Robert De Niro

Born August 17, 1943, in New York City. He's basically a legend—actor, producer, director, you name it... His biggest hits? Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, The Godfather Part II, Casino, Ronin, Mean Streets... just way too many to list... Definitely one of my absolute favorites...

rapidwolf13 isn't exactly a huge fan of Robert De Niro. The general consensus seems to be that he can be a bit one-note.

redowl90 said:rapidwolf13 isn't exactly a huge fan of Robert De Niro. The general consensus seems to be that he can be a bit one-note.

Falcon, you said it, man... and you lived to tell the tale.

It’s not that I don't like him, but I'm definitely with redowl90 on this one—he's just kind of one-note.

I actually want to stay alive, you know? 🙂

ruggedfox28 said:Falcon, you said it, man... and you lived to tell the tale.

I’ve never held any particular grudge against Robert De Niro, nor do I plan to. But relatively recently on another thread (I think we were discussing Taxi Driver), people started really tearing him apart.
Maybe "tearing him apart" is a bit dramatic for what was actually written, but regardless, there wasn't a single positive thing to be found.

My absolute favorite actor

Jerry Martin19 said:It’s not that I don't like him, but I'm definitely with redowl90 on this one—he's just kind of one-note.

I actually want to stay alive, you know? 🙂

Those aren't my own words. I was just relaying the consensus from the Taxi Driver topic. 😉

I definitely don't think Robert De Niro is one-dimensional, or that he plays the exact same part every time. Does he have several similar roles? Sure. But each one feels distinct in its own way. If he carries the same expression or facial mannerisms through three different movies, that isn't a lack of range in him personally—it's just a trait of the characters he's portraying.

That said, I’d much rather watch Robert De Niro on the big screen playing a mobster (even if it's his tenth similar role) than watch him make a fool of himself in some silly comedy.

Very few actors have managed to nail the mafia persona so perfectly, only to turn around later and spend years poking fun at themselves in goofy comedies... I tip my hat to him.

Man, Angels in the Outfield with Sean Penn totally killed me... Such a riot...

redowl90 said:Those aren't my own words. I was just relaying the consensus from the Taxi Driver topic. 😉

I definitely don't think Robert De Niro is one-dimensional, or that he plays the exact same part every time. Does he have several similar roles? Sure. But each one feels distinct in its own way. If he carries the same expression or facial mannerisms through three different movies, that isn't a lack of range in him personally—it's just a trait of the characters he's portraying.

That said, I’d much rather watch Robert De Niro on the big screen playing a mobster (even if it's his tenth similar role) than watch him make a fool of himself in some silly comedy.

I try to imagine him playing a doctor or maybe a psychiatrist, and I just can't see it. I didn't say he's a bad actor just because I'm claiming he's one-dimensional—it's just that I haven't seen anything else from him yet. I think he's a limited actor, but that doesn't make him bad. An actor can be typecast into one or two directions and still be great; there's no need to lynch him for it.

p.s. sorry for passing off someone else's words as mine 🙂

And yeah. He's terrible in comedies... I'll eat my hat regarding what George Jones said. 😉

Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter, Raging Bull, Jackie Brown, Wag the Dog, Casino, Heat, Angels in the Outfield, The Untouchables, New York City, New York City, Once Upon a Time in America, The King of Comedy.......

I wouldn't call him one-dimensional, even if he does have some similar roles. They're actually pretty distinct 🙏

Look, even though I dig most of those flicks, De Niro's roles all feel like the exact same guy just going by different names. It’s always the same formula, the same acting style... I'm not saying he's bad at it, it's just getting a little repetitive, even if it doesn't bother me too much 🙂

I actually caught one of Robert De Niro's early flicks on Turner Classic Movies yesterday, that 1971 one, "The gang that couldn't shoot straight." I had a good laugh, honestly; it’s basically two mob families warring in New York City and Robert De Niro just happens to stumble right into the middle of it. The characters feel like they walked off a Saturday morning cartoon—it's such a blatant parody of all those mafia power plays. 🤣 😂

