The greatest movie star of all time, according to Michael Caine: “He made it look easy”
Michael Caine is the definition of a movie star. He hit his stride in the 1960s with a string of successes that made him an emblem of London’s swinging sixties. His characters were charismatic, working-class, and unpredictable, a combination that instantly earned him widespread acclaim. Before classically trained British actors stormed Hollywood in the 2000s, he successfully made the transition to American movies as if it were an effortless endeavour.
Caine has always maintained a level of self-deprecation, as any British celebrity is compelled to do. He rarely speaks ill of other actors and filmmakers and is generous with his praise, even when discussing stars who he was competing against for Academy Awards. However, it’s hard to imagine an actor of his stature being in awe of anyone. He is, after all, Sir Michael Caine, the actor who has starred in everything from Alfie to Interstellar.
Of all the stars Caine has met in his career, however, there was one who stood head and shoulders above the rest. In a feature for Turner Classic Movies, the Ipcress File star mused about what it takes to be a great leading man. “In my opinion, the very first thing is you have to have a sense of humour about yourself,” he said, “Which is what Cary Grant had in abundance.”
The North By Northwest star was, he asserted, completely breathtaking. When he saw him in person for the first time, he could hardly comprehend that they were in the same space. “I was knocked out,” Caine remembered.
“There’s an edge to his sophistication that none can duplicate.”
Michael caine
The crux of Grant’s talents lay in his ability to connect with audiences through the screen as if they were his equal. “He reflected the people, and in him, we saw a friend,” Caine said. “There’s a part of us that wants to be Cary Grant, to emulate his style, to convey a sense of charm with as much ease as he did. But there’s an edge to his sophistication that none can duplicate.”
Throughout his decades in Hollywood, Grant managed to seem both approachable and impossibly sophisticated. Graceful, devastatingly charming, and funny in equal measure, he shone in Alfred Hitchcock movies like Notorious and To Catch a Thief, screwball comedies like His Girl Friday and Bringing Up Baby, and capers like Charade.
“He was like a very beautiful girl who everyone thinks is dumb,” Caine said. “We shouldn’t get hung up on his looks.” Most people are able to appreciate Grant’s talents beyond the cleft chin, but his perfectly executed comedy was a double-edged sword, at least when it comes to awards. As Caine noted, “he made it look easy,” which meant that he was never acknowledged by the Academy Awards in the way he deserved.
Despite being one of the most masterful actors of his generation, Grant only earned two Oscar nominations, both for overwrought melodramas—1941’s Penny Serenade and 1943’s None but the Lonely Heart—an oversight that has not aged well.
Still, if there is one actor from the Golden Age of Hollywood who endures in the 21st century, aside from Humphrey Bogart, perhaps it’s Grant. His comic timing and effortless charm remain, as Caine so glowingly attested, unparalleled.
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