the four or five years after the Godfather made him a star....but he was unable to maintain that stardom...and pretty much over the last twenty years he has been a supporting actor...although he was the star of the show Las Vegas for 4 or 5 years. I think the movies listed in the Top 20 of the Movie Score table are worth checking out. You should avoid the ones near the bottom...I am fan of his...but those movies are horrible. Thanks for stopping by.
Hey Alecia ....I have such fond memories of the movies of the week....because back then it was the only time you got the chance to watch some of the older classic movies....James Bond movies were very popular....as well as the Disney movie of the week....I still remember how excited my mom was when Gone With The Wind had it's network broadcast...and now she has it on dvd and does not ever watch it.
As for the current movies of the week...everything goes in cycles...so I am sure they will be around for awhile. Thanks for the votes up and for the comments.
Unlike one of your other favourite actors mentioned at the beginning of this hub, I have seen several of his top ten box office hits. n critics hits, a bit violent or about football and depressing.
However, I haven't seen much more than those films on that top ten list. Really.
Top Ten Box Office:
I have seen half of these: #2,3,5,6, and 8
Top Ten Critics List:
I have seen only 2 of these -#8 and 9.
Top ten Movie Score list:
Same as the box office list: 50% of them. I have seen #2,3,4,7 and 8.
Overall:
I have seen 6 of this films or 11%. The other one I have seen is Mickey Blue Eyes that was playing on the plane to Athens when Mom and I went to Greece.
This is the order I would put the six I have seen in:
Elf-one of TINY number of recent Christmas films I enjoy-it might be because this is actually original matierial
A Bridge Too Far--star-studded
Dick Tracy-silly and light
Mickey Blue Eyes-light entertainment but fun
Silent Movie-funny, but as with many of Brooks comedies, a bit rude
Funny Lady-not nearly as good as Funny Girl
"Jonathan! Jonathan! Jonathan!"
Which film anyone? Bet Bruce knows. :)
It does seem odd that you've never done a hub on James Cann till now. I'm a big fan too. But you've seen far more of his films. I counted only 16. tsk tsk.
On the box office chart I've seen 8 and on the critics chart I've seen 6.
Favourites include The Godfather of course, Rollerball (surprised I haven't done a hub on this yet), Freebie and the Bean (where's the Blu-ray?) Misery and Eraser.
Alien Nation is a guilty pleasure, a buddy cop movie with a twist.
El Dorado is a classic John Wayne western with a very young Caan and also starring Hollywood great Robert Mitchum.
I've never seen Elf, Funny Lady or Brians Song (I always avoid weepies if I can).
Some good trivia there, somehow I can't imagine Caan as Han Solo or Superman. :)
Voted Up, Useful and Interesting!
Hey Flora...thanks for checking out my James Caan movie....6 is probably where I would have guessed...he does have some movies made before you were born that are worth checking out....his performance in the Gambler is awesome and it still plays well today...and Rain People...which is where Caan and Francis Ford Coppola first it it off....you also get a very young Robert Duvall and an outstanding performance by Shirley Knight. Of course some time in the future you need to watch The Godfather..but I know why you have not seen that one...and the last one I would recommend is 1982's Kiss Me Goodbye...which is a comedy that also stars Sally Field and Jeff Bridges...granted it has been years since I saw that movie.
I think you will be happy with a decision I made about future hubs....I was looking at AFI's Top 25 stars of all-time...and I concluded I needed a hub on all 50 stars they listed(they did a Top 25 for actor and actress)...to date I have 14 of the 25 actors and only 4 of the top 25 actresses....so I will be going right down the list....first up #6 Fred Astaire and #2 Bette Davis.
Oh, that would be great! I am very happy to hear that news. I am a big fan of those two. as for the dancer: I think if I had to choose between Astaire and Gene Kelly, I'd pick Kelly as my favourite. But I know that Astaire is best male dancer ever, not Kelly. Kelly admitted that his best dance partner ever was Fred Astiare, hands down.
