The exact moment Michael Caine knew he’d mastered method acting: “By god, I’ve got it right”
An alarming number of actors who have emerged from England have been privately educated and raised in incredibly well-off families, which speaks to the film industry’s exclusivity and Britain’s unequal class divide. Yet, among these middle to upper class stars have been actors from more humble beginnings, like Michael Caine, proving that acting isn’t just a job for the more privileged members of society.
Born into a working-class family in London, Caine’s childhood wasn’t easy, but he knew that he wanted to do something with his life that made him feel fulfilled. He told The Guardian, “I decided to be an actor because I thought it would be a lot better than working in a factory, which I was doing at the time. I just set out to do it and I never expected any money or any fame.”
Luckily, Caine struck gold when he landed roles in movies that would soon become incredibly popular, like Zulu and The Ipcress File. He didn’t water down his accent or pretend that he wasn’t from a working-class background, and in turn, he proved to many that you don’t have to be a rich and professionally-trained thespian to be a successful actor. Caine’s talent carried him through many roles over the coming years, including the womanising lead in Alfie, the criminal Charlie in The Italian Job, and the Cockney gangster in Get Carter.
As the decades progressed, Caine continued to land impressive roles on stage and screen, and there was one where he found himself as close to method acting as he’d ever been before – even if that meant simply making a few physical changes. In 1983, he appeared alongside Julie Walters in Educating Rita, which earned him an Academy Award nomination.
The film is an inherently working-class tale, centring around one woman’s quest for education and freedom, tired of working a dead-end job as a hairdresser. Walters plays the role extraordinarily, also earning an Oscar nomination for her performance. Caine plays the professor, Dr Frank Bryant, who initially couldn’t care about teaching Rita, but as the film progresses, both Rita and Frank are transformed by each other’s presence in their lives.
Talking to NPR, Caine revealed that the choices he made to get into character ended up being totally accurate. “It was very funny … I played an alcoholic professor of English — and I grew a beard and put on a fat stomach. And we were just doing the first shot in the grounds of the university and I saw a man coming along with a potbelly and a beard, and he was carrying a case of wine. And as he went by I said to him, ‘Are you the English professor?’ And he said, ‘Yes.’ And I said, I thought, ‘by god, I’ve got it right.’”
Educating Rita was directed by Lewis Gilbert, who had previously worked with Caine as the director of Alfie, yet his role as Frank couldn’t have been more different than that of Alfie. Still, Caine proved his prowess by allowing his character to shift between miserable teacher and hopeful academic, inspired by Rita to step back and realise how lucky he is to have access to resources she has only ever been able to dream of.
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