James Caan, Safecracker

For his leading role in Michael Mann’s Thief, James Caan had a lot more to do than just embody perfect cool. His character, Frank, is an ex-con with a particular aptitude for breaking into hard-to-crack safes. Unbeknownst to the actor when he took on the part, this was a difficult skill that he would need to actually acquire for the film. In this excerpt from a new interview with Caan on our special edition of the film, the star reveals the process by which he quickly mastered the art of the magnetic drill, and describes the catharsis he felt afterward.

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