Catching Up

Some time ago I had written here how Robert De Niro and Al Pacino were doing really bad work. The blog was about the two of the greatest actors we have ever seen seem to have lost the plot. Now Patrick Goldstein, a columnist of the Los Angels Times, seems to have noticed the same things.

The blog and the article are separated by a month but the similarities in the two are mind boggling!

Here is what Patrick Goldstein writes about De Niro:

The e-mail makes a subtler point about De Niro's career choices, pointing out that he could've "gone the [Jack] Nicholson route -- very selective, very particular, protect the brand -- or go out sending himself up in tripe like 'Analyze This,' which made money but turned him into that 'old psycho guy.' "

Not every aging actor in Hollywood has to embarrass himself. While Pacino and De Niro grab the dough, working for hacks and nonentities, Nicholson, with rare exception, has picked his spots, doing movies with Martin Scorsese, Alexander Payne and Sean Penn. Clint Eastwood, who's even older than Nicholson, has remained an iconic figure by working with the best director of all -- himself. (It's been almost 20 years since he acted in a movie he didn't direct.)

Sample what I had to say about the same thing:

Someone like Jack Nicholson or Clint Eastwood seems like a better option. An overnight star after working for fifteen years, Jack Nicholson's resume might not boast of 'great' films but his oeuvre looks far more exciting than De Niro, Hoffman and Pacino's put together. Always considered a bigger star than actor, Nicholson's just done 11 films in the last 13 years but all the films are 'his' films.

Goldstein goes on to write:

I don't envy Pacino or De Niro. They're in a bind, having come of age at a time when actors could still get provocative dramas made without everyone having to work for peanuts. Today they're grumpy old men, relegated to raking in loot from cartoonish comedy and generic thrillers.

And I felt that...

The kind of work that a Robert De Niro or an Al Pacino do today is hardly a pale reflection of the kind of work these two did in the '70's? Taxi Driver, Godfather, Godfather -II, Mean Streets, The Deer Hunter, Dog Day Afternoon, Scarecrow, Panic in the Needle Park are some of the best films if you look at acting. Al Pacino's last decent film before he hit a rough patch in the 1980's would be ...And Justice For All whereas De Niro started the 1980's on a high note with Raging Bull but it was all downhill for him after that! De Niro had it better in the '80's where he worked mostly as a character actor and it wasn't until Casino (1995) and Analyze This (1999) that he briefly returned as a leading man. Every day can't be a Sunday and even when these two play smaller parts, they usually end up looking like fools (Pacino in Gigli) or cheating us (De Niro in Jackie Brown).

This catch up business is fun if you are being chased!

Old Fools

If age doesn't really have anything to do with genius then why is it that brilliance starts to look jaded as time goes by?

The kind of work that a Robert De Niro or an Al Pacino do today is hardly a pale reflection of the kind of work these two did in the '70's? Taxi Driver, Godfather, Godfather -II, Mean Streets, The Deer Hunter, Dog Day Afternoon, Scarecrow, Panic in the Needle Park are some of the best films if you look at acting. Al Pacino's last decent film before he hit a rough patch in the 1980's would be ...And Justice For All whereas De Niro started the 1980's on a high note with Raging Bull but it was all downhill for him after that! De Niro had it better in the '80's where he worked mostly as a character actor and it wasn't until Casino (1995) and Analyze This (1999) that he briefly returned as a leading man.

The only real fireworks that one saw were in one's mind when these two came together for Michael Mann's Heat. I love Heat and its one of the very few films that I regularly revisit every now and then but it was still a let down in many senses.

So what went wrong?

Maybe it's all the hype attached to their names that did them in. If you start off at the top then the only way is to come down! Look at Amjad Khan and his life post Sholay. Every day can't be a Sunday and even when these two play smaller parts, they usually end up looking like fools (Pacino in Gigli) or cheating us (De Niro in Jackie Brown).

Both these actors have often been considered the greatest living actors and barring the very dead duo of Marlon Brando and Sir Laurence Olivier, I think they don't really have any competition. I hear Dustin Hoffman's name but I think these two are way above Hoffman. Dustin Hoffman plays Hoffman in every role and to me it's always like Hoffman looking at us less mortals and saying, "Hello I'm Dustin Hoffman and I'll be playing so and so character. Hope you enjoy watching!"

