great photo.
1
The Irishman. Scorsese, DeNiro, Pacino, Pesci. With DeNiro and Anna Paquin (daughter of a canadian and new zealander) playing Frank and Peggy Sheeran.
Can you say "cultural appropriation".
In today's society this is disgraceful. The list of Irish actors is long and deep. Why weren't any chosen to play the Irish characters?
As a result of Scorsese's and Hollywood's clear discrimination against Irish talent, I will not be going to see this movie or anything else that Scorsese and DeNiro do in the future or have done in the past. And honestly, does DeNiro ever play a different character? He plays the same role in every movie he's in.
8
You're kidding I assume... but otherwise I know a great therapist who can help you drill down a bit on the inner chaos that creates beliefs that are the enemy of perception.
52
@John Carlo Bored Critic's critique is a bit over the top, but he does make a point. In this era of demands for representation in Hollywood, its amazing how subjective criticism is by the Left. Scarlett Johansson got raked over the coals for wanting to play someone transgender but not an iota of wonder as to why a bunch of Italians are playing the Irish. I guess if you're "woke" enough, you get a pass.
5
For the record, DeNiro is half Irish.
33
And don't forget 'Goodfellas"! Excellent acting by Bob, Joe, and Ray Liotta! My favourite scene is the courtroom where a young Henry Hill is approached by De Niro, congratulating him, saying" never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut."
13
I think of Daniel Day-Lewis. He acted in far fewer films. I believe his “legacy” will shine more brightly than either De Niro’s or Pacino’s simply because he did not debase his prodigious gifts, as especially De Niro has, with so many hack jobs. De Niro is too great an actor not to know this. Perhaps “The Irishman” is his attempt at self-redemption.
2
Reading about these giants, I can't help thinking about the invidious parallel world of our current political actors.
In one world there is the search for truth and for other sorts of fidelity.
In the other, the search is for prevarication and infidelity. Hence, nice to see some cross-over, where one comments on the other.
1
In The Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell cites many examples of people being in the right place at the right time to take advantage of circumstances (Bill Gates grows up near a university computer lab that never locks; The Beatles spend 7 days a week honing their skills in Germany). These two grow up in New York where the “local acting school” is Stella Adler’s? Bam!
(Aside: Harry Ransom Center at U of Texas has the Stella Adler tapes archive. A friend viewed endless hours as a volunteer documenting The Who ‘s Who of acting sitting in her classes. Quite a treasure trove.)
Susan
ExPat from Austin
3
Mr. Itzkoff, been reading you for over 15 years. Can't believe you made no mention of biggest differences between these two living icons. One doesn't assume the entire world wants to hear what he thinks of the current administration in the most vulgar, disrespectful manner, one doesn't mistake his real self for the tough guys and psychos he's played in the movies, one takes chances by playing Shylock in "Merchant of Venice" on Broadway, the other does garbage like "The Fockers Part 20,000" and so on and so forth.
3
This was an excellent piece. It was so good that it was too short. I'd read a book about their interactions over the years. Just being allowed to be in the room with them for this conversation was compelling.
There will be nothing worse for my connection and relationship to film art than when one -- or both -- of these actors are gone.
They are both my favorite and I can not choose one over the other. I grew up (I'm in my 40s) enthralled by their acting, seeking each's work out every time there was a new release, obsessed about how they apprached their art noticing the strinking similarities weaved through complete opposite approaches and results [Scorsese captures it perfectly in the article: “I suppose I could say that Al tends to go toward fluidity and music while Bob likes to locate states of mind and being, settling in."].
In many cases their perfomance alone makes the film [Pacino in "The Devil's Advocate" - and often overlooked masterpiece - in my opinion; DeNiro in "Raging Bull"]. In others, they support a strong ensemble yet are utterly irreplaceable in their role [DeNiro in "Ronin" and "GoodFellas"; Pacino in "GlenGarry Glen Ross"].
I have been looking forward to "The Irishman" for a long time. I hope they both have time to make many more masterpieces whether together or apart.
1
Al Pacino and Robert De Niro exemplify the crème de crème of excellent actors compellingly plying their significant trade convincingly and purposefully. "The Godfather I, II, and III", "Raging Bull", "Casino", "Ronin", "Heat", Righteous Kill", "The Untouchables", "Taxi Driver", and "Mean Streets" are just a few of the blockbuster films deserving specific recognition here. More importantly, though, is the recognition of the superb acting of Al and Bob through their respective characters. Their extensively vast repertoire exudes both depth and versatility. Too many examples to cite, a favourite scene of mine from "The Godfather II" reveals the self confident but humane and thoughtful side of the young Vito Corleone when the street vendor hands a bag of produce to DeNiro. Respectfully declining payment, as a gesture of recognition, DeNiro graciously thanks him, urging him to come and talk with him if he ever needed anything. Truly humbling yet confident in his persona. Pacino's convincingly compelling scene in 'The Godfather I" when he tells Sonny [James Caan] and Tom Hagen [Robert Duval] that he will kill McCluskey and Solozzo at the planned meeting. Pacino's stark stare delivering "then I'll kill 'em both" is gripping. DeNiro's stellar performance in "Casino" when the Nevada Gaming Commission denies the Rothstein license is striking and convincing. Unloading a heap of vehemence upon Tommy Smothers as he sheepishly exits the room reflects a class act. Al and Bob are excellent!
2
What is it about Italian men? Pacino at what 79? He's still got it going on. Sigh.
4
What a mouthwateringly well-written article. Thank you, Dave Itzkoff...you really capture the mood of the mature artist.
1
The best!
1
Idle thought, given their ages: Did either have an military experience in the era of the draft? If not, why?
4
Interesting. I researched it after reading your comment. Not impressive answers to your query out there.
Harvey Keitel served!
1
When either of these great actors and honorable men leave us, there will be a void that nothing can fill. Buona notte gentlemen.
1
Pacino did Broadway well but never comedy while De Niro did comedy well but never Broadway nonetheless both have left their marks in film .
Bravo
4
What a well written article about two of my favorite actors. So interesting to read about their mindsets as they chose such profound acting opportunities over the decades. Roles that truly have had cultural impact.
2
De Niro shoulda gotta Oscar for Meet the Fockers...that was a late period gem of his, perhaps his only good film after Goodfellas...
What a smile!
5
At 79, Pacino looks more hip than I've ever looked in my entire life.
8
These two have thrilled me most of my movie-going life.
The artistry and talent that they have shared with the entertainment world has been remarkable, and I salute them.
3
Scrolling isn’t going well, so this thought might have been proffered already.
