“Dogville” (2003)
James Caan doesn’t really have much of a role in Lars Von Trier’s blistering screed against America, but oh boy, is it memorable. The first in what was supposed to be a “Land Of Opportunities” trilogy– a scathingly sardonic look at that phrase– “Dogville” is set in a tiny American town by an abandoned silver mine in the Rocky Mountains that prides itself on its virtuous “moral values.” Fleeing from gangsters, Nicole Kidman’s Grace Mulligan seeks refuge in this town, but soon and eventually, when wanted signs appear, the town’s mood darkens, and her role of poorly-paid housekeeper slowly evolves into indentured servitude and then something closer to brutal slavery. Caan shows up at the end, revealed as her gangster father, and they get into a long-spirited debate about accountability, morality, human nature, and what to do about the townspeople who have raped and abused her. Suffice to say, this finale is as searing as anything in Von Trier’s work, and Caan is there to tip it into white-hot territory. – RP
“Elf” (2003)
Caan opted to fade away rather than burn out in the latter phase of his career, a period marked by less-than-distinguished gigs done as kindnesses to his son Scott (the forgettable “Mercy,” scripted by and starring the younger Caan) or friends like Frank D’Angelo (the only feasible explanation for Caan’s appearance in the hilariously dismal “Sicilian Vampire”). With 2003’s “Elf,” however, he charted a different path forward that would ultimately go untaken. In the new-classic Christmas comedy, he supplies the straight man to Santa’s absurd little helper, a more whimsical iteration of Will Ferrell’s typical man-child. Caan’s doing a time-honored type as well, taking up the proud mantle of the beleaguered no-nonsense Dad sputtering with rage over the adult child, throwing his buttoned-up life into disarray. He fell in line with Charles Grodin in “Clifford” and Robert De Niro when in comedic mode. We’d see Caan’s influence most precisely in Richard Jenkins’ immortal “Step Brothers” performance as another foe of Ferrell’s. Both men yield to the unmediated joy lying latent beneath their grown-up gruffness, Caan’s tough-guy persona making the release of his inner child all the more delightful. Lighthearted work playing off his natural coarseness could’ve been a serviceable final act for Caan, but a trend failed to take shape. -CB
Honorable Mention
James Caan as an astronaut in Robert Altman’s “Countdown” (1967), Caan as a young and mentally-damaged football player in Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Rain People” (1969), 1973’s “Slither,” with Sally Kellerman, an early role in Howard Hawks’ “El Dorado,” a memorable supporting part in Richard Attenborough’s “A Bridge Too Far” (1977), Alan J. Pakula’s “Comes a Horseman” (1978), Coppola’s underseen “Gardens of Stone” (1987), “Alien Nation” (1988), Robert Mulligan’s romantic ghost comedy “Kiss Me Goodbye” (1982), “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” (2009), and of course his memorable role in Adam Sandler’s 2012 film, “That’s My Boy.”
