At 82, Michael Caine plays the lead in 'Youth' but for the most part he considers himself retired; Roy Orbison's son releases his dad's 1969 lost album 'One Of The Lonely Ones'; The Oscar short list for documentaries is out and Sundance is the big winner.
With no projects in the works, 'Youth' star Michael Caine considers himself retired
Michael Caine's long acting career has encompassed characters like a smart-aleck playboy, an international thief, an orphanage director, the butler to a superhero, and countless others. But he says that the happiest he's ever been with a role was on "Youth," his latest movie.
"The trick is, for me, is to make me disappear, and make the acting disappear, and you just see Joe Smith, the character," said Caine on The Frame. "On this movie, it's the happiest I've ever been with that"
As his career has progressed, Caine has sought roles that are further and further away from who he is as a person. In "Youth," he plays a retired classical music composer and conductor — a far cry from Caine's early years as a Cockney man working in a factory.
The composer, Fred Ballinger, is on vacation in the Swiss Alps with his screenwriter friend, who is working on what he suspects will be his last impactful script. Beyond that, the movie defies description.
Caine says that the role provided him with a variety of life circumstance that he had never experienced, and so he had to "study human beings" who had. At the end of it, he felt he had continued growing as an actor.
Read more of Caine's conversation with John Horn below.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
Do you want to explain the title? “Youth” seems, in many ways, the perfect title for this film.
Yeah, it does. I mean, people may wonder. It’s called “Youth” and the leading man is 82. There’s a scene in it where I go to my doctor, and he says, You are all clear. It’s what we call "youth." So that’s where the title came from.
Do you end up thinking about your own life and your own career when you make a movie like this?
No ... I try to have a good time everyday. And I have three grandchildren now with whom I am obsessed. And so that’s great for me. So, I have that in my life and it’s had a good effect on me, because some of my unhealthful habits, like drinking a bit too much vodka or eating badly — I’ve changed all of those. I’m trying to stay alive and be with them as long as possible.
Do you remember a point in the last couple of years when the kinds of roles you were offered changed? And it wasn’t just about age, but you were becoming interested in playing different kinds of characters. Did it happen all at once, or gradually?
It happened all at once. I was about 60. That’s when I changed, from getting the girl, to getting the part. I changed from being a movie star to a movie actor. It was much more interesting.
I’m an older man — I’m usually like the butler or a nice part, but it’s not the lead. But I regard myself as retired. As we’re sitting here, I don’t have a script I want to do. Unless a script comes along that I do want to do, I’m retired.
I want to ask a little bit about Paolo Sorrentino’s film, “Youth.” This is a very difficult movie to describe. I’m fond of saying it’s a foreign language movie that happens to be in English.
Exactly!
When people you know are trying to get a grasp of what this movie is before they’ve seen it, how do you describe it to them or do you throw up your hands?
Well they say, What’s it about? I say, It’s about an hour and fifty minutes. [Laughter.] Because it’s not like any movie you’ve ever seen before. But when you finish seeing it, you will understand it completely. Unbeknownst to you, it’s all about you. It’s called “Youth,” starring an old man. But no matter what age it is, you’re young, you’re still going to be old, if you’re lucky. So the movie will mean something to you.
When scripts come in, what do you respond to and what was it about Paolo Sorrentino's script for "Youth" that made you want to make this film?
When I became an actor, being where I was from, and my accent — a Cockney accent, working class in England at a time which was very class-conscious . . . I didn't become an actor to become rich and famous. I became an actor to become the best possible actor I could be. And not work in a factory. That was the other quite strong motive. So, for me, my severest critic is me. I have no sense of competition with other actors. I have a sense of competition with myself. And every time I do another part, I want it as far away from me as possible.
But as I've gone along, I've tried to find parts that are as far from me — mentally, socially, professionally — as possible. And coming from a working-class background in England to play a classical music composer and conductor — that's a very long way away. And a man with a stigma in his soul over what has happened to him, which he never reveals until the end. I've never had that emotion. I've been happily married for years and years, and I have children and grandchildren, and I'm very happy. So that was a test for me.
And so the trick is, for me, is to make me disappear, and make the acting disappear, and you just see Joe Smith, the character. And on this movie, it's the happiest I've ever been with that.
In any movie you've made?
In any movie I've made.
What was different about it?
Well they had a whole set of circumstances that I have never had. So I had to study human beings who did.
When you're acting now, and you're with a writer or director like Paolo Sorrentino or Christopher Nolan, do you grow as an actor still?