When I read of the mutually supportive role each of these giants has played for the other, I deeply wonder whether Brando ever had a friendship that counted in that way. I think of him as a very lonely person pushed to the pinnacle all on his own, and no shared experience to sustain him. If anyone happens to know differently, I’d be so glad to hear it.
2
@TimeIsNotOnOurSide - My mom was a great friend of his and through her I talked with him many times. He was very tight with his family and whenever I’d stop over his house more often then not various actors and directors he befriended were around. He seemed to like to mentor people. No, I don’t think he was lonely at all.
3
@Saint-Maly You have made my day, my week, my year! What a thing to know. I’m so happy to relinquish my Brando-anguish. Because he burst in on us when I was 10 years old, and my family adored him and rewatched everything they could, I may have overly confused Brando with his characters. Great news, and thank you.
These two men are true artists in their profession. I admire and and respect them both for their diligence and dedication to their art and profession.
2
They are craftsman. I especially liked Heat. That said I rather remember them as younger thugs that senescent in the Irishman. Too many earlier movies on the same have been made, but comedic. Its curious today how musicians and actors overstay their time on stage mainly because the boomer audience wants time to reverse time, deny reality, and anything to make another buck for a producer and appear to seem still relevant at the same time.
2
An obvious thread was not even teased in this article. That is the fact that DeNiro and Pacino, along with Scorcese, are Italian-Americans who reached the top; who conceived, played, and directed Italian-American characters as full and complex people; and who ushered in an age of films that concentrated on the IA culture--which The Godfather did beautifully, beyond its obvious mobster theme. This was quite a change from the days I remember growing up with my movie-loving IA grandmother in Brooklyn, when she would scan the credits intently, looking for last names that ended with vowels. PS My maiden name is Fazio
10
Some actors sustain because they become commodities. Cast because they'll bring the money in, and frankly you sense that other young talent is shunted just because they don't have the name. Not so with Pacino and DeNiro. Consummate performers that capture a mesmerized attention in most of their roles.
3
From the time Pacino and De Niro first met, their Italian-American roots cemented their relationship. They are what the Italian language calls "paisani." This means they are family with shared emotional and cultural roots. Instinctively, they so grasp each other's being they can predict their respective replies. They anticipate the script of the conversation before it happens. Watch how they watch and listen to each other. They understand. "What," you may ask, "do they understand?" For Pacino and De Niro, the verb has no separate object. It's a state of being.
7
"If they can share a joke about their elite status now, it’s because they bonded back when their renown was hardly assured, and they never forgot the constant rejection that they had to endure in their formative days. As Pacino explained, 'I say to young actors today, no matter what you do, don’t ever expect to get the role.' ('Consider that a given,' De Niro added.)
A useful reminder. Everybody gets turned down for something.
3
Well written on two huge masterpieces - A Director and a good screenplay script awaits 👍
When their careers began I was as young as they were. Guess what that makes me now?
3
I love this interview. Part of the reason it is good is that he writer/interviewer almost disappears into the subjects. That is good journalism.
I was reminded of another less-consequential, but still excellent "first time" two legendary actors appeared together: Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman in the criminally under-rated Runaway Jury. Like the Diner scene in Heat, there is a scene in the men's room of the courthouse when Hackman and Hoffman's characters first meet that is a master class in acting. And, one of the reasons it is, is that, like Mann, the director (Gary Fleder?) just let them act and wound the camera around them slowly but assuredly.
Great stuff.
11
They're both wonderful, expressive, thouhtful and— perhaps not least —Italian. AND they grew up in New York at a time when "Little Italy" was flourishing. So, desite classs differences, there wwas a shared culture, a shared argot, religion, streeet experiences. All these facilitated their friendship and contributed to some of the emotional and imaginative reserves with which they animated their roles. Did they know Gandolfino (who was much younger) ?
5
Robert DeNiro is indeed known for being "in the moment."
There is a scene in the film 'Ronin' where DeNiro's character, having taken a bullet in a botched confrontation between the good guys and bad guys (or should we say, between the bad guys and the less-bad guys), is lying on a table, instructing two comrades in how to remove the bullet from his stomach. All without anesthetic or painkillers.
To see DeNiro lying there, drenched in sweat, his brow furrowed in pain, the quivering of his voice telegraphing enormous pain, the moviegoer could be forgiven for thinking DeNiro wasn't in fact 'acting' but had demanded that the crew actually shoot him---you know, Method actors and their realism.
Uh, that was just acting, eh Bob?
7
I have difficulties in praising these two self indulgent actors. Three years ago, I saw Pacino in a play at the Pasadena Playhouse and he was awful. Slogging around the stage, barely audible and totally boring. As for DeNiro, he has continued his career with terrible performances in some goofy comedies that would only seem to be an incentive for cash. Neither actors have contributed any recent performances that are notable, important, moving, exciting, relevant,or worth seeing. This article only mentions movies that are long gone and belong in a dusty bin of VHS collections. Thank you and move on you guys.
4
@Jack
You are having a bad day.
Move on!
5
It's appropriate that two great Irish actors play in this movie. Yes, they are Irish! They're simply confused. They put the O at the wrong end of their names.
4
De Niro’s dance at the end of Mean Streets...has stuck with me forever plus that porkpie hat.
2
Thank you for this article. It is soo wonderful to read about the friendship and comradery between these two artists. Mr. De Niro and Mr. Al Pacino, in my eyes at least, are the living embodiment of what an actor is, and the art that is acting.
I grew up with their extraordinary performances and the movies which are now seared in my memory. I will forever be grateful to them for their extensive body of work and their contribution not only to American cinema, but cinema in general.
Bravo!
5
@loco73 - I agree but us not forget Daniel Day-Lewis. None of these guys compete with each other or any else, they are all artists trying to do their thing.
Watching the two sit across from each other in the diner late at night in the movie HEAT was a master class. Two guys who were on thinly opposite sides of the law - two guys who totally got each other. It was the best part of the movie.
9
yes, great actors to be sure, but that's because they had great roles. how many Oscars do the up and comers expect now when they're only making superhero movies and one note romcoms?
4
On leaving school was able to finally indulge my passion for American movies. I remember, and it's long ago now, sitting in dingy theatres watching Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, the Deer Hunter, Dog Day Afternoon, and others. Initially, The Godfather, was too imposing, too sprawling and yet too self-contained, but eventually it supplanted them all, it's still the height of the movies for me.
It wasn't until much later that I realised that behind many of these movies was the hand of Scorsese. Coppola's movies are special too, but Scorsese's body of work defined America for me and for that I'm grateful. It's a pity it's taken this long for Pacino and Scorsese to work together, I'm completely captivated by the thought of The Irishman. I'll make a rare trip to the Multiplex to see it, and then savour it repeatedly on Netflix.
