Biography
Lovable tough guy character actor Dennis Farina was already well into his first career as a Chicago cop before he was able to turn his occasional acting gigs into a prodigious new line of work.
Raised in Chicago by Italian immigrant parents,
Farina joined his hometown's police force in the mid-'60s, settling into a life of law enforcement. When he was hired to be a local consultant on
Michael Mann's film
Thief (1981), however,
Farina wound up with a bit part as the villain's heavy.
Farina continued to moonlight as an actor for several years, appearing in local theater and occasional movies, including
Final Jeopardy (1985) and the
Chuck Norris vehicle
Code of Silence (1985). Though he never took an acting class,
Farina was a natural; after
Michael Mann offered him the lead in the series
Crime Story in 1986,
Farina left the police force to play a TV cop. During his 1986-1988 stint on the series,
Farina also played FBI agent Jack Crawford (Scott Glen's part in
Silence of the Lambs [1991]) in Mann's stylish thriller
Manhunter (1986), was the Birdman of Alcatraz in the TV movie
Six Against the Rock (1987), and a cop in TV movie mystery
Through Naked Eyes (1987).
Drawing on his no-nonsense charm as well as his eclectic life experience,
Farina continued to shine in roles on both sides of the law, such as serial killer Angelo Buono in
The Case of the Hillside Stranglers (1989) and the lead prosecutor in the TV docudrama
Blind Faith (1990). As nimble with comedy,
Farina went up against
Robert De Niro and
Charles Grodin as a mobster in the popular buddy yarn
Midnight Run (1988). His versatility firmly established by the 1990s,
Farina's early '90s work ranged from playing a billionaire in
People Like Us (1990), to Banquo in a New York gangland version of Macbeth,
Men of Honor (1991), as well as supporting roles in the comedy
Another Stakeout (1993),
Bruce Willis actioner
Striking Distance (1993),
John Turturro's Italian-American family drama
Mac (1993), and vicious neo-noir
Romeo Is Bleeding (1994).
Farina's appearance as
John Travolta's nemesis, hilariously bumbling tough guy Ray "Bones" Barboni, in
Barry Sonnenfeld's adaptation of
Elmore Leonard's
Get Shorty (1995), led to his most notable hit since
Midnight Run. His career hitting a new high,
Farina co-starred with
Bette Midler as reunited exes in
Carl Reiner's
That Old Feeling (1997), and starred as a Sicilian bigwig in the high-profile TV miniseries
Bella Mafia (1997). Though his Marshall Sisco made only a brief appearance in
Steven Soderbergh's esteemed
Elmore Leonard adaptation
Out of Sight (1998),
Farina was pitch-perfect as
Jennifer Lopez's protective dad. After joining the superb corps in
Steven Spielberg's award-winning
Saving Private Ryan (1998),
Farina returned to series TV, playing smooth detective Buddy Faro (1998); the series, however, lasted only one season.
Returning to films,
Farina followed his role as the police captain who recruits
The Mod Squad (1999) with another comic turn as a New York gangster who sets the diamond larceny plot in motion in
Snatch (2000), adding a dash of Hollywood celebrity (along with
Brad Pitt and
Benicio Del Toro) to British lad director
Guy Ritchie's sophomore effort. The releases of two of
Farina's next films,
Barry Sonnenfeld's caper
Big Trouble (2001) and
Edward Burns' romantic comedy
Sidewalks of New York (2001), were delayed after the terrorist attack on New York on September 11, 2001.
Sidewalks of New York surfaced later in 2001, but the romantic comedy failed to charm a large audience.
Big Trouble finally made it into theaters in the first half of 2002, but despite the big name cast, Sonnenfeld's farce joined such high profile fare as
Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle
Collateral Damage (2002) and the espionage actioner
Bad Company (2002) on the list of 9/11-delayed flops.
Farina's next film, the broad, witless comedy
Stealing Harvard (2002), also failed at the box office.
Farina returned to television during the fall 2002 season with a lead role as a comically monstrous
Meet the Parents-esque father-in-law on the sitcom
The In-Laws (2002). Despite initially withering reviews,
The In-Laws managed to show signs of ratings life. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide