Michael Caine once picked his most underrated movie

(Credits: Far Out / YouTube Still)

Sun 27 October 2024 17:45, UK

Michael Caine is not only one of the most iconic and influential British actors of his generation, but of all time. First rising to acclaim in the 1960s, Caine immediately won audiences over with his working-class roles and trademark Cockney delivery, the latter of which produced a slew of endlessly quotable lines. For decades now, people have been trying to master their imitations of the actor, perfecting their enunciation on lines like, “My name is Michael Caine,” and “You were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!”

Caine spent over 70 years in the film industry before he announced his retirement in 2023, starring in some wildly successful movies along the way. He starred in the original heist flick The Italian Job, took home an Academy Award for his performance in The Cider House Rules, and, more recently, appeared in a series of films by modern blockbuster master Christopher Nolan.

When Caine’s name is attached to a project, it almost guarantees some level of critical and commercial success. But not all of the Cockney actor’s films were award winners and smash hits at the box office. In fact, one of Caine’s most iconic projects, 1971’s Get Carter, initially received a slightly underwhelming reaction in reviews and ticket sales, prompting Caine to believe it was one of his most underrated outings.

“I used to think Get Carter was underrated,” he remembered during a 1997 interview with GQ. However, Get Carter attracted much more acclaim and attention beyond its initial release, eventually winning over a devoted audience. “Now it’s been rated,” Caine acknowledged, “now it’s very rated.” So, Get Carter is no longer the most underrated work in his filmography, but there is one other project Caine believed deserved more love.

In the same year Get Carter was released, Caine also starred in James Clavell’s The Last Valley. The film followed the discovery of the titular last valley, a piece of land that had somehow gone unscathed amidst the Thirty Years’ War. Caine took on the unnamed yet leading role of The Captain, starring alongside Omar Sharif and Nigel Davenport.

Despite Caine’s belief in the film, The Last Valley did not perform particularly well in any capacity. It made a loss at the box office and lost the support of reviewers, too. But Caine never stopped believing in the film, citing it as his most underrated movie. “It went completely nowhere,” he lamented, describing it as a “wonderful film, with an unbelievable score by John Barry.”

Although The Last Valley may not have won over the masses, it did garner the admiration of one fan in particular: Caine’s daughter. “It’s my elder daughter’s favourite film,” he acknowledged, “not only of mine, but of all time.” Like her father, she saw something in The Last Valley that other audiences hadn’t, placing it not just above Caine’s other outings but considering it her favourite film ever made.

Over half a century on from its initial release, The Last Valley has never quite received the kind of cult following that Get Carter later amassed. Still, that hasn’t stopped Caine, nor his daughter, from taking pride in the film and shouting it out in interviews. Perhaps one day The Last Valley will be rediscovered by audiences and emerge as another cult classic in Caine’s catalogue.

Related Topics

Subscribe To The Far Out Newsletter

_{Images are for reference only.Images and contents gathered automatic from google or 3rd party sources.All rights on the images and contents are with their legal original owners.}