Steve: Elf is not a weepie. It's quite fun. But yes, I have avoided Brian's Song for that reason (and the football, too, but if it were a comedy like heaven can Wait, I'd probably see it). Another famous weepie I've not seen and am avoiding? Love story. Really.
Thanks for the warning Cogerson! Lol
Hey Steve....better late than never...although I think I have to hand in my James Caan fan card for waiting this long to give the man a hub....as for your quote....pretty easy one but I will be quiet.
Well I am 9 for 10 with Top Ten box office hits...and 10 for 10 for Top Ten critics....only Funny Lady has escaped me so far. I like all the favorites you mentioned...have you seen Bottle Rocket? that is a low budget gem....while his The Dark Backward(#56) is one of the strangest movies I have ever seen....Judd Nelson plays a horrible standup comic that grows a third arm in his back...Caan plays his doctor...it also stars Wayne Newton, Rob Lowe, Billy Bob Thornton, Bill Paxson and Laura Flynn-Boyle.
I like Alien Nation as well, I remember seeing that one in the theater...I did not watch a single episode of the series though...Elf is an actually pretty funny....we can thank the success of Elf for all of these Will Farrell movies. And it is the perfect season to watch Elf. And finally I think he was much closer to playing Superman than he was to playing Han Solo.....thanks for the comments and checking out my Caan hub...and by the way I think Rollerball would make an interesting Illustrated Reference hub.
Hey Flora....well Gene Kelly will be coming soon as well...as I think he was either 14th or 15th on the list....while Peck was 12th on the list. I have all the Ginger Rogers/Fred Astaire box office numbers for the entire 1930 decade...so it should not take me very long to knock out that hub...between Thanksgiving and shopping I am sure I will have time for Fred and his 48 or so movies. Thanks as always for your contributions to my hubs.
You are very welcome...especially stay away from the Dark Backward...from a previous comment..."The Dark Backward(#56) is one of the strangest movies I have ever seen....Judd Nelson plays a horrible standup comic that grows a third arm in his back...Caan plays his doctor...it also stars Wayne Newton, Rob Lowe, Billy Bob Thornton, Bill Paxson and Laura Flynn-Boyle....avoid at all costs.
I remember AFI's special on the top 100 of the 20th Century quite a while ago. It's been updated since in a list that includes today's stars as well. But in the original list, You gad to have debuted before 1950 or have died to qualify to show you career was mostly if not completely in the 20th century. For men-#1 was Bogart. For women, despite being box office poison for part of her career-K. Hepburn.
Hey Flora...I think I will be using the original list...some will be easy(#18 James Dean) and some will be almost impossible(#10 Charlie Chaplin)..but it should be fun collecting and writing those hubs...the list I am using..
James Caan has not gone unnoticed by me.I feel he has an awesomely unique strategy to acting and with his genius juxtaposition with Will Farrell in Elf made that movie a modern day icon....And as I've said before,Rollerball was one of my all time favorite movies...thanks Cogerson for this pro-account of a(in my eyes) movie giant.;)
Well, that was interesting about his life, married four times and that his son is on Hawaii Five-O. I remember him from the Oceans Eleven but did not know he was his son. I have enjoyed and seen many of James Caan movies. He was a bad guy in Eraser but a good role. Brian's Song was a good but sad movie. I always enjoy the personal information you give. THANKS AGAIN. HAPPY THANKSGIVING COGERSON AND FAMILY.
I can not beleive Caan is over 70, but as you wrote it has been a 50 year career. My favorite is Thief with a very young Jim Belushi. Nice hub, see you went back to movie hubs. Looking at the comments, I know the quote is from the movie Rollerball. Next please. Voted up and impressive as always.