6
In your list of "transfixing and explosive protagonists in landmark films," you missed "Serpico." An unforgivable oversight.
13
@Petsounds Agreed. And "Scent of a Woman"? He only got a well-deserved Oscar for that....
5
@martin Same way Paul Newman won. He for Color of Money when eh really shoudl have won for The Verdict. A masterpiece.
1
Picture caption: "“Heat” (1995) was the first time Pacino and De Niro shared the screen." What about Godfather II (1975)?
@Mike Donatz
Racking my brain, yes they were both in that film, but I don’t recall them sharing a scene, as DeNiro’s character was entirely in flashbacks as the young Vito when Micheal was just a toddler. Where that film picks up with Pacino as Don, his father, played by Brando, was already deceased.
8
“Godfather” is my all time favorite movie and I’m also a big fan of these two film icons: Pacino and De Niro.
I just cheered when Michael Corleone (Pacino) told Carlo Rizzi: “Don’t tell me you are innocent because it insults my intelligence”. Carlo was a “punk” and he terribly mistreated Micheal’s sister Connie and Michael rightfully kicked his Tuchus. Family honor comes first - WOW what a performance.
I also paid attention to young Vito Corleone’s (De Niro) advice: “Never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut” - De Niro at his best!!
Finally, as an Italian food aficionado, I will never forget what Clemenza once said: “Take the gun and leave the Cannoli”
All the best to Mr. Pacino and Mr. De Niro - love you guys !! - Can’t wait to watch “The Irishman”.
4
@Raj Sinha
The “ Never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut“ quote was from Goodfellas, I think, not Godfather. But DeNiro’s Jimmy Conway did say it to Henry Hill played by Ray Llotta.
6
@Patrick He actually said it to Christopher Serrone, the young Henry Hill.
1
@Raj Sinha It was "leave the gun--take the cannoli."
1
Great article on two cinema greats. I believe the original Godfather movie and the first half of Godfather II are the best 1-1/2 movies ever. The young Don and Michael Corleone are DeNiro and Pacino's best movies roles. I didn't care for the second part of Godfather II and I don't recognize Godfather III at all. I wonder if Pacino had an opinion of whether Michael Corleone had a sudden transformation to becoming the Don or whether it was in him all along (I believe the latter).
2
@Lynn in DC
I have always held the way out there theory that in the last ‘go to black’ scene of the Sopranos, that it was Meadow Soprano that is killed, not Tony. Without going into a bunch of supporting tidbits, the key one is the suggestion in a previous episode that it just goes black when one dies. So daughter Meadow was looking at Tony when it went black, not the other way around. Anyway, fast rewind to the penultimate scene of Godfather III on the steps of the opera...deja vu all over again. I rest my case.
1
Wonderfully written profile of two of the greatest actors of any generation, and a pleasurable read to escape into during these troubled times. Many thanks, Dave Itzkoff!
8
@Kedi ....and not to forget, Phillip Montgomery’s photographs of these lions in winter are marvelous!
8
Great interview, but magnificent photos!
10
These two men are among THE GREATS in American film and theater. They have been a force that has moved performance forward and inspired budding actors for decades. I lived and worked in the LA movie industry for years and it was all about DeNiro and Pacino, and rightly so. Brilliant, brilliant sages of stage and screen. I bow to them both.
11
Who's the better actor?
Taxi Driver?
The Godfather i and II?
Dog Day Afternoon?
Raging Bull?
Serpico?
I can't say.
Love them both.
The greatest. Both of them.
17
It's just nice to know they're both there.
Also Mr. De Niro: nice work as Robert Mueller.
21
...and a Pulitzer prize for portrait photography* to Philip Montgomery.
*There isn't one, is there? But maybe there should be for work like this.
15
Great photos!
8
Pacino in Scarecrow with Gene Hackman. Massive raw talent of the unknowns!
9
Yes, Raging Bull and Taxi Driver! But no-one ever mentions De Niro in Leone's "Once Upon a Time in America"--an incredible performance both as his young self and in an older version of himself years later (in which he looks exactly as he came to look years later!).
14
When I was in 8th grade, my parents took me to see "Does A Tiger Wear a Necktie?" and it was starring Hal Holbrook and David Opatoshu, both very famous and very fine actors. And there was a little note, saying "Featuring Al Pacino".
How to put it? As fine as the stars were, this young actor dominated the stage--he almost attacked it like it was an enemy--he was that intense! Talking about an improvised drug from a kitchen's spice rack of Mace: "Two teaspoons and you can make it with Frankenstein!"
Curiously unmentioned is Pacino's long association with David Mamet, the late Joe Papp, and the Public Theater.
While I HATED the movie "Scarface" I didn't hate his outstanding performance in it.
As for DeNiro: How many iconic lines has the man uttered? While "Raging Bull" is a tour-de-force, who remembers a little gem: "The King of Comedy" where he plays a nut who wants to be a comedian, who kidnaps an outrageously nasty late-night host, played impeccably by Jerry Lewis?
Even in an outrageously awful movie "Rocky And Bullwinkle", his Fearless Leader (and Jason Alexander's Boris Badinoff) captured the cartoon character brilliantly.
Has either, even in awful movies, not given great performances?
6
One of the more memorable films for me was Mean Streets, a very early Scorsese and Deniro collaboration. I actually grew up in a neighborhood with people who talked and acted that way. I couldn't believe that this reality had made it to the big screen. And Goodfellas remains my favorite movie. I can't ai to see the Irishman,
4
Interestingly enough, they shared the same voice-over actor in the Italian dubbed versions of their movies, i.e., the talented and recently deceased Ferruccio Amendola. This made the two actors strangely connected in the minds and hearts of all Italian moviegoers. In a way, the fact that they didn't work too much together was a blessing for Ferruccio, who couldn't dub two characters at the same time. In Heat (1995), possibly one the most popular movies they did together, Amendola dubbed De Niro, and Giancarlo Giannini dubbed Pacino, and it was one of the most cognitively dissonant viewing experiences in Italian moviegoing.
3
This kind of reminds me of the holographic "performances" of Tupac and Billy Holiday. Is it just nostalgia or is there's no talent around today compared to these two gentlemen. I remember when Heat came out, one critic described Pacino's and De Niro's as two dinosaurs fighting it out and that was 25 years ago. Will Pacino and De Niro still be making movies in 2100?