Oh yeah. Well, I hope to. I try to. You can get deeper as you get older. I'll tell you a funny thing. A journalist the other day said to me, What's the best love scene you ever had? So I'm thinking. He said, I'll tell you the best love scene I think you ever had. When you said 'goodbye' to Batman in "The Dark Knight." And I said, you know, I can't think of a love scene that I did with a lady that was better than that.
"Youth" is currently in theaters.
Roy Orbison's son revives his father's long lost album, 'One of the Lonely Ones'
Roy Orbison was known for his black shades, an operatic voice and powerful ballads, but to Alex Orbison he was "Dad." Now, there's an album from the legendary singer's career that Alex and his brothers are releasing for the first time.
“One of the Lonely Ones” was recorded in 1969 in the wake of the death of two other of Orbison's sons in a tragic fire, but it hasn't been heard by many people until now.
Alex Orbison joins John Horn to discuss the joy of reviving his father's lost music.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
"One Of The Lonely Ones" was recorded in 1969, but was never released. What happened to it?
To understand Rob Orbison's life in 1969, you need to back up just a little bit to 1968. Things seemed to be looking up for my dad. He was touring the U.K. and he met a young girl named Barbara, who would become Barbara Orbison, who was my mom. Tragedy struck in September 1968 and burned down our family and killed my two oldest brothers. His life grounded to a halt and he didn't do anything until the first of 1969.
So the "One Of The Lonely Ones" sessions started in January and they went hot and heavy until March. The MGM record deal called for three records a year and they had three records that year. So "One Of The Lonely Ones" got pushed out of the schedule.
You can hear the heartbreak in his voice on this album, particularly on the title track. How much of the album was informed by the loss of his two children?
As much as he needed to get through it, I think. The title track, "One Of The Lonely Ones," is directly addressing the situation. What he said is that songs are little gifts that come, and you know they are gifts because if you sit down to write one and nothing comes, then it makes you grateful for the ones that did. So he said that in order to get on to the next ones, you had to validate the one that was on hand.
So I know "One Of The Lonely Ones" was one of the first ones out of the gate that he had written. I think it had enabled him to get further and get a grasp on his situation. Some of the album has classic songs like "Sweet Memories" and "Leaving Makes The Rain Come Down" that are wonderful love songs. There's some specific 1969-like songs. One is called "Laurie" that my dad wrote, and another one called "Child Woman, Woman Child" that has a huge guitar riff not unlike "Oh, Pretty Woman."
I think they were trying to stay relevant and stay focused on being exactly in 1969 while getting over the hurdle of just getting movement again, from grinding to a halt.
When you're hearing an album like this, it's almost like a postcard from the grave. You're hearing the heartbreak, the joy, the musicality. What is it like for you, as his son, to revisit this music? Do you get to revisit the man in a way?
Yes I do. You know, we weren't too reminiscent about every specific thing. I would say Roy Orbison lived his life through the windshield and not the rearview mirror. This has been a window into a time that I didn't realize how much was going on and how hard he was working to try to get back on track. One thing that defines Roy Orbison is being different from one record and sound to the next. My dad as a man, is definitely ... you know, your dad is just dad until you become a man.
You're a musician yourself. How much did you share music together and did he influence you by teaching you how to play? What was your relationship like as musicians?
My dad wouldn't push anything on us, or anyone in general, but once you gain steam in a direction he would support you. So when I wanted to play drums, I had to beg for them for two years. On Christmas I got them and he let me play just before New Years. So I had about four or five days where I played and he said, "Oh, you want me to show you some stuff?" And I thought, What is this guy gonna show me? He plays harmonica and guitar.
He sat down and he just played the most beautiful press roll, and if you know anything about drumming, to play a drum roll is one thing, but to play a press roll is just this open natural thing. [And] here's Roy Orbison doing the best press roll I've ever seen. So he really showed me my first tricks. And right before he passed away [from a heart attack in 1988], he would sneak over to where I played the drums on the garage side of the house, and one day I was playing this beat that I was working on and I opened the door and my dad fell in.
I said, "You can't sit there." I'm all embarrassed. He said, "You can really play," and that was one of my fondest memories. He was really proud of whatever I was doing.
Is there a specific track on this album that you find yourself connected to more than any of the other tracks?
Yeah, it's called "I Will Always," and it feels like it's directed at my mom. This song was completely lost since it was recorded. We listened to the source tapes, and so you have these other songs, and my dad is playing through the songs seven times and the band isn't gelling properly. They take a break and you hear this harp and violin. It's the most beautiful sound, totally different than anything we've ever heard.
I said, "What is this?" And [recording engineer] Chuck Turner says, "I don't know, brother, but it is beautiful."
Roy Orbison's “One of the Lonely Ones” is now available.