James Caan...Now there's a man who seems to hide in plain sight. I saw his movie, "Chapter Two," on my honeymoon in Vegas when I married the gambler. That didn't work out, so I moved to the city of ghosts in an alien nation, to give another man another chance. That was Henry, but he was a thief who stole an El Dorado. He had to kiss me good-bye and leave me in misery while the cops worked on Henry's crime. I was turning to flesh and bone and had to get smart like Dick Tracy. I got with the program and hired T.R. Baskin whose middle men he called the glory guys. They were clever men who knew the way of the gun and were said to be bulletproof. I'm kind of a funny lady so when I saw Harry & Walter go to New York, I started the countdown to the end of the game. I was as nervous as a lady in a cage because this thing of ours showed me no mercy. When you mention James Caan, I remember what I went through for the boys. UP AND AWESOME...& Happy Thanksgiving!!!
I like James Caan, and he's a talented actor but I was surpirsed that he let his career flame out at the height of his popularity. After his oscar nominated role in "the Godfather" he had a popular run for the next few years in good films like "Rollerball" and "A Bridge too Far". But after disappearing for much of the 80s, he never regained the red-hot popularity he had before he left.
I think he'll always be remembered by most people as Sonny Corleone.
Another fun hub,
Rob
Hey mentalist acer....I am glad we agree that his career, which could have been better, is still filled with awesome movies from the 1960s to 2011 he has produced so fine entertainment...and he is not done yet...as he has about 4 movies in production currently...thanks as always for your contributions.
Hey BERN1960...thanks for stopping by...I know A Bridge Too Far was one of dad's favorite movies and James Caan has a small but very good role in the movie. As for his son, I think if you take a look at Scott Caan it is not very hard to see James Caan in him...and the older Scott gets the more he looks like James in his prime...thanks for your comments they are always appreciated.
Hey YankeesRule....I do believe you are correct about Steve's trivia quote...I have not looked it up but James Caan's name in Rollerball was Jonathan and the crowd was always cheering his name. Thief is an excellent movie, it is one of my brother's favorite movies too...Willie Nelson is also very good in the movie and it was the first movie by Michael Mann....who would later give us Heat and Miami Vice...thanks for your contribution to the hub.
A round of applause to you Fpherj48....I love your comment, I have been sitting here looking at your comment for awhile, and I have concluded this is the best comment I have ever gotten during my HubPage time.(So far my comment total is approaching 6000...so your comment is even more impressive) I have counted a few times and I come up with 29 of his movies in your comment...very impressive....and the comment flows very well. Thanks so much for the taking the time to write the comment...it is greatly appreciated...hope you have an awesome safe, fun and happy holiday.
Hey Robwrite I agree with you about his career, he seemed to have the ability to pass on a screen classic and pick the screen dud...which is not a good trait to have...but I think he still managed to make lots of quality films...and he might still have one or two gems left in him....not the I am thinking his new Adam Sandler movie will fit that mode. I think you also very correct about people will always remember him as Sonny...which will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year...wow 40 years..time flies. Thanks as always for your comments...they are always greatly appreciated.
Jonathan! Jonathan! Jonathan-E was James Caan's name in Rollerball. Cogerson and the Rule of Yankees knew the answer, please accept this smiley :) as a reward, used only once.
While I'm here I want to mention another Jimmy Caan fave from the 70's, The Killer Elite, which co-starred Robert Duvall. The recent Jason Statham movie has no connection to this film except the title as far as I know, haven't seen it yet.
You have assembled another teriffic hub. James Cann surely does not get the attention he deserves. My favorite 'A Bridge Too Far'. I think it is the 'best' war movie and Caan did a great job in his role.
Yes, some will be impossible -another example-lillian Gish...
Well!! My husband is sending you a check for being the first Human being to render me speechless!! He's been praying for this for years and says he'll have a wonderful Thanksgiving thanks to you! (He should know better).....I recover quickly. I'll be my Jabber-jaw self by tomorrow. I am humbled by your lavish compliment. I had a LOT of fun putting that thing together! I don't know what got into me...the devil made me do it! lol
Hey Steve...I figured it had to be Rollerball and I was correct. As for the Killer Elite I used to remember watching that movie on television in the late 1970s...the last of 5 movies he made with Robert Duvall...so have you put Elf on your list of movies to watch yet?.... Caan is pretty good in the movie...you should check it out during this Christmas season.
