Blowing the Bloody Doors Off: And Other Lessons in Life

Oscar-winning British actor Caine (What’s It All About?) mines his long career for entertaining anecdotes and life lessons in this genial memoir, taking readers from his childhood in a London slum to his years as a struggling unknown—one studio canceled his contract because an executive thought he looked gay—to major roles in hits such as Alfie, Sleuth, and Batman Begins. Much of the book is blithe showbiz picaresque, stocked with A-listers including John Wayne and Beyoncé and full of filmmaking pratfalls. (“The bees were shitting on us,” he writes of a scene in The Swarm, which he cheerfully allows may be “the worst movie ever made.”) From these vignettes, Caine distills advice on topics including acting mechanics (“Stand straight and you look younger; round your shoulders for instant aging”) and success strategies (“You are always auditioning”), and delivers generic pep talks (“Any time you learn from a failure, it’s a success”). His pensées gain resonance from deeply felt passages on the grueling rejection and insecurity of an actor’s life, the sting of being typecast as an “ignorant cockney bastard,” and the immersion in craft and preparation that overcome obstacles. Caine’s writing—funny, warm, down-to-earth—will captivate fans and casual readers alike. (Oct.)