“I just went crazy at everyone”: The first and last movie that made Michael Caine lose his temper
Throughout his career, whenever Michael Caine has given a public appearance, he has exercised a remarkable sense of humility and calm, becoming a true English gentleman. However, in the early days, there was a moment at which Caine seemed to lose complete control of himself in a fit of rage.
There’s always been an intensity to Caine’s many brilliant performances on screen, whether in his early roles in the likes of The Ipcress File, The Italian Job and Get Carter or his later efforts in The Cider House Rules and the many Christopher Nolan movies he has performed in, including Inception, The Dark Knight and Interstellar.
In fact, it was from performing with his The Dark Knight co-star Christian Bale that Caine was reminded of his experience of losing his temper. After all, it was Bale who had famously lost his cool on the set of Terminator Salvation and proceeded to go off on a swear-word-laden rant at cinematographer Shane Hurlbut.
The clip of Bale’s outburst eventually went viral, and the actor came out and apologised for losing his temper, admitting, “I was out of order beyond belief. I make no excuses for it. There is nobody who has heard that tape who has been hit harder than me.” Evidently, there’s a lot riding on a movie production that leads actors into a place of sheer anger when things don’t always go as they would like.
When asked about a third Dark Knight movie with Bale and Nolan by Movies, Caine spoke of an “outburst” that he had early in his career, in which a “horse I was on charged off and took me with him for about two miles.” The movie in question was James Clavell’s 1971 historical drama The Last Valley, which takes place in the Thirty Years’ War of the early 17th century.
Explaining the moment he returned to set after the horse had taken him two miles away, Caine noted, “I just went crazy at everyone and anyone.” However, Clavell told the young Caine, still in the first parts of his acting career, that he “should never, ever behave like that in front of strangers” when taking the actor for a “stiff drink in the afternoon”.
“It’s a very intimate thing, really, to lose your temper, and I never got angry like that on a film set again,” Caine admitted. “No matter how frustrated I’ve been.” Acting for Clavell in The Last Valley marked an important lesson for Caine, and it was the final time that he allowed his emotions to overcome his professionalism when making a movie.
However, Caine also admitted that getting angry is something natural, noting, “It’s something that happens all the time, and we certainly shouldn’t be treating it as some major upset.” In that light, Caine came to the defence of his The Dark Knight co-star Bale, understanding the reason that he might have got so upset in the first place.
“Christian’s an incredible actor, and his dedication is something to be admired,” Caine said. “It’s all up there on the screen. I’d rather work with someone as passionate about their work as Christian is than a hundred so-so actors who bring muffins for the whole crew every morning”.
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