I wish Netflix would spend it's money on better pursuits than simulating youth and reruns of Friends (160 million)? When I turn on Netflix I get that low feeling I used to get walking into a video store late on a Saturday night and all the good movies were gone. No doubt it will be a good gangster movie, if you're not tired of them of them.
Why don't they leave something for the kids?
1
As a born and raised New Yorker, who happens to be an African American, I have to say that I see these two as New York actors and love them because they bring that to their roles. A wisdom, and a sense of being that comes from the streets.
I love the dramas, the comedies -- all of the work. Keep it going and thank you.
21
There are three movies that i watch again and again once a year: “GOODFELLAS”, “CASINO” AND “HEAT”.
7
I'll always remember the last scene in "The Deer Hunter" when they sang God Bless America at Thanksgiving.
That personified to me what The Viet Nam war gave America. . Bitter Harvest. . bitter, bitter harvest.
22
I would love to see these two in a film directed by Clint Eastwood ...
7
The catcher in "Bang the drum....."
6
"They have provided cinema with some of its most transfixing and explosive protagonists, in landmark films like — let’s just get these out of the way — “Taxi Driver,” “Scarface,” “Raging Bull” and the “Godfather” series."
"Scarface"? Hardly.
"Dog Day Afternoon" would have been a much better choice.
10
"'The Irishman' is officially only the third time they’ve collaborated..." This is incorrect. They were both in "The Godfather Part II," "Heat," and "A Righteous Kill" before "The Irishman."
@Brandon Krueger What they meant is that they didn't share screen time in Godfather II.
9
And Pacino in “Angels in America” and De Niro in “The Mission”...... Staggering power!
15
Everyone has their favourite actor. Mine is De Niro.
He becomes the character,love him or leave him.
The Mission had a special resonance given the role of the Jesuits in Nicaragua and the advent of Liberation Theology. De Niro played the troubled priest to a T.
Pacino is not bad either.
7
Scorsese directing De Niro and Pacino is the perfect combination. Can’t wait to see the film.
14
You can take De Niro, Pacino and Scorsese out of New York, but you can't take New York out of them.
By virtue of having grown up on the streets of New York, having absorbed the character types and the languages, they've become the foremost exponents (perhaps the last?) of the New York school of film, in which intelligent script, fine acting and highly skilled film crafts combine to make a compelling artistic whole that greatly exceeds its parts.
I look forward to seeing "The Irishman."
16
The portraits accompanying the article complemented the self-reflection and insights shared by two of America's greatest film talents. Thank you for the interview and images, very well done.
13
Thank you for a great article about three of the greats.
6
4? Joe, Marty, Bob and Al?
1
Love them both. Have enjoyed their work for many years but I’ll never forget Pacino’s “Glengarry Glenross.” Brilliant. And, of course, Dog Day Afternoon.”
Great article about true artists.
13
Great photography and wonderful article on my favorite actors. Thank you New York Times! Now how about an article on Harvey Keitel and Joe Pesci?
19
Both of them are great actors. My personal view is that Mr. De Niro left his best work behind over a decade ago. When was the last time you saw real De Niro work ? He has worked only for money for many many years.
Mr. Pacino continues to do his best work, he is still in great shape and form. He should have won Academy Award for Best Actor for his work in God Father part 2.
Much love and respect for both of them.
7
If only they could have figured a way to add Gene Hackman to the script.
18
Wouldn't it be nice if great female actors could also age naturally? Instead they have to look like Bratz dolls with fillers, surgery, and botox.
31
@Ellen Malone
1. The greatest actresses are British, and they tends to age naturally;
2. Meryl Streep;
3. that is not Pacino’s natural hair color.
5
@Rarities
Pachino has his hair color inhanced to restore its natural color. Looks fine to me.
3
@Rarities It is his natural hair color, in the sense that that's the color he was born with, but it is not likely the color it would be if he weren't wearing a wig or having his hair dyed.
So, what?
Actors wear wigs all the time. And we held a meeting and all decided we weren't going to bring this up...it's Pacino, after all.
1
Both men make you proud to be Italian.
14
Why is the movie called The Irishman ?
1
@Richard Because it's about an Irish hitman. And De Niro is half-Irish.
6
@Salvatore F. Induisi
Yes, as an Italian-American, I agree because their artistic talent, along with Scorsese's and Coppola's, is so immense. But it's a shame that so many of their iconic films are gangster movies - which merely serve to reinforce the ugly stereotypes and bigotry that their fellow Italian Americans still have to endure. from no-nothings in this country.
2
I love both of these giants. I find them riveting. How nice that they appear to have allowed themselves to age naturally, no less attractive now than in their youth.
As I scrolled through the article, and the exceptional portrait photos came up, I couldn't help but wonder why/if actresses of same era haven't been welcome to age as gracefully.
21
@Jeanette Simply because men still control most of the industry, unfortunately. In Great Britain, the actresses don't seem to be under the same kind of pressure. (Think Helen Mirren, Judy Densch, etc.) They are more realistic about what women should look like at different ages, and they give them good roles in movies and on television. I think it's horrible what pressure actresses are put under to look young. They feel pressured to have procedures done, and the result is not good. They don't look younger, generally they look odd. Sad.
Another of my favourite De Niro movies is "True Confessions' from 1981.
Loosely based on the Black Dahlia murder in LA in 1947.
It has that lovely noir LA look and the combination of De Niro, Robert Duvall, Charles Durning and Burgess Meredith was riveting.
12
Well done, Dave -- this is a gig we'd all love to have.
6
@Bill Scurry
You would love to be tasked with having to ask De Niro questions? I can think of many more thespians I'd like to engage in conversation with than the notoriously laconic Bobby D. It would be fun to read an interview of him if written by Taffy Broddesser Akner!
1
As much as I appreciated this piece on Pacino and DeNiro, I wished that the author had asked them whether they ever had any concern that virtually all their major roles at least involved their playing criminals (often Mafia), violent men (Taxi Driver, Scarface), and other physically threatening males--thus enforcing the stereotypes of Italian-Americans?
12
@John S. Bowman
Don’t think that’s even close to factually correct, if you check their filmographies. I think you are making the stereotypical assumptions about Italian-American actors. Just to take your examples, the Scarface role was Cuban, Taxi Driver’s Travis Bickle was not an Italian-American and could have been played very well by Clint Eastwood or even Jon Voight. I think Voight would have been better in that role, in fact. In the new release, DeNiro’s Sheeran is Irish-American and Pacino’s Hoffa German-Irish descent according to Wiki and Hungarian according to the book.
7
Well, if Pacino gets to play George Washington...
