edited by Jonathan Doyle

Cloverfield [BLU-RAY] (Paramount Home Entertainment, 6.3.2008) Disguised under deliberately goofy, yet deliciously edible-sounding, aliases such as Cheese and Slusho, Matt Reeves' Cloverfield was produced and rushed into theaters under an equally appetizing shroud of secrecy. From last year's incredibly elusive Super Bowl ad to the film's viral marketing campaign, Cloverfield had everybody scratching their heads and drooling in anticipation. Aside from the as-yet untitled title and the Blair Witch-ian visual style, the film's biggest appeal was the enigmatic creature who was last (un)seen hurling the decapitated head of the Statue of Liberty onto the crowded streets of New York City. All we knew about the mysterious beast was that it was big and angry. Now that the highy-anticipated project has come and gone, one question has fortunately been answered: Cloverfield was a major success. (continued)

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Do anything at all in the way of personal weekend enjoyment and you lose -- that's the reality of doing a 24/7 column (or at least one that aspires to same). My drive up to San Francisco from 1:30 pm last Friday afternoon to 8 pm early Friday evening had something to do with missing the story about James Caan recently walking off the set of David O. Russell's Nailed.

I have a comment however: if you can't deal with rancor and eccentricity and the occasional yelling episode, you really shouldn't be an actor. Fighting and disharmony are a part of the quilt -- you can't quarantine them and still be an artist. If everything has to be mellow and alpha every step of the way, you're basically processing things like a child or a prima donna. Adults stand up and grapple. They give and take and sort things through, and then move on. Ranting doesn't help anyone's creativity and is therefore unfortunate when it happens, but Otto Preminger was said to be a dislikable prick on the set (at least occasionally) and his rep keeps going up every year.

Chuck Todd Knows<< previous | next >>Wait It Out

Posted by Jeffrey Wells on April 21, 2008 at 8:50 AM

comment #1

clancy says ...

Although I am sure that Mr. Caan, at age seventy whatever, appreciates your telling him what it means to be an actor -he is also at a place in his career and, more importantly, his life, in which he doesn't need to live under the torrential downpour of insults and abuse leveled at him by a director.

Preminger may have been a prick, true. But he was a prick in the same way that James Cameron allegedly is and that Michael Mann --- all his fight came from a creative spirit, a need to get things done "just so" --- not being a bully for the sake of being one.

Good for Caan.

Posted by clancy at April 21, 2008 9:22 AM

comment #2

David Ehrlich says ...

agree with clancy that jeff wasn't there and that caan likely knows how to be an actor at this point... but this post featured "part of the quilt," the first jeff-ism that didn't make me want to yell at signor wells. i'm not sure where he got it or if it's of his own design, but it i actually support its use.

Posted by David Ehrlich at April 21, 2008 9:31 AM

comment #3

alynch says ...

Looking at the people who Caan has worked with over the years, I have a hard time believing that he's some sort of thin-skinned guy that can't handle confrontation. I'm betting that Russell really is just that much of an asshole.

Posted by alynch at April 21, 2008 9:33 AM

comment #4

Monument says ...

If David O. Russell's current behavior is in any way similar to his video taped hissy fit on I Heart Huckabee's then James Caan had every right to walk off of the set. Sure some artists can be very temperamental and losing one's cool on set from time to time can be expected. But when a director is given millions of dollars, top notch actors it's not uncalled for to expect a little bit of decorum and professionalism from said director.

I have never met an actor who responds well to hysterical screaming from the director. Sure some directors occasionally use this kind of behavior to get a specific performance from an actor, but from all of the accounts I've read (and seen), David O. Russell seems to be little more than a Grade A Asshole.

The fact that George Clooney has publicly stated that he'll never work with him again says quite a bit.

Posted by Monument at April 21, 2008 9:34 AM

comment #5

Jay T. says ...

Given that Caan has worked with dozens of respected directors and never had an issue like this (and the same for George Clooney) I think it's safe to say this has more to do with Russell. He could end up being done in this town if this movie doesn't make money... If you're going to be an asshole, you'd better back it up with something special, otherwise you're just an asshole.

Posted by Jay T. at April 21, 2008 9:37 AM

comment #6

Arran says ...

The fact that Caan worked with Lars Von Trier and Coppola, but he couldn't handle Russell has to be kind of telling.

Posted by Arran at April 21, 2008 9:47 AM

comment #7

Rich S. says ...

It's too bad Caan is 70. I remember reading a piece by Roger Ebert (which I've been unable to find) about, I think, Robert Mitchum. Once, a director came up to Mitchum at the beginning of a shoot and said, "Sometimes I'll get up in an actor's face and yell and scream, but I don't really mean anything by it. It's not personal."

To which Mitchum replied, "That's okay. If I director gets up in my face and yells and screams, I usually deck him. But it's nothing personal."

Posted by Rich S. at April 21, 2008 10:00 AM

comment #8

MickTravis says ...

"Fighting and disharmony are a part of the quilt -- you can't quarantine them and still be an artist. If everything has to be mellow and alpha every step of the way, you're basically processing things like a child or a prima donna. Adults stand up and grapple."

I agree! Maybe Caan feels like it's all his party and everyone else is a guest and should act accordingly.

Posted by MickTravis at April 21, 2008 10:31 AM

comment #9

berg says ...

Caan also left the set of Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead, was replaced by Chris Walken ... it doesn't mean anything, I am just saying

Posted by berg at April 21, 2008 10:36 AM

comment #10

Marcello says ...

Seriously stupid post. Plenty of directors are difficult, and actors (despite their egos and sense of entitlement) put up with them for the parts and the paychecks. You only hear THIS kind of story about Russell -- the man is out of his mind, and Jeff's an idiot for putting the blame anywhere but on his shoulders.

Posted by Marcello at April 21, 2008 10:39 AM

comment #11

MilkMan says ...

James Caan is a lazy actor. He's been doing the exact same "thing" since Misery, which is absolutely nothing. Guy has been coasting off Godfather and drowning in pubes since '77. The question is: Why would Russell cast him, and why would Caan agree to do it in the first place? And to those who would point to Clooney's abhorence of Russell, I would point to Isabelle Hupert's apparent non-chalance in the face of Russell's ire. She obviously thought it was no big deal, and since she's the coolest actor on the planet, I'm with her.

Posted by MilkMan at April 21, 2008 10:42 AM

comment #12