The whole thing has that specific vibe of a low-budget comedy from that era, but there are definitely some clever bits in there. You get Robert De Niro being Robert De Niro, though he's a bit more wooden and lacks that signature spark here. It's funny because you can see how he took those exact same gestures later on and inflated them into something massive. For instance, the way he played the character Maria in this film was basically the blueprint for what he turned into a full-blown caricature in "Analyze This" and
"that".

redowl90 said:I’ve never held any particular grudge against Robert De Niro, nor do I plan to. But relatively recently on another thread (I think we were discussing Taxi Driver), people started really tearing him apart.
Maybe "tearing him apart" is a bit dramatic for what was actually written, but regardless, there wasn't a single positive thing to be found.

Is this whole thread just about dumping everyone else's opinions on Robert De Niro here?

ruggedfox28 said:Is this whole thread just about dumping everyone else's opinions on Robert De Niro here?

From what I can tell, it’s not even titled "For those who think Robert De Niro is one of the greatest actors ever." 😉

Man, a topic is just a topic. As long as we're talking about the subject matter, it doesn't matter whose perspective it is or how they see it. Not trying to act smart here, but the simplest definition of a forum is "a place for discussion," not "a place to force your views on others"... 🙂

Jerry Martin19 said:From what I can tell, it’s not even titled "For those who think Robert De Niro is one of the greatest actors ever." 😉

Man, a topic is just a topic. As long as we're talking about the subject matter, it doesn't matter whose perspective it is or how they see it. Not trying to act smart here, but the simplest definition of a forum is "a place for discussion," not "a place to force your views on others"... 🙂

Honestly, out of all the greats, De Niro is my least favorite...

They call this a "discussion forum"... but honestly, it feels more like a place where you aren't actually allowed to have an opinion or stand your ground...

Jerry Martin19 said:Look, even though I dig most of those flicks, De Niro's roles all feel like the exact same guy just going by different names. It’s always the same formula, the same acting style... I'm not saying he's bad at it, it's just getting a little repetitive, even if it doesn't bother me too much 🙂

...but yeah, I'm with what was said before

ruggedfox28 said:Is this whole thread just about dumping everyone else's opinions on Robert De Niro here?

I just wanted to point out how absurd it is to open a thread like this, especially since we just finished a massive debate about the same actor on another thread where most people were basically tearing him apart.

And that absurdity was proven by the fact that only about four people actually shared their own take on this actor (who is undoubtedly one of the most famous of all time). It’s pretty tragic, really. ☕

Just one last little off-topic thought for today 😁:

It’s honestly tragic how this sub is filled with people who just want to suck up to a few big names 🙏 and call it a day. Real conversation and actual debate seem to bore them to death. That's why this thread is dying, and frankly, it's the same story with every other thread on this board. It's pretty pathetic...

A handful of people actually contribute something, while the rest—who unfortunately make up the majority—are just typing for the sake of typing... 🤮

ruggedfox28 said:Honestly, out of all the greats, De Niro is my least favorite...

They call this a "discussion forum"... but honestly, it feels more like a place where you aren't actually allowed to have an opinion or stand your ground...

If discussion is nothing more than airing personal opinions and stances, then where does objectivity fit in? What happened to just presenting facts regardless of how you feel about them? There are plenty of factors involved that have absolutely nothing to do with personal bias or opinion 😉

Jerry Martin19 said:Just one last little off-topic thought for today 😁:

It’s honestly tragic how this sub is filled with people who just want to suck up to a few big names 🙏 and call it a day. Real conversation and actual debate seem to bore them to death. That's why this thread is dying, and frankly, it's the same story with every other thread on this board. It's pretty pathetic...

A handful of people actually contribute something, while the rest—who unfortunately make up the majority—are just typing for the sake of typing... 🤮

If discussion is nothing more than airing personal opinions and stances, then where does objectivity fit in? What happened to just presenting facts regardless of how you feel about them? There are plenty of factors involved that have absolutely nothing to do with personal bias or opinion 😉

That is exactly my point.
But at least in this corner, it's just me, you, and the pacifist. 😉