2
@Phat Skier
The tempestuous Pacino would do a great Mike Quill if that movie ever gets made. “ "The judge can drop dead in his black robes and we would not call off the strike"
2
Who doesn't love De Niro and Pacino? These guys are the real deal. Artists.
8
Great to read something reflective about people with real talent and depth.
Thanks for taking me out of today’s news cycle.
27
They portray the best and worst of American men in such universal and widely accepted ways. Bravo..
4
Why leave out DeNiro's film The Score with Ed Norton and directed by Frank Oz. Great movie and great acting.
12
To bad there are no Irish actors who could have played Frank and Peggy Sheeran.
Shhhhh, dont tell Cillian Murphy, Liam Neeson, Pierce Brosnan, Aidan Turner, Colin Farrell, Daniel Day Lewis, Michael Fassbender, Jonathan Rhys Meyers or Gabe Byrne. And dont tell Saiorse Ronan, Evanna Lynch, Katie McGrath, Sarah Bolger, Fiona Shaw.
Just off the top of my head.
11
@bored critic That is why they call it acting! If one only played oneself that would be boring and anyone could do it.
9
When you make your version of the book you are free to employ any one of those actors you mentioned.
8
@bored critic DeNiro's heritage is part Irish.
4
Talents for the ages. Thanks for your superb work, gentlemen.
6
Lovely. Can't wait to see the movie. Recently attended a Rolling Stones concert. A generation of men that is truly admirable. They don't make men like that anymore.
3
One time Pacino was walking a dog when he ran into DeNiro on the street.
"Say hello to my little friend" , Pacino said.
"You talkin' to me ?!", DeNiro responded.
195
@Baba "Look at me, and then look at you, and then look at me."
12
@Baba The dog turned out to be Dustin Hoffman. "I'm walkin' here! I'm walkin' here!!"
44
For my 18th birthday (too many years ago), I was given tickets to see Mr. Pacino at Hofstra University. It was basically him on stage alone talking about his craft with some Shakespeare thrown in. It was a delight, have been a huge fan of his since I was a youngster including sneaking in to see both Godfather movies because I was underage. His performances have always been thoughtful, sincere and true. He should have won an Oscar for at least Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon or The Godfather. What an enjoyable article.
24
This is to be sure wonderful interview but how could it be done without mentioning Joe Pesci never mind Harvey Keitel. This is like interviewing John and Paul and forgetting about George and Ringo. What made these guys great was not just their two unique talents but that they were surrounded by other equally as amazing actors who, while never attaining quite the same level of fame, were so good that they pushed Pacino and DeNiro to even higher heights. Where would Taxi Driver have been without Keitel; where would Goodfellas have been without Pesci, nevermind Raging Bull?
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@mark - its about their friendship, not their movie.
4
@mark the article DOES mention Pesci, though w/o referencing Goodfllas or Raging B.
2
@mark
neither would be as famous without the supporting acting of john cazale
7
Nice read about two really cool mature talented guys.....
I going to look out for the film.
9
First film is saw with Pacino was "Panic in Needle Park". Excellent film.
14
For those he have not seen Heat, watch it. It is a complex stunning movie with Pacino and De Niro at its center. Quite a number of other great actors too are in it.
16
@peter bailey Excellent - intense, well acted and very well edited!
4
@peter bailey
"Heat" is a perfect film, my absolute favorite. Apparently (according to a podcast with Michael Mann) Pacino's character was on cocaine, which explains his hilarious outbursts.
3
In reading the comments it hits me that my entire cinematic life has included these two giants. I truly hope a younger generation meets them both and falls in love with them as I did.
11
Good story, but especially outstanding photographic portraiture of De Niro and Pacino. Profoundest compliments to Mr. Montgomery, very close to Karsh. Ralph L Seifer, Long Beach, California.
14
A wonderful article. Thank you, Mr. Itzkoff.
7
Matisse had Picasso, and vice versa.
Same equation for these two masters.
Except less competition, more RL love, with De Niro & Pacino.
Italians do it better :o)
13
When “Meet the Fokkers” was released, more than one critic mentioned that DeNiro, Hoffman, and Streisand weren’t called on to deliver great performances, let alone immortal ones.
DeNiro and Pacino have each given some immortal performances, although not recently.
Here’s hoping that these new roles excite us the way those great early performances did.
6
Thank you for a wonderful article. I love these guys. Two of the greatest.
7
If Pacino wants to play George Washington, he should do it in a version of James Fenimore Cooper's "The Spy." It's a story about gang violence in the "neutral ground" of Westchester County (supposedly around Rye) during the Revolution. DeNiro would be great as the title character. Not as bizarre as it might sound. Stage adaptations were enormously popular in the 1820s.
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@Chris Grattan
I think it was actually set in Scarsdale at colonial Wayside Cottage, which Cooper knew and admired. In any event, a good idea. -- thegamesmenplay.com
3
They are both great actors. I've seen them, separately, in various movies. But to me, their greatest performances were in Godfather II. That movie is a true masterpiece! Although Pacino's court room performance in "...And Justice For All" is one of my favorite all-time performances! I read "I Heard You Paint Houses"...a fascinating tale. I'm anxious to see the movie! I know De Niro and Pacino will not disappoint!
4
Thank you, for this glimpse into friendship and artistry.
I look forward to seeing Pacino as George Washington and De Niro as Jefferson or Hamilton?
4
The diner scene in Michael Mann's brilliant "Heat" is one of my favorites. The way it is written and played by these master actors, as they compare their different yet parallel futures, is electrifying.
10
Great, gorgeous photography. Well done!
15
In the mid eighties, I had a job partner who was Italian and told me that years earlier he had gotten a bit part as an extra on a set of a DeNiro film scene shot on Mulberry St., one of the early ones. There must be hundreds of extras in a typical DeNiro film, I figured. But what struck me was that whenever we had a conversation about a film DeNiro was in, The Godfather say, he would always refer to him as “Bobby”, Bobby this and Bobby that, like they were piasans to the grave or something. It impressed me that DeNiro must have been a really nice down to earth guy that he garnered such respect from just anyone he worked with.
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@Patrick My uncle knew him and I remember as a kid in the 1970's he said that we should watch this actor that he though he was going to be big. His called him Bobby too :) I'd love to ask i=him if hew remembered my uncle.
6
De Niro is 76 and Pacino 79--they got about 20 years on me, and yet somehow because I grew up on their movies, I identify with their lives and aging processes more than I do with relatives in the same age bracket whom I hardly know. Such is the effect of Hollywood, I guess. It is the same for me with some folk music and Rock N' Roll legends. As some pass on (recently Diane Cannon, Penny Marshall, Tim Conway of the screen, and Tom Petty, Leonard Cohen, Ginger Baker of the vinyl) I reflect on my own mortality, sometimes more than when older friends and relatives pass on. Others have told me the same.
