THE ACTING PARTNER (D.W. Dillon of Las Vegas, Nevada)
Directed by Francis Ford Coppola
Written by Frank R. Pierson and Francis Ford Coppola
Music by Gustavo Santaolalla
Principal Cast:
Edward Norton as John Cazale
Joey Lauren Adams as Meryl Streep
Mark Ruffalo as Al Pacino
Ryan Gosling as Robert De Niro
Linda Cardellini as Diane Keaton
Paul Rudd as Michael Cimino
Anthony Zerbe as Dr. Frank Charles
Adam Horovitz as Isreal Horovitz
Dominic Chianese as Barry Spikings
with
Francis Ford Coppola - Himself/Narrator
Sidney Lumet - Himself/Narrator
Al Pacino - Narrator
Meryl Streep - Narrator
Tagline: "Five unforgettable performances. Five unforgettable films. One unforgettable actor."
Synopsis: The year is 1965. The Standard Oil company hires two aspiring actors as messangers. Two Italian-Americans with two completely different but memorable features. One, Alfredo Pacino (Mark Ruffalo), and the other John Cazale (Edward Norton). Together, they would form a cohesive and insperable friendship that would transition to Off-Broadway success in Israel Horovitz's (Adam Horovitz) "The Indian Wants the Bronx". Two performances that would lead both actors to Francis Ford Coppola's 1972 masterpiece, "The Godfather". Pacino's star soared higher than most, but Cazale wouldn't go unrecognized as his talents would lead him to the quiet subtle supporting role in Coppola's "The Conversation", followed by Coppola's "The Godfather Part II" where Cazale's reprisal of the weak and bewildered Fredo Corleone would grab the hearts of the audiance, and the respect of fellow actors a-like, in what would be known as some of the most memorable scenes in movie history.
Cazale became a casting agent's dream, and in 1975 he showed everyone what he could really do with his critically acclaimed performance opposite Pacino in Sidney Lumet's "Dog Day Afternoon", playing a nervous hair-triggered bank robber. Cazale's quiet resonance, professionalism on the set and warmth to everyone around would pay dividends as his fellow actors would gain fame, notoriety and awards, while his humble personality kept him striving to express and find himself in acting instead of basking in the limelight. His intriguing demeanor would catch the eye of a beautiful talented actress Meryl Streep (Joey Lauren Adams), in the Shakespeare play "Measure for Measure" and more so on the set of "The Deer Hunter". As their love blossomed, and filming progressed, Cazale began to suffer from bouts of lethargy and would soon be diagnosed with bone cancer. Eccentric director Michael Cimino (Paul Rudd), star Robert De Niro (Ryan Gosling), and now fiancee Streep would fight the producers (Dominic Chianese) tooth and nail to keep Cazale working on the picture. As post-production on the Deer Hunter entered it's final stages, so did John's life as he died at the bedside of his love.
Narration Quotes: Dominic Chianese (co-star The Godfather Part II) - "John could open up his heart, so it could be hurt. It's a talent a few actors have."Sidney Lumet (director Dog Day Afternoon) - "I met John, and I was just bowled over by him. You knew you were in the presence of an extraordinary talent."Al Pacino (best friend/co-star The Godfather) - "He was the most giving actor I've ever worked with, the most involved and sensitive. He was my acting partner."Meryl Streep (fiancee/co-star The Deer Hunter) - "I was so close that I hadn't noticed his deterioration... his death came as a shock to me because I didn't expect it."John Cazale (actor) - "I'm closer now, having been an actor, than I've ever been before to finding myself..."
Press Section: John Cazale's legacy lives on as the only actor whose complete film resume are listed in IMDB's top 250, as well as all Best Picture Academy Award nominees. Director, Francis Ford Coppola pays tribute to his most dearly departed of actors, John Cazale. From his life Off-Broadway to his big screen success as a true supporting actor. Writer, Frank R. Pierson brilliantly mirror's Cazale's effect on-screen to his life off-screen. With Coppola's atttention to detail, we travel back to the 70's and behind the scenes of some of the greatest movies ever made. A daunting task to re-live and re-capture the feel and the look is a massive undertaking that dares not to go unnoticed come awards season. Throughout the film we are indulged with narrations from the real actors and directors who knew, worked with, and loved John Cazale. The heart of the film rests not on the performances in the films or the task to complete them, but with the relationships Cazale had formed, most notably with Al Pacino and Meryl Streep. Edward Norton embarks on a journey no actor has yet attempted, by portraying John Cazale the person as well as John Cazale the actor. His realistic gentle and sensitive personality of an actor as well as convincingly re-enacting his performances in the pictures that made him and everyone around him greater. The truly great moments come in the form of Mark Ruffalo as Al Pacino who delivers with a fierce passion, as the optomistic-streetwise actor and Paul Rudd as the odd-ego driven but loyal director Michael Cimino and the friendship they will form with John Cazale. Joey Lauren Adams' depiction of Meryl Streep is engaging and heartwrenching, as we see a screen legend fall in love and gain fame, only to watch the love of her life crumble before her eyes. A life that ended way before it's time. He achieved more than many have in a lifetime. This isn't about an actor acting but about a person caring not about fame, but about his work and the people he kept near and dear to his heart.