The funny thing is that even though I really like Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, I'd not want my life to play like either. Someone like Jack Nicholson or Clint Eastwood seems like a better option. An overnight star after working for fifteen years, Jack Nicholson's resume might not boast of 'great' films but his oeuvre looks far more exciting than De Niro, Hoffman and Pacino's put together. Always considered a bigger star than actor, Nicholson's just done 11 films in the last 13 years but all the films are 'his' films.

Clint Eastwood's life is even better. One of the biggest stars of his time, he started producing his films and was laughed at when he decided to become a director. Following the tradition of Don Siegel and Sergio Leone, Eastwood started off with safe propositions such as Play Misty For Me, Bronco Billy and Pale Rider before graduating to films like Bird, Unforgiven, Mystic River and Million Dollar Baby. When Steven Speilberg asked him if there was something he wanted more than directing Flags of Our Father, Eastwood cooly said that he wanted to make a Japanese version of the battle for Iwo Jima as well and ended up making two films. No one would have thought that Clint Eastwood would become one of the most revered directors in the world but look how it turned out for him. First Oscar nomination as an Actor at the age of 63 and first Oscar for direction at the age of 63. Second Oscar nomination as an actor at the age of 75 and second Oscar for Direction at the age of 75!

So while I await the next Eastwood film or Nicholson performance, I can hardly contain my excitement, for old times' sakes, at the prospect of watching De Niro and Pacino double team yet again in The Righteous Kill (click here for the trailer). Considering their last few outings, here's hoping that they don't hash it up!

Heath Ledger

Death has a way with things. Many cultures are of the opinion that everyone should witness a few deaths besides their own and learn something from the experience.

Heath Ledger might not have been the greatest actor of all time, he wasn't even my favorite but his death came as a shock to me. First and foremost I never knew that he was just 29, I thought he had seen it all and must be pushing 40 (but that's a different story). I think it was the manner in which I got to know of this actor's death that caused me to stop and think about things around me.

I was checking my e-mail on my PDA and an alert from New York Times revealed that Heath Ledger was found dead. I remember feeling a little queasy. It might sound a little strange but it was as if someone I knew had died. The mind played a few tricks and hit the refresh key on all the deaths that I witnessed over the years. I was 10 or 11 when a very close family friend died. I remember hearing the news and wondering how'd one feel when life leaves the body? That made me realize that things will come to an end some day. My maternal grandfather had a second lease of life after a kidney transplant and carried on for almost 6 years before dying. He did some of his best work during that period which he called ‘second life’. His death made me realize that very few people get a second lease so one must make the most of the ‘one’ life. My paternal grandmother succumbed to illness after a long battle. Her life made me believe that one ought to live a full life even in the face of adversities.

Mr. Ledger's death affected me in more ways than I could even imagine. For a week after that I was thinking about his films. I read up a lot about the last few days of he lived; he was a very brave actor. In addition to a career-defining role in The Brokeback Mountain, Mr. Ledger was all set to reprise The Joker in the new The Dark Knight, Batman film. The Joker is no easy role mind you, for one you have to deal with the ghost of Jack Nicholson who portrayed Joker with such élan that anyone filling in his shoes would be fighting an almost lost battle. According to reports not only is Mr. Ledger's Joker different, it's darker and some believe even better than the real thing. Brilliance often commands a heavy price and the role took its toll on the actor. Mr. Ledger stayed alone in hotel for a month and didn't speak to anyone in order to prepare for it. No wonder critics were considering him the Brando of a new generation. Once the filming got over depression took over adding to the sadness of loosing his daughter after he separated with his partner. He resorted to anxiety pills almost 7 different varieties were found in him.

Was it really required of Mr. Ledger to push himself to the limits for a mere film role? He considered his work to be of poor quality and wanted to push the envelope a little more. His Bob Dylan in I'm Not Here stands out even as there are 5 other actors who portray the same role in the film. In his death I, for some strange reason, have realized the importance of being happy and getting along. Everyone wants craves normalcy around them selves but no one wants to be normal for wasn't normal supposed to be boring.

Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.

To an Athlete Dying Young- A. E. Housman

Image Courtesy: www.thedarkknight.com