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The foul mouthed angry man and the narcissist.
4
You are describing the two very traits our president has an abundance of. At least these two fine artists have given us an amazing body of legit work.
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@Margo Channing You beat me to the punch, Margo! I read "Stevie"'s comment and immediately and only thought of Tang Face.
If "Stevie" is referring to De Niro and Pacino, their knowledge of these iconic actors film work must be between minimal and non-existent.
5
Great piece.
8
Good actors, sure, but they both have less range than a 40 year old Derek Jeter.
3
I had the good fortune to see Pacino live playing Shylock in The Merchant of Venice at Shakespeare In The Park, NYC. Also lucky to be close, only a few rows away.
He probably didn't have much time to prepare, but what a powerful performance.
7
Two great artists, both with incredible bodies of work. I have been a fan of both for many, many years, and Scent of a Woman (Al Pacino's Oscar win) and oddly enough, Robert De Niro's film Ronin are two standout performances in my opinion.
But I felt a distinct note of sadness reading how in the early 1960s they met as fledgling actors, each on the brink of a long and satisfying career, with all of out in front of them.
Like a generation they represent and I am a part of, we are closer to the end than to the beginning.
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@Len Hey, let's not forget Meet the Parents. It's been a wonderful source for inside jokes with my in-laws, who otherwise come from a completely different culture.
1
@RM
Agreed! Both actors can do broad comedy so well.
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@Len Sadly and reluctantly, that message is starting to hit home.
Ladies and gentlemen, I humbly nominate "Dog Day Afternoon" for the very top tier of the Pacino pantheon.
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@marion dee I would add Serpico to that list, as well.
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I second that.
2
@marion dee Agreed. Fantastic performance.
2
Great article and interview...Great talents... Looking foward to "The Irishman".
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I was a teenager when both Pacino and De Niro made their Godfather movies, and they are as much a part of my fondest growing up memories as were the Beatles, Muhammed Ali, the moon landing, baseball and all the wonderful music and American films of the era. My favorite De Niro film work: Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Godfather II and the Deer Hunter. Pacino's: The Godfather I, II, Serpico, The Insider.
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De Niro's massive acting range also includes comedy..... he was hilarious in "Analyze This" with Billy Crystal.
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@megachulo Dont forget meet the fockers, and meet the parents.....
@megachulo Also, Midnight Run with Charles Grodin --- so funny!!!
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@megachulo
When he did that & started doing other comedies I thought no actor deserved to make that kind of change of pace more.
It is amusing that the" Irishman" movie has Deniro, Pacino. Pesci, and Scorsese -all Italian Americans
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@vince De Niro is half-Irish. Most of the characters in the film are not Irish. Not sure why this is so hard to understand.
7
Who can forget the last scene of The Godfather, which so channels Verdi - Pacino's character lying to his wife about the murder of her brother in law as his men assemble to pay him obeisance. As for Goodfellas, we are witnessing its descending moral arc replayed every day by our so-called president and his crew. The Lufthansa heist indeed!
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Sometimes I wonder if they're overrated because of the publicity attached to their legends. They're obviously very good on their own.
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@Outspoken You could say that with any "star".
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@Nancy Not Matt Damon.
1
I can remember clearly the excitement I felt anticipating that scene in Heat when they first met. My friends and I and just about everybody in what was Mann’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood went absolutely crazy. We all knew on that first public screening that we had witnessed cinematic history.
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Two guys with enormous talent and charisma, complimented by humility. What’s not to like?
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Congratulations to Dave Itzkoff for a fine piece. It has a lovely, unfolding, conversational rhythm that's rare in writing about actors, who can be reticent when talking about career and craft. I hated to see the article end, wanted it to go on. One feels a bit closer to both actors, an outcome richly enhanced by Philip Montgomery's candid yet subtly elegiac photographs.
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Great article!! One of the most memorable scenes in a crime movie... any movie...is the moment between them at the end of Heat.
This was a fun and interesting article.
It also made me think of what women could have done or can do with the same opportunities. I look forward to seeing that.
4
@NA Shirley MacLaine + Jane Fonda would be fun.
3
Growing up in Greenwich Village (a kid from the 1950's) I watched the evolution of the downtown Rat Pack -which included Harvey Keitel- as they grew from film to film. Our home town heroes. One indelible memory is of a tiny bagel restaurant on Bleecker Street which had only a single outside table. One morning i passed by to observe Deniro, Pacino, and Keitel enjoying a quiet breakfast -served by the only waitress, young Ellen Barkin. Memory #267 from Greenwich Village days.
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@Citizen great memory — let us know if you write the book!
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@Citizen
Ellen was 6 years old in 1960.
It must have been someone else.
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@Paul Longhouse
I just reread the comment and he didn't give the year as 1960 - he only said he was born in the 1950s. The three actors only became famous in the early 70s; she was probably 19 or 20.
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Many thanks for this wonderful document. We love both of them. We still remember Robert de Niro's sense of humor. He said: "I was amazing in the Deer hunter" when he was honoring Meryl Streep at Kennedy Center. And the unforgettable Al Pacino's tango and furious speech in "Scent of a woman". Let's see what happens at the box office when they warn that just a week later the movie will be available on Netflix.
7
It's nice to remember that actors used to be actors...then, because of their talent, became celebrities. Instead of the other way around. Now we seem to have famous people who happen to act.
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De Niro's eyes. You could turn down the volume and just watch his eyes and understand the scene. What a remarkable actor!
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@MSP Tom
The guy will be a legend forever!
3
Would love to see De Niro team one more time with Streep. Falling in Love Movie--one of their best
10
Cannot wait to see the film, these two goliaths of acting I have tremendous respect for and stand in awe of their fine tuned profound artistic talent.
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What struck me the most in this article is the friendship between two men with a shared craft. The depth of honest and appreciative friendship between men is not an easy accomplishment especially as we men age.
Perhaps the key to their relationship is empathy, a requirement for true friendship and a demand for an actor. Both of these gentlemen have empathy in spades. As a young boy and younger man I had so many friends as we had bonds from school, sports, hobbies and the like. As an older man the rare great friendship is the truest and best treasure to have.
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Great piece...they - with Pesci, Duvall and Nicholson - are iconic figures.
7
Great pictures. Really great.
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Ok, but nothing personal ... it's just business. I always liked him.
2
I couldn't stop smiling reading this whole article. Imagining them sitting their telling their war stories would be like listening to good jazz while sipping my favorite pinot noir.
