Descubriendo a John Cazale

Just watched this doc on HBO even though short it was informative, moving, and a nice tribute to a fallen great that many people don't remember. Unless your probably a major film buff or historian you don't remember John Cazale. Yet Cazale was a good supporting player on many of the historical film classics of the 70's as with his help each film that he appeared in "The Godfather", "Godfather II", "The Conversation", "Dog Day Afternoon", and "The Deer Hunter" all received academy award nominations for best picture. The doc also tells of his humble start on Broadway as a struggling actor as he worked his way up to get noticed. Interviews and insights are given from greats like Steve Buscemi, Coppola, De Niro, Dreyfuss, Sidney Lumet, Al Pacino, and Gene Hackman. Also revealing and touching is the interview with the great Meryl Streep who had a brief romance with John on the set of his last film "The Deer Hunter"(1978), this is when Cazale would learn he was eat up with bone cancer and die shortly thereafter. Touching tribute that was overdue and it educated and informed many who didn't know anything about John Cazale as it showed if he had lived as to what might have been.

This is a must-see for any fan of 70s movies, or anyone who, like me, grew up in 70s and saw Cazale's films when they first opened. The walk down memory lane provided by the footage of the Godfather films, The Conversation, Dog Day Afternoon and Deer Hunter alone make it worthwhile. But the real treasure, of course, is the chance to revisit Cazale's performances. It sounds clichéd, but there really is no actor like him. It's also marvelous to see the host of the mega-talented actors and directors, including every luminary he worked with, participate & pay tribute to this singular talent. It's a shame there isn't more footage of him, and that he apparently never did a recorded interview. We only see Cazale through the lens of his characters - we never get to see him as just himself.

I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale (2009)

**** (out of 4)

Excellent documentary covering the five films that John Cazale made during his short life. THE GODFATHER, THE CONVERSATION, THE GODFATHER PART II, DOG DAY AFTERNOON and THE DEER HUNTER are discussed in regards to how Cazale got the parts as well as what he did with them. I think it says a lot about how much people cared for him when you see the names that turned out to be interviewed for this 40-minute documentary. Al Pacino, Robert DeNiro, Meryl Streep, Gene Hackman, Francis Ford Coppola, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Brett Ratner, Sidney Lumet, Sam Rockwell, Carol Kane, John Savage and Steve Buscemi are among the group gathered for the interviews. That's a mighty impressive list to discuss a man who only appeared in five movies but it's clear that they all loved working with this man. There are countless great stories told about Cazale not only in the movies but also his time on the stage. We hear a few details about his early life but mostly we stick to his movies. We get clips from each of them as people talk about what made the scene so special and how they felt Cazale was able to make those around him so much better. Pacino tells a great story about how Cazale would start scenes on DOG DAY AFTERNOON and it's quite funny. There's also talk about him meeting Streep and marrying her, which of course leads to a discussion on his lung cancer and death at such a young age. The title using "rediscovering" is perfectly used because if you're not familiar with Cazale then this documentary does a great job at making you see why he was so special. If you're familiar with these five films then watching this will just make you want to see them again.

Fredo in the two first episodes of "The Godfather" films; Sal in the acclaimed "Dog Day Afternoon"; Stan in the wonderful "The Conversation" and another character named Stan in "The Deer Hunter". Only five movies to make John Cazale a recognizable face in the 1970's. As it was showed in this brilliant documentary he's known by his work and his character and not much by his name. Sadly he died very young and didn't had the chance to show his great talent in more movies.

In "I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale" we see the Cazale in multiple faces, as a cinema actor, as a stage actor, the married man (married with Meryl Streep) and the excellent human being he was. Actors and directors who met him like Robert De Niro, Sidney Lumet, Francis Ford Coppola, Gene Hackman and Meryl Streep and fans of his work like Sam Rockwell, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Steve Buscemi, Brett Ratner and many others paid a tribute to this honored actor who gaves us so much in such a shortened life. They talk about their favorite moments with him on and off screen, how he has in person, and his final moments before dying of cancer.

Many people don't know but all of his five movies are listed in IMDb 250 greatest movies of all time and also included in AFI's list. Unfortunately he didn't received the attention he deserved in life, wasn't nominated for an Academy Award and only received one nomination to the Golden Globes (Actor in a Supporting role for "Dog Day Afternoon"), but his performances lasted long enough to be presented to many generations. Very good documentary. 10/10

The biggest shock to me when viewing I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale was coming to the realization that this actor, who I had been watching over and over again in some of my favorite films ever, had actually only made five films. Five! The greatest period of American Cinema is undoubtedly the "Hollywood Renaissance," spanning from the introduction of "Easy Rider" up until the blockbuster phenomenon created by films like "Jaws" and "Star Wars," and all five films John Cazale appeared in were made during this creative period in which writers and directors had more to say about what happened in a film than the studio heads. "The Godfather," "The Conversation," "The Godfather Two," "Dog Day Afternoon," "and "The Deer Hunter," the five films that make up the John Cazale catalog, are some of the greatest and most memorable films ever made in this country. And if you don't know who John Cazale is by name, then perhaps you know him by at least one of the five characters he played on screen, most likely the frail, weakest son of the Corleone family in The Godfather, "Fredo."

Just about anyone and everyone that ever acted or worked with Cazale appears in this documentary, including Al Pacino, Robert Deniro, Gene Hackman, Francis Ford Coppola, Fred Roos, Sidney Lumet, Carol Kane, Jon Savage, Richard Dreyfuss, Israel Horovitz, Olympia Dukakis and Meryl Streep, who we learn had a longstanding love affair with Cazale and was with him until he died of lung cancer at 42. Younger actors like Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Sam Rockwell and Steve Buscemi, who grew up watching Cazale's films, also contribute, helping to articulate Cazale's relevance. With this caliber of contributors, this film quickly gets to the crux of who Cazale was as actor, as well as a human being. And though this documentary is only an hour long (It was made for HBO), it is still a dense, powerful story of a man, an actor, that was able to make a permanent mark on American Cinema that will resonate for as long as movies exist.

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