For Your NFR Consideration: Alan Arkin

The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming (1966)

If you don’t count 1957’s “Calypso Heat Wave” (in which Arkin appears as part of the folk group The Tarriers), “Russians” is Arkin’s film debut. Fresh out of Second City with a few Broadway hits under his belt, Arkin plays one of the titular Russians; a Soviet Navy lieutenant whose submarine runs aground on a New England beach town. In addition to its significance in Arkin’s filmography (and earning him his first Oscar nomination), “Russians” encapsulates the absurdities of the Cold War (think of it as a lighter variation of “Dr. Strangelove“) and was an early success for the film’s director Norman Jewison.

Wait Until Dark (1967)

Admittedly, this one is more for Audrey Hepburn, who has been getting a lot of attention from the NFR in recent years. In her last film role before her semi-retirement, Hepburn plays a blind woman who accidentally comes into possession of a heroin supply sought after by a criminal played by Arkin. “Wait Until Dark” is still considered one of the most suspenseful thrillers of the era, and earned Hepburn her fifth and final Best Actress Oscar nomination.

The In-Laws (1979)

Wanting to avoid typecasting, Arkin spent the 1970s zig-zagging through his career, switching from acting and directing, stage and screen. One of his most memorable zags of the decade was his performance in “The In-Laws” as a timid dentist who gets mixed up in an international caper with a CIA agent (Peter Falk) whose son is about to marry Arkin’s daughter. In an era filled with funny character studies, “The In-Laws” stands out among the best. You can never hear the word “serpentine” without thinking of this movie.

The Last Unicorn (1982)

I don’t really have anything to say about this movie; I just learned today that Alan Arkin is a voice in it. This may have been his biggest career zag.

Edward Scissorhands (1990)

This would be a great NFR twofer: Having “Scissorhands” on the list would represent Arkin as well as Tim Burton who – outside of some uncredited puppetry on “The Muppet Movie” – is unrepresented on the NFR. “Scissorhands” is Burton in his prime, weaving all of his trademark aesthetics and talents into one near-perfect movie. Arkin doesn’t have much to do as the soft-spoken patriarch of the family that takes in the titular misfit, but as always Arkin leaves a memorable impression that helps ground the film.

Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)

It’s really saying something when a movie has an ensemble so stacked that you forget Alan Arkin is in it. This is of course not a knock on Arkin’s work here as a reserved, apprehensive salesman, it’s just hard to stand out among the meatier theatrics of Jack Lemmon, Al Pacino, and – in a career-defining cameo – Alec Baldwin. Both “Glengarry” the movie and the play continue to hold a place in pop culture, and I advise the NFR to Always Be Closing.

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

I submit “Little Miss Sunshine” for NFR consideration every so often, not only as representation of the quirky indie comedies of the 2000s, but also as a personal favorite. I remember seeing “Little Miss Sunshine” in theaters and knowing then and there that Alan Arkin would win the Oscar for his work as the Hoover family’s blunt yet warmhearted grandpa, and man do I love it when I’m right.

Other Alan Arkin Films For Your Consideration

• The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968)
• Catch-22 (1970)
• Freebie and the Bean (1974)
• Grosse Pointe Blank (1997)
• Marley & Me (2009)
• Argo (2012)