Awards Consideration
Best Picture
Best Director - Francis Ford Coppola
Best Actor - Edward Norton
Best Actress - Joey Lauren Adams
Best Supporting Actor - Mark Ruffalo
Best Supporting Actor - Paul Rudd
Best Original Screenplay - Frank R. Pierson and Francis Ford Coppola
Written by Frank R. Pierson and Francis Ford Coppola
Music by Gustavo Santaolalla
Principal Cast:
Edward Norton as John Cazale
Joey Lauren Adams as Meryl Streep
Mark Ruffalo as Al Pacino
Ryan Gosling as Robert De Niro
Linda Cardellini as Diane Keaton
Paul Rudd as Michael Cimino
Anthony Zerbe as Dr. Frank Charles
Adam Horovitz as Isreal Horovitz
Dominic Chianese as Barry Spikings
with
Francis Ford Coppola - Himself/Narrator
Sidney Lumet - Himself/Narrator
Al Pacino - Narrator
Meryl Streep - Narrator
Tagline: "Five unforgettable performances. Five unforgettable films. One unforgettable actor."
Synopsis: The year is 1965. The Standard Oil company hires two aspiring actors as messangers. Two Italian-Americans with two completely different but memorable features. One, Alfredo Pacino (Mark Ruffalo), and the other John Cazale (Edward Norton). Together, they would form a cohesive and insperable friendship that would transition to Off-Broadway success in Israel Horovitz's (Adam Horovitz) "The Indian Wants the Bronx". Two performances that would lead both actors to Francis Ford Coppola's 1972 masterpiece, "The Godfather". Pacino's star soared higher than most, but Cazale wouldn't go unrecognized as his talents would lead him to the quiet subtle supporting role in Coppola's "The Conversation", followed by Coppola's "The Godfather Part II" where Cazale's reprisal of the weak and bewildered Fredo Corleone would grab the hearts of the audiance, and the respect of fellow actors a-like, in what would be known as some of the most memorable scenes in movie history.
Cazale became a casting agent's dream, and in 1975 he showed everyone what he could really do with his critically acclaimed performance opposite Pacino in Sidney Lumet's "Dog Day Afternoon", playing a nervous hair-triggered bank robber. Cazale's quiet resonance, professionalism on the set and warmth to everyone around would pay dividends as his fellow actors would gain fame, notoriety and awards, while his humble personality kept him striving to express and find himself in acting instead of basking in the limelight. His intriguing demeanor would catch the eye of a beautiful talented actress Meryl Streep (Joey Lauren Adams), in the Shakespeare play "Measure for Measure" and more so on the set of "The Deer Hunter". As their love blossomed, and filming progressed, Cazale began to suffer from bouts of lethargy and would soon be diagnosed with bone cancer. Eccentric director Michael Cimino (Paul Rudd), star Robert De Niro (Ryan Gosling), and now fiancee Streep would fight the producers (Dominic Chianese) tooth and nail to keep Cazale working on the picture. As post-production on the Deer Hunter entered it's final stages, so did John's life as he died at the bedside of his love.
Narration Quotes: Dominic Chianese (co-star The Godfather Part II) - "John could open up his heart, so it could be hurt. It's a talent a few actors have."Sidney Lumet (director Dog Day Afternoon) - "I met John, and I was just bowled over by him. You knew you were in the presence of an extraordinary talent."Al Pacino (best friend/co-star The Godfather) - "He was the most giving actor I've ever worked with, the most involved and sensitive. He was my acting partner."Meryl Streep (fiancee/co-star The Deer Hunter) - "I was so close that I hadn't noticed his deterioration... his death came as a shock to me because I didn't expect it."John Cazale (actor) - "I'm closer now, having been an actor, than I've ever been before to finding myself..."
Press Section: John Cazale's legacy lives on as the only actor whose complete film resume are listed in IMDB's top 250, as well as all Best Picture Academy Award nominees. Director, Francis Ford Coppola pays tribute to his most dearly departed of actors, John Cazale. From his life Off-Broadway to his big screen success as a true supporting actor. Writer, Frank R. Pierson brilliantly mirror's Cazale's effect on-screen to his life off-screen. With Coppola's atttention to detail, we travel back to the 70's and behind the scenes of some of the greatest movies ever made. A daunting task to re-live and re-capture the feel and the look is a massive undertaking that dares not to go unnoticed come awards season. Throughout the film we are indulged with narrations from the real actors and directors who knew, worked with, and loved John Cazale. The heart of the film rests not on the performances in the films or the task to complete them, but with the relationships Cazale had formed, most notably with Al Pacino and Meryl Streep. Edward Norton embarks on a journey no actor has yet attempted, by portraying John Cazale the person as well as John Cazale the actor. His realistic gentle and sensitive personality of an actor as well as convincingly re-enacting his performances in the pictures that made him and everyone around him greater. The truly great moments come in the form of Mark Ruffalo as Al Pacino who delivers with a fierce passion, as the optomistic-streetwise actor and Paul Rudd as the odd-ego driven but loyal director Michael Cimino and the friendship they will form with John Cazale. Joey Lauren Adams' depiction of Meryl Streep is engaging and heartwrenching, as we see a screen legend fall in love and gain fame, only to watch the love of her life crumble before her eyes. A life that ended way before it's time. He achieved more than many have in a lifetime. This isn't about an actor acting but about a person caring not about fame, but about his work and the people he kept near and dear to his heart.
Awards Consideration
Best Picture
Best Director - Francis Ford Coppola
Best Actor - Edward Norton
Best Actress - Joey Lauren Adams
Best Supporting Actor - Mark Ruffalo
Best Supporting Actor - Paul Rudd
Best Original Screenplay - Frank R. Pierson and Francis Ford Coppola
