I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale (2010)

I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale (2010)

Bottomline: A must see documentary for anyone that is even remotely interested in great acting and great actors.

QMR Opinion: In this blog, I have often extolled virtues of the supporting actors -- the men and women whose job it is to make everyone else around them take their acting to the next level. There are many terrific supporting actors and then there are the ones that are the best. I consider J.T. Walsh (died at age 54 in 1998) to be one of the best ever. The other man that is simply one of the best actors ever -- supporting or otherwise -- is John Cazale. He died much too young at the age of 42 in 1978. He acted in five movies. It doesn't sound like much until you take a look at the five movies:

The Godfather (1972)

The Conversation (1974)

The Godfather: Part II (1974)

Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

The Deerhunter (1978)

All five films were nominated for Best Picture. There are actors who have been in the business since God was a boy and appeared in one or two films that could maybe come close to these. But Cazale was five for five! This wonderful HBO documentary, which premiered on June 1, takes a quick look at the all too short career of Cazale. It includes interviews with Meryl Streep, Al Pacino, Francis Ford Coppola, and Robert Deniro.