20
They’re a lot of great American actors around today but these guys are the gold standard.
Indeed after they’re gone they will be favourably compared to our best living or dead.
My favourite, if I had to choose, would be Pacino in The Godfather:
Here is the war hero and straight arrow Michael sitting at the table in the diner with the two men he is about to kill. This act will irrevocably and tragically change the path of his life from the light to the darkness.
And you can see all that simply by the expression on his face!
33
What strikes me most about Pacino, Scorcese and DeNiro is, despite all the fame, how human they are. I do not say this in praise or disparagement, but merely to reflect that they are only as effective as their material and ability to work within their professional limitations relative to range.
If the material is strong and suited to their skill set, they can be and have been brilliant. If either of those elements is missing, they like all of us, cannot transcend their own personal limitations.
If any of us don't take ourselves or our position too seriously, we can learn to live comfortably and happily enough with such insight. Hopefully, they realize this as well.
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@Ben Brice
Well put. Not gods but extraordinary actors. A few stinkers in their careers, though, like anyone else.
12
The memorable films, scenes and performances of these two are no less than a litany of cinema greatness. Pacino was remarkable in ‘Donnie Brosco’ and I’m not sure it’s even considered one of his great roles. His chemistry with Johnny Depp, also spectacular in that movie, is no small part of its success. DeNiro’s comic turns may not be what he’s chiefly remembered for but there have been some great ones, like ‘King of Comedy,’ in which he strikes exactly the right balance in his character’s over the top hysteria and helplessly poignant, delusional humanity. Both actors, with the sure hands of the great directors they’ve worked with and been nurtured by, have contributed compelling work I can never tire of going back to again and again. Whose realities at times have felt less fictional or made up to me than real life.
26
@sixmile De Niro has quite the sense of humour, given all the comedies he's done over the years. I love actors that can span different genres - and being funny isn't easy if it doesn't come naturally.
10
Thanks to two great actors who make it look easy. DeNiro was also good in 'Once Upon a Time in America' ....
12
It’s just nice to know they’re there.
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Masters of their crafts.
Their imprints in film history are indelible.
16
In my view, Pacino's best performance was Shylock in The Merchant of Venice.
4
And oh! Philip Montgomery's photographs!
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@Ed Fountain So true!
2
LEGENDARY!
9
The portraits were the best part of this cliche-ridden piece.
2
Che bello. Instead of reading the news to my husband this morning, I read this to his and my delight. Bravi.
33
When I saw Mr. Deniro in "Awakenings" I woke up to great acting, acting as an art, and while I was drawn to it, I knew not to even try it, the performance was just that good.
Mr. Pacino's "Scarface" left me scared for what it showed about our human condition, and I'll watch that performance anytime, fascinated, as I was close, real close to the refugees and smuggling thru my military service.
Mr. Scorsece recently made a comment about what is cinema and what isn't, something about the cartoon action hero movies out and popular recently, and I'm thinking great cinema holds up something about us we don't get to see, maybe because we're blind to it because we can't see it, and makes us acknowledge it and make a judgement about it. These men all made great cinema about us that we made a call about, one way or the other.
I'm sure the latest project will ask us the same things about ourselves. For that I am greatful.
Thank you, sirs.
16
Superb article about two of the giants of cinema with exceptional photography!
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Lol. The bland leading the bland. Except when they're over-emoting.
2
I just happened upon "The Devil's Advocate" on TV the other day and rewatched it. Al Pacino as the devil -- and so much memorable stuff in that movie. Stuff that kind of haunts you for decades. What an actor. De Niro, as well. Two giants. I'd give anything to watch another former "Devil," (Jack Nicholson) on any sound stage with Pacino and De Niro. What a trio of character, range, and devilish fun that would be!
12
DeNiro also played the devil in Angel Heart with Mickey Rourke and Lisa Bonet. Seeing that film made me want to go sit in a church for the first time in many many years. I’m still suspicious of eggs.
15
@BeezKneez sounds like a lovely way to spend an evening with friends--watching angel heart and devil's advocate and arguing over who played the better devil...
2
Both men excel in portraying emotionally charged men in contemporary settings. When Pacino stepped away from those , he maintained that quality. No one could dispute the power and menace he brought playing Shylock, in The Merchant Of Venice. His portrayal made Shylock come alive.
7
I've seen Heat over and over again. The relationship of the two main characters they played in the film culminated in the death scene when Pacino's character held De Niro's hand while he died.
14
What great piece. These guys are legends and have given us so many great moments on film. More to come...we're excited!!!! Great job Dave.
13
I saw preview of The Irishman--thought Ray Romano did really well considering he was in rarefied air.
15
It's just really hard for me to get my mind around the fact that Al Pacino is now 79 years old. How time flies. Really.
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@mpound It also made have to me wrap my mind around how old I am.
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@jcs Im 27 and see how time really fly's by now.. Seemed like yesterday I was just 16
3
An excellent piece on two of our finest actors. I was fortunate to see Al Pacino on Broadway and on stage at the Circle in the Square. One of my favorite films of his is "Looking For Richard" which was about Shakespeare's play "Richard III. It is a very deep and complicated play and Pacino guides the audience thru all of the nuances and drama in it. After I saw the film my first thought was that I wished he was my drama teacher in school. The man knows his Shakespeare!!!
30
"Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel" is a most memorable piece; I was moved to tears and rage.
9
Two of the best.
34
“The Deerhunter” still brings me to sitting in that theater in awe. Robert DeNiro, thank you. And thank you ever after.
“The Godfather” still brings me sitting in that theater in awe. Al Pacino, thank you. And thank you ever after.
I will be sitting in a theater again next week watching these two icons together in “The Irishman” and I know I will be in awe.
How grateful to still be alive to event comment these words in the midst of all that is going on in life these days.....and to be yet looking forward to another week at the movies starring the best of the best.
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@MIMA In my view, "The Deer Hunter" defines the raw power that cinema is capable of achieving. "The Godfather" is a classic in the sense that once I start watching, I still have to stay see the film until its end.
1
Not since the late John Garfield have I ever admired any actor more than Brando, DeNiro and Pacino.
At 86 and being a movie buff since the age of 7, I have, probably, seen all the big actors and actresses in roles.
Some stand out and others only scenes in my memory, but anyone who has seen The Godfather and Raging Bull cannot possibly forget perfection.
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@Sajwert...……...John Garfield a lost legend for sure! from starting the Hollywood Canteen to the Black plaque listings...……..the next president should salute and pardon the actors ,actresses, writers and all the talented people who took the fall from a time period... just like we're in now!!!
4
Great photography for the article.
