Ever since The Irishmen was released film nerds have been asking the question who is the better actor Robert De Niro or Al Pacino? This question is like who’s better, LeBron or Jordan? There’s no right answer. Robert De Niro made his acting debut in 1973 movie Bang the Drum Slowly. The film was about a baseball player of limited intellect who has a terminal illness. The film is an adaptation of the 1956 baseball novel of the same name by American author Mark Harris. It was previously dramatized in 1956 on the U.S. Steel Hour with Paul Newman, Albert Salmi and George Peppard. Robert De Niro co starred in the movie alongside Michael Moriarty. The movie received a great score on Rotten Tomatoes score of 92 percent. Al Pacino made his film debut in 1969 in the film Me, Natalia. The film is about a 1969 American comedy drama film directed by Fred Coe about a homely young lady that resides in Brooklyn who moves to Greenwich Village and finds romance with a man who has aspirations of being a painter. The audience scored the film of 75 percent on rotten tomatoes. Both Pacino and De Niro used their debuts to launch their careers and become Hollywood Mega Stars but who is the greater actor?
Peak
When it comes to comparing basketball players we usually compare their best seasons to determine who had the career. So I’ll apply the same logic to this debate. I’ll take the five best movies of both actors to discover who had the better peak. For Al Pacino his five best performances are Godfather 1, Godfather 2, Scarface, Heat and Dogs Day Afternoon. For De Niro his five best movies are Godfather 2, Goodfellas, Taxi Driver and Raging Bull. Tony Montana is one of the most influential movie characters of all time. Everyone in the hood wanted to live that Scarface life, go from the bottom and make it to the top and go out guns blazing. Although Al Pacino displayed acting wizardry in Scarface, so did De Niro in Goodfellas. He played Jimmy Conway, an Irish Gangster who Henry Hill described as a master thief, the kind of guy who rooted for the bad guys in the movies. The character fit De Niro like a glove. His performance was amazing, especially his restaurant scene when he was looking to set up Henry as he correctly feared that he was going to snitch. You have to give the nod to Goodfellas. You can’t argue against the Godfather 1 for Pacino; his portrayal of Michael Corleone in the first Godfather is beyond amazing. Watching him go from war hero and the outsider in his own family to being suddenly a cold blooded killer and running the family business.
There aren’t too many better performances than that accept his performance in the sequel where he was even more cold blooded and private. Michael did what had to be done to protect his family which ultimately destroyed his soul. His father Vito wasn’t like him and De Niro played young Vito in the sequel. He masterfully played Michael’s father showing us his rise from Italy to New York. When they went head to head in Heat both actors were at the peak of their powers. It was like a fight between two heavyweight boxers and nobody was giving an inch. Both characters were complete opposites in their line of work but found common ground. It was beautiful to watch but I gave De Niro the upper hand slightly. He just had the more memorable lines, one that stood out to me was “ never get too attached to something that you aren’t willing to walk out on”. That’s cold blooded he never broke character it almost seemed like Pacino was in awe of him during the scene.
Edge: De Niro
Better in the Irishmen
When I found out Al Pacino and Robert De Niro were going to be in the same movie and it would be directed by Martin Scorsese I was excited. Especially since it was about Jimmy Hoffa. I would hear his name in rap lyrics such as "the Hoffa Mafia, sippin, eatin pastas". I would always hear his name but I would never know who he was and it wasn't like my high school taught us about him. Al Pacino was tasked with the role of playing Jimmy Hoffa. He brilliantly displayed Hoffas's ride from successful leader of the International Brotherhood of the Teamster to one of President Kennedy's biggest rivals. Robert De Niro was casted the role of Frank Sheeren. Sheeren moved up from union and mob truck driver to Jimmy Hoffa's bodyguard. De Niro did a great job dipicting Sheeran career ascension and his personal failures as a father and friend. It ranks in the middle of his roles we've seen better we've seen worse but still solid by his standers. Al Pacino was amazing on the other hand and he stole my attention every scene he was in. It was his best performance in years. He portrayed Hoffa's love for his family, how much he hated tardiness, his obsession with beating John F Kenned and how much he valued his job title.
Edge: Deniro
Consistency
Both of these actors have been great for almost 50 years. So that is the model of consistency in itself. Pacino has had about 2-3 iconic movies each decade since the 70’s and that goes the same for De Niro. If I was forced to answer about who was more consistent I would say Robert De Niro. The prime of Pacino lasted ten years from 1973-1983. In that span he starred in Dogs Day Afternoon, Godfather 1, Godfather 2, And Justice For All, Cruising and Scarface. That is a hell of a prime. Most actors don’t even have two films of that caliber on their resume. He had some quality movies in the 90’s like Heat, Godfather 3, Carlito’s Way and Scent of a Woman. De Niro’s prime lasted from 1974 to the mid 90’s. Godfather 2, Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter, Raging Bull, Awakenings, Goodfellas, Capefear, Bronx Tale, Casino and Heat. His run is historic and displays how much range he has. He played a boxer, a mobster multiple times, a casino boss, a psychopathic taxi driver and a rapist. Who can’t this man play?
Edge: De Niro
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