Hey mckbirdbks...I am right there with you about A Bridge Too Far...I actually saw that movie in the theater when I was 10 years old....I remember in the movie that Caan's character dropped the f-bomb in the movie...I could not believe he said the f-word...and the fact that my grandmother took me to movie that had the f-word. All this talk about A Bridge Too Far has me thinking I should watch it again.
Hey Flora...I think you might be correct, Lillian Gish might be the hardest one I attempt.....I actually found a Joan Crawford link that has all her movies from 1925 to the 1940s...the information is from the Eddie Mannix Ledgers....check out the link and you can see how the studios kept track of their movies back ...by using a ledger that showed the movie's performance in a single line.
Excellent Fpherj48, I am glad you read my compliment to your comment. You can tell your husband that he is welcome....lol. I glad you had as much fun writing the comment as I had reading the comment. Happy Thanksgiving.
I've several of the ones that have no info. Thanks for the link to Crawford.
You are most certainly welcome Flora.
Cool info about a fine actor. My favorite of his roles was the writer in Misery. I am, however, surprised to see how well "Elf" did at the box office, as I find it so annoying. But I enjoyed reading your hub, good work!
Hey bethperry...thanks for checking out my James Caan hub. I love his part in Misery also...I listened to the Rob Reiner director's commentary on the DVD and he talked about James Caan and how James Caan loves to use his body when acting...and in Misery, Caan was the perfect fit for the role because Caan was miserable having so many scenes when he was lying in a bed...and Reiner says James Caan discomfort in the role was perfect for Paul Sheldon as Sheldon was also miserable having to have to deal with Annie Wilkes. Hope that makes sense.
As for Elf....the success of Elf has turned Will Ferrell into a movie star and that run has lasted almost 10 years now....thanks for the comments and the compliment they are greatly appreciated.
James Caan! A pulse hub! Awesome! WOW I had no idea that Danno from Hawaii Five-0 was James Caan's son!!! Danno's hair amazes me, it's always perfect!!! Dave says thanks for that tidbit of news about one of his fav shows!
Ok back to James...I've been a fan since The Godfather and I recently saw him in Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs, the movie that wasted so much food! Anyway back to James. He rocked in Elf, Brian's Song and Dick Tracy! Voted Up/Awesome/Great ... oh wait there is no great, oh well :)
I have been a big fan of Caan for years. I think the role he played as Sunny in the godfather is a classic.
Great in depth hub, this must have taken ages to put together well done.
We watched ELF tonight in honor of your hub:))
Hey Sunshine625....I am glad my hub got you to realize Danno is Jimmy Caan's son as well as getting you to watch Elf...a fun movie and at the perfect time of the year. Thanks for your contribution to this pulse hub....he has 4 movies coming out in the near future.
Hey molometer....I am right there with you about being a big fan of Caan for years. Sonny is his pinnacle of his career, but he has lots of other solid roles over the years. Thanks for the compliment and the comment. As for the time it takes to write a movie hub...if the actor is current like Caan it does not take too long....but if it is a classic actor like James Cagney...it can sometimes take weeks to find all the information I need to write a hub.
I love Caan and Pacino, don't see any "rivalry" between the two. I love "Rollerball" as well, and oddly enough I enjoyed "Comes a Horseman." Perhaps it was because Caan got to say to Jane Fonda what so many people in that era wanted to say to her: "Lady, you've got balls the size of grapefruits." LOL
Great hub, thanks for writing it!
Hey KF Raizor....I think in real life Pacino and Caan are friends...but I still hold it against Pacino for taking Caan's glory...lol. I love Rollerball too...I was so mad when they remade it....and even more mad when I saw the remake....one of the worst movies ever made. I saw Comes a Horseman once many years ago, but I do rememeber the grapefruit line. Thanks for stopping by.
RealHousewife Level 8 Commenter 5 months ago
Sounds like he is kind of an unsung hero:). Especially for the ladies! I admit I do not know much about this actor. I think his name is ubiquitous though - I just didn't really know what mo ies he played in. Great hub...I'll have to check a few of his movies out.