92
Their work will never be surpassed.
15
I was once at a cast party for a play Pacino was in. He came in with some friends, danced, played the bongos and left.
No big whoop.
He still seems down to earth
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Nice article and thank you NYT's for delivering it to us!
22
What a great read about 2 giants of American cinema. Thank you. And kudos to photographer Philip Montgomery. Wonderful portraits.
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My wife and I, who have not been to the movie cinema in years, cannot wait to go see this at the IFC in the Village.
We cannot wait!
15
What a great read. Clearly, both actors felt confident that the feature would be written by an empathic journalist.
19
This is the best article about a movie, and its actors, that I've ever read. Thank you.
61
That coffee scene in Heat still stands out, the whole film is a masterpiece, but their interaction is electrifying. I’ll always be a Taxi Driver fan though, and I loved Pacino in Nolan’s Insomnia.
18
Great, iconic actors are both, they are clearly giants in the industry.
Their style, while lacking versatility, was bold and masculine with an immersive quality that often became even better the second time one watched the film. After so many years, their talents and humility are a welcome spot in todays overemphasized and overcompensated film industry........and I thank them for that.
18
Two talented actors, but they often repeat themselves in familiar roles.
2
@David Henry Rembrandt painted a recurrent theme, self-portraits, over the course of his life. As he grew older, they became richer psychologically and spiritually. With a few exceptions, so have DeNiro and Pacino’s characterizations.
18
What a terrific story. To have this glimpse into the relationship between these two great actors is a special gift to all of us. Beautifully captured and told. Thanks!
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I loved this feature article about two great actors whose work I admire. I'm almost as old as they are, so I kind of grew up with them. Their first hits "Serpico" and "Taxi Driver" were absorbing looks into worlds most of us, fortunately, see only in the movies. They can do comedy, too, although their best films are dramas.
24
Great article. DeNiro, Pacino, Scorsese: a trifecta of proven talent honed by tremendous experience and weathered by decades of mutual admiration. I can’t wait to see the film.
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Don’t forget Pesci.
22
And Harvey Keitel! He’s in it too.
7
My absolute favorite actors and director, and also on the favorite people list as this article demonstrates. Bring on the popcorn!!! It is going to be amazing!!!
34
I almost never see a movie more than once. I was a teenager when I saw Pacino in "Serpico". I thought he was the coolest guy ever, and I wanted to be just like him. I went back 4 or 5 times.
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@Phil Rubin
Saw Dog Day Afternoon as a teenager. Felt the same way. Still love that movie.
24
And how wonderful to have the New York Times, which enriches us in the same way, by letting us see the world in so many ways. Thank you.
74
Great as these guys are, and with much respect, aren't they—and Pesci and Keitel—just too old and passed their prime to be believable in their roles? Have to wait and see, but I'm very skeptical.
@APH Don't forget that with digitized film-making, the technicians can change the characters to add or subtract years. In the days when true film was used, younger actors would be needed for the flashbacks, but now old actors can play the parts and the technicians can change their appearances to match the years needed. If that is done well, we will all be amazed at the digitized movie. The seventies aren't what they used to be; look at how many presidential candidates are in their seventies. De Niro and Pacino remain lucid about how to tackle their roles in this new movie.
11
@APH Depends how they are used. Many old timers involved in the mobs in real life and still are.
4
Blood brothers from different mothers. What a life enriching gift to have such a friendship. And how deeply each has let us feel inside the minds of the characters they portrayed. A hundred years from now viewers will still be feeling they are inside the skins of others, if only for two hours. And afterwards, for the rest of their lives, will unconsciously have changed in some way, made different by De Niro and Pacino.
36
This is a wonderful piece. These days, both De Niro and Pacino don't seem to stretch themselves all that much with the roles they choose (though it sounds as though they may have broken this pattern with The Irishman). But if anyone doubts their range, they should watch the first two Godfather movies. Pacino is completely convincing as the quiet, controlled, tactically brilliant, utterly lethal Michael Corleone. De Niro brings the same qualities to the young Vito Corleone, but with a bit more more compassion. So it makes sense when son Michael becomes the more ruthless version of the Godfather, and the second movie ends with him committing an act that would horrify his father.
They each went against type in many other films as well, but even when they didn't, were (almost) always well worth watching.
34
@NA
I don't think De Niro was stretching in "Silver Linings Playbook" but I loved him in that anyway.
1
@NA fast/furious
I agree, on both counts. He was great in “Midnight Run” with Charles Grodin, too, but wasn’t exactly playing against type.
2
@NA
Charles Grodin was excellent in that movie; Grodin has been underrated, and DeNiro gave him space to act, a very generous man.
1
Two American treasures, seemingly joined at the hip.
I am quite glad that the two men have always cherished the other’s work. It’s quite rare in the world of the performing arts that genuine respect and admiration are the currency between high profile stars.
Here, we just have two artists whose creative powers have not atrophied.
85
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18 Was going to put all the Yankee titles but not enough space.
38
@JDSept: Consider the 17 Celtics titles if my handle was the shamrock (compared to the Knicks’ two). Or the six (and counting) Patriots Super Bowl titles (to the three New York teams—Giants/Jets) if my handle was the Flying Elvis.
10
Great actors and I just get a sense that they are thoughtful, nice people, dedicated to their craft. The black and white photographs of these two icons was stunning and poignant. Thank you for this article.
148
Both icons in there field. Both have played in historic and memorable movies, besides being Academy Award winners in leading roles.
14
Great Article. Two of the Greatest. Cannot wait to see this film.
109
I'm a middle-aged woman. I was a baby when the first Godfather came out. I have actually never seen a Robert DeNiro film. The only Al Pacino film I've seen is Scent of a Woman.
Even though DeNiro and Pacino are both icons, they're really only icons for a certain population. More male than female I'd guess. More white than black and brown. Their generation and the slightly younger boomers.
So thanks for the article. It's the first I've read about either man.
I could go see The Irishman.
12
@Judith - "they're really only icons for a certain population." Love your Comment - this is why and how I see humans progress. I'll see The Irishman on Netflix, maybe (not in a theater).
6
@Judith: I hope you go beyond whatever images of these two you have absorbed from the culture, and see some more of their work. They are both superb actors, two of the best in the last 40 years. Not seeing their films would be like not having seen any James Stewart films because he's not of your generation.
171
@pmbrig I looked up the "best" DeNiro and Pacino films: Goodfellas, the Godfather, Scarface, Taxi Driver. I'm really not very into violent movies so I probably won't see them. The subject matter just doesn't interest me. I'm sure they're both talented and they have lots of fans. But life is short.
12