Speaking about performance and acting in class got me thinking about the actors that I love, and the way that I can’t look away whenever they are on screen. Something about them just draws you in and even if they aren’t saying anything, you are still enthralled, see Cool Hand Luke as an example of this. But the actor who keeps me hooked like no other is Robert De Niro, so i thought i would share my Top 5 De Niro performances.
5. The Deer Hunter (Michael Cimino, 1978)
Some consider this film to be an epic portrayal of the psychological effect of war on the working class, i think it’s poorly paced, messily directed and struggled to engage with it on the first viewing. However I could only be impressed with De Niro, who gave a performance that was quiet and anguished on the surface but seething underneath, that kept me watching and saved a film which i could have hated.
4. The King of Comedy (Martin Scorsese, 1982)
A marvelously cynical satire exploring the price of fame, with De Niro playing a wanna be stand up comedian Rupert Pupkin. De Niro gets a chance to showcase his jovial side with this complex character while still displaying an obsessive and sinister undertones he did so well with Travis Bickle. Truly on of he and scorsese’s best collaborations with an astounding denoument.
3. Taxi Driver (Martin Scorsese, 1976)
A raw, convincing, performance that captured De Niro at the peak of his powers in the 70’s. Playing a psychotic and violent Vietnam veteran, he somehow manages to make the character complex and relatable. A genuine classic for any fan of cinema that should be studied for decades to come.
2. The Godfather, Part II (Francis Ford Coppola, 1974)
Simply a masterpiece of film making and acting. De Niro gives the young Vito Corleone such depth and presence in such a relatively small screen time, that all i could think about when watching the Pacino scenes is when we are going to get the next flashback with De Niro. The fact that the performance was done entirely in italian language only adds to his veneration.
1. Raging Bull (Martin Scorsese, 1980)
One of the all time great performances in one of the all time great films, a stunning achievement in acting to give such a passionate and intense performance without ever dipping into melodrama. His psychical transformation from a middleweight boxer at his peak to an aging, overweight nightclub owner/wannabe stand-up comedian shows his commitment to the craft and gives the performance an authenticity rarely matched in cinema.
