World cinema would be much poorer if it didn’t have Michael Caine. It sounds like a cliché, but it really is an international treasure. A cult actor with a career spanning seventy years. He starred in films such as Alfie (1966), Get Carter (1971), Knockout (1972), The Man Who Wanted to Be King (1975), Raising Rita (1983), Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), Cider House Rules (1999), A Muppets Christmas Tale (1992) and Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Trilogy (2008).
Michael Cain. September 1968
Photo source: Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images.
He received 6 nominations and 2 Oscars, a BAFTA, three Golden Globes, a Screen Actors Guild Award and countless honorary awards. He made the Cockney accent and thick-rimmed glasses sexy. He is an acclaimed author who has published two memoirs: What is it? (1992) and The Elephant in Hollywood (2010). And 2 days after the 95th Academy Awards, Kane celebrated his 90th birthday. Although he walks with a cane due to back problems, he recently wrapped filming The Great Escaper with friend, actress and two-time Oscar winner Glenda Jackson.
Let’s take a look at Kane’s best films and do it in his own words in a 2009 interview with the LA Times.
“Ipcress File” (1965)
Poster of the film “Dossier Ipcress” (1965).
Photo source: Lowndes Productions Limited.
The first of the actor’s five forays as British counterintelligence agent Harry Palmer. “This film was very important to me because for the first time my name appeared at the beginning of the credits, I was definitely the star of it.”
“Alfie” (1966)
Michael Caine at the premiere of Alfie (1966).
Photo source: Sheldrake Films.
Kane earned his first Oscar nomination for playing a skilled lover of women in the London swing. “It got me into the States and my first nomination, so it was a double bonus for me. I was Alfie and the board was called Alfie. I was at my best then and I took advantage.
“Kick Carter” (1971)
Still from the movie “Get Carter” (1971).
Photo source: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer British Studios.
Kane appeared onscreen as a notorious thug avenging his brother’s death. “I really liked this photo. I really wanted to do it because I felt people didn’t understand criminals. It was criticized for its cruelty, but each episode of violence was unique. We wanted to show this that one shot can do to you. My character was actually based on a guy I knew. He came to me after the movie – he didn’t know he was the prototype – and he said, ‘I thought it was bullshit that it didn’t happen. We are all married and we have children. I have five.”
“The Man Who Would Be King” (1975)
Kane and Sean Connery played two adventurers in John Huston’s adaptation of one of Rudyard Kipling’s works. “It was an amazing experience. It was funny how I got the part. I was in Paris with my wife, we were staying at the George V hotel. And around 11 a.m. on Saturday, the phone rang and a voice said, “It’s John Huston…I’m doing a movie and I want you to be in it. I’m at a bar nearby right now.” I came down and he said, “At first I wanted to do this with Clark Gable and Humphrey Bogart, but they both died without letting me know. Humphrey Bogart was one of my favorite actors and I got to play him, which was fantastic in itself.”
Batman Begins (2005), The Dark Knight (2008), The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Kane plays Bruce Wayne’s butler, Alfred. “I’ve never done these big movies, but when Christopher Nolan said he wanted you to play the role, I said yes. It was an amazing role. Mostly in blockbusters, people are numbers, but that never happens in Christopher Nolan’s movies.”
