DeNiro vs Pacino - who you got?

[DaveBrown74]

Two iconic actors. Both Italian Americans. Both active during the same time period. Both have had numerous great films. Both have played good guys and bad guys. They have acted in the same movie together more than once.

Which of the two would you say has had the better overall career? Consider both acting talent and also total body of work.

[Bob In PA]

Pacino.

[Ed Vette]

They played together in a movie where Pacino played a cop going after DeNiro and there is one iconic scene I love. "You know, we're sitting here.. you and I, like a couple of regular fellas..."

https://youtu.be/LUy2Wx_r0_w

[LennG]

I always felt Pacino got the more desirable roles, as DiNiro was typecast as a baddie, a gangster, but for myself, I always enjoyed DiNiro much more. DiNiro showed he was fully capable of doing comedy as well as drama and he was hilarious in the Meet the Parents series.

Too bad both had to take ridiculous roles in the last decade or so, just to keep working.

[DaveBrown74]

I like them both a great deal, but if I had to pick one I would probably go wiith DeNiro. Pacino to me had an element of being the same in a lot of his movies. Lots of screaming, wailing, and over-acting at times. DeNiro to me was more commanding on the screen. I also think DeNiro (generally) had more range. His diabolical character in Cape Fear, his performance in Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Meet The Parents... all very different types of characters. Pacino's seemed to have more similarities from movie to movie.

I also generally liked the movies DeNiro was in more. Loved Goodfellas, Casino, Raging Bull, Cape Fear, Deer Hunter, Godfather 2, Untouchables, Heat, Bronx Tale, the Score, etc. Just so many. I feel like there are more of his movies that I loved than Pacino's.

[philo43]

DeNiro

One of my favorite movies of his that has not been mentioned is Midnight Run - with Charles Grodin

[MightyGiants]

I have a question, who is this generation's DeNiro and Pacino?  They don't have to be Italian, but they need to have the same great dramatic acting chops

[DaveBrown74]

I have a question, who is this generation's DeNiro and Pacino?  They don't have to be Italian, but they need to have the same great dramatic acting chops

That's a great question. My short answer is I don't think there is anyone quite of that caliber in the age 25ish to 50ish range right now. DeNiro and Pacino are true all-time greats, but more importantly I feel like you knew that about them 30 years ago. Whereas I don't really feel that way about any current actors.

If I'm thinking of the best actors in that younger age range, names that come to mind would include Edward Norton, Jake Gyllenhall, Christian Bale, Joaquin Phoenix, and possibly DiCaprio.

Names that I thought were amazing but are/were slightly older than the above group are Daniel Day-Lewis and Phillip Seymour-Hoffman. Of course, the latter is no longer with us, and the former has retired from acting. But those two are probably closer to the Deniro/Pacino caliber than anyone else we have seen since. I think Sean Penn and Denzel Washington probably also deserve some consideration as well. Both have had stellar careers with some exceptional performances and have shown real range.

[LennG]

I have a question, who is this generation's DeNiro and Pacino?  They don't have to be Italian, but they need to have the same great dramatic acting chops

Just off the top of my head

Tom Hanks is probably the best actor around today who works regularly, I would put him in that class.
After that
Leonardo DiCaprio
Denzel Washington
Joaquin Phoenix
Gary Oldman

You mentioned DiNiro and Pacino. Myself, I would put Dustin Hoffman right up there with them, maybe even above. He is, without a doubt, in the superstar realm of acting whose best works are behind him.
And then there was Jack Nicholson, who IMVHO would be above them all.

I need to add, that if Daniel Day-Lewis was still acting, I would put him right there in a class with Tom Hanks. He was tremendous in every ing he ever did.

[LennG]

I have a question, who is this generation's DeNiro and Pacino?  They don't have to be Italian, but they need to have the same great dramatic acting chops

Since we sure don't want to leave the actresses behind, I think EVERYONE would agree that Meryl Streep is so head and heals above everyone else
After that Francis McDormond (3 Best Actresses awards)
Cate Blanchett
Charlize Theron  off the top of my head