Alternate Best Actor 1981: James Caan in Thief

James Caan did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Frank in Thief. 

James Caan plays the role that you see ready to be the ultimate badass. He's the individualistic titular thief who we see running scores from the opening of the film. Caan is of course an actor who has man's man energy overflowing out of every one of his pours. He has that innate presence that is just powerful in itself, and in turn that is a great shorthand for the role. Caan though plays into it further by presenting this strict precision in his manner through the opening heist scene, he's a true professional who goes straight for it and takes care of business. When we see him meet with his fence, there's no ego about it, just straightforward talk of the man making the deal, making his money, and being on his way. When his payment gets basically ripped off by a few other crooks Frank has to take care of more than business. Caan, for the lack of a better word, is cool, as he changes gears with such ease as he delivers his lines with a calm persuasion before he has to show his gun and release enough intensity to get some results. Caan is specific in his intensity, we see how he puts it on directly and with purpose as he pushes the men into doing exactly what he wants for him to get exactly what is his. Again Caan shows Frank means business, but very specifically as a man taking care of business. This even when threatening gun violence he does with his specific purpose and Caan shows it to be the most direct of his exact manner.

 

Caan is a captivating figure here, but why I'm reviewing this performance is because he really goes further than just being the tough badass here, something Caan's done before, but here he's going an extra distance with his performance. Caan's work delivers a very specific method I think in creating a sense of the man living this life. There's not really the expected obvious blitheness about it that I think is what is notable here, and makes his work distinct within the genre. Now part of this is Caan very much plays the sense of the meat and potatoes aspect of the thief. Caan delivers this specific sort of blunt and interesting truth about it. Whether we see him running his car dealership or negotiating with a gangster Leo (Robert Prosky), for steadier work, Caan does some brilliant work just really in the subtle intelligence he really brings to Frank. In his eyes, he shows a man negotiating different ideas, truly thinking about each element. Caan doesn't portray a man who already knows everything, rather he shows someone who takes his time to consider his options. Caan is captivating in creating the right sense of the man being the professional, also by very much dealing with it as a professional as in a job. I love the way Caan handles the moments of the prep because he doesn't romanticize them, rather he shows Frank just considering the steps and then making his choices. Caan's portrayal manages to be both the expectation of the slick thief, in a way kind of the subversion as we see the workaday aspects of being a successful thief.

Although this would be a very good performance by Caan if he was purely the badass protagonist thief, which he certainly is, again I would not be reviewing this performance if that was the only case. What makes this a truly special performance by Caan is that it honestly is one of his most vulnerable performances. We see that in the scene where he visits his old mentor Okla (Willie Nelson, who is actually pretty heartbreaking in his short bit). Caan is great in the scene though, just from the way he looks at Okla you can get the sense of admiration for the man and warmth in their relationship. His slightly hurried delivery is filled with quiet excitement as he goes to Okla with the new romantic possibility in his life. When Okla reveals he's in the process of dying, Caan is so great in the way he just shows the real subdued, yet very potent, devastation in Frank as he hears about his friend. Caan shows the man with the tough exterior so potently that there is so much emotion that is just lying beneath the surface. His revelation of that at this moment is so very powerful as he shows that Frank has so much heart in him despite being in what is expected to be a heartless profession. This aspect though is a dominating feature of Caan's performance that creates a rather fascinating exploration of the thief that is surprisingly human. 

We see more of this when meets a waitress Jessie (Tuesday Weld) who flirts with him initially, but is angry with him when he arrives late for their date. Frank follows this with this kind of strange tirade about basically getting past any potential drama and just getting on with their romance. What makes this strange declaration work is Caan's performance of it. Caan manages to be both upfront but also has this desperation of it. Caan's portrayal of it though has this certain emotional intensity that suggests a man who wants to waste no time, but not as some quick way to get the woman, but rather as a man who had so much time wasted and doesn't want to waste anymore. Caan manages to show even in frustration this genuine pledge of affection that is just brilliantly performed by him. Caan earns especially by the way he then segues towards opening up himself to her, and Caan delivers such honest intimacy in this scene it is rather incredible. First in the character talking about his traumatic experience in prison where Caan speaks the words on the most immediate surface as the tough guy prison story, yet his brief moments of hesitation and his eyes show the real difficulty Frank had in that life. When he then goes to show Jessie his dreams, that he literally visualized, there is this really I'd say sweet simplicity in Caan's performance that shows just the sincere dream of the man to raise a family.

It is an intriguing performance in a way because as much as it is a purity of Caan's expected form it also is a striking subversion of it. Take the scene where he and Jessie go to attempt to adopt a child. Caan starts off very much in the fully Sonny Jerkoff hot head mode as he derides the adoption agent who clearly is going to give either of them a chance. Caan certainly delivers on that rage and bites into the scene, making the scene as you'd expect from Caan. Caan though goes further here as his frustrations reveal the honest emotion in Frank that propel the anger. When Frank begins questioning why he can't take a kid since no one wants him, his frustration is filled with so much genuine anguish in the anger of a man speaking the real truth to himself. When he speaks of his own past in the state system Caan even in anger shows so much vulnerability in Frank. Caan beautifully measures the moment by fully delivering on that intensity but bringing in such potent heart wrenching pain in the man at the same time. Caan at the moment reveals really the poor child who wants to do right by another poor child more than anything. I love the ease Caan is able to really bring so much sensitivity in the man, even as a man who has to be "tough" for the lack of a better word. Caan finds the right short hand, and a sort of penetrating emotion in the man, like when Okla dies, Caan shows the effort in Frank to just barely hold it together as he is going through emotional hell. Caan succeeds here in building a real humanity within a role that could've been straight badass potentially. Caan mines every deeper aspect of the role though to bring a greater depth and power to the work. When Frank does take on the role of the badass, there is a real investment in his survival and the personal threat against him, because we know where he is sincerely coming from. It is also earned though because Caan does become the straight badass in every way as Frank goes about dealing with Leo's treachery and taking down his whole operation. Caan finds the catharsis of these scenes, and achieves a real sense of cool to put it simply. A truly remarkable performance from Caan because he is everything you'd want him to be in this role, but also so much you wouldn't have expected him to be either, in the very best of ways.