Face-Off: Al Pacino vs. Robert De Niro

By Paul Huffman

Posted 14 years ago

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

Last week saw the closest Face Off we’ve had so far with John McClane barely getting the upper hand on Martin Riggs with a score of 14-13.

This week we’ve chosen to go with what I believe will be another close race, two legendary actors, two legendary careers that have spanned many years but have intersected a mere three times. I’m talking about Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. Both of these men have made mistakes when it comes to choices of roles over the years, but when they hit it out of the park, boy do they.

Breakout Role

The studios were not convinced that Al had what it took to make The Godfather a success. Paramount was determined to have the role of Michael Corleone played by the likes of Robert Redford or Warren Beaty, Coppola wouldn’t budge. Then came time to shoot the scene in the diner in which Michael Corleone made the shift from black sheep of the family to gangster, and based on his performance in that scene everyone was hooked. Al portrayed a tragic hero that oozed with power and menace, and kept us liking him. The rest is history.

Mean Streets was Bobby D’s first collaboration with Martin Scorsese and his performance as the out of control best friend of Harvey Keitel’s character did its job in turning all the right heads. De Niro was out of control, you were unsure of what his next move was going to be, and what his limits were. Turns out there were none. Shades of the type of character’s his buddy Joe Pesci would later play in Scorsese’s films.

Best Gangster

Pacino has played every type of gangster under the sun: the reluctant gangster, the over the top drug lord, a reformed ex-con who just wants to fly right, and a half wit who befriended an undercover cop and brought the whole party down. His best roles are when he’s been on the wrong side of the law, he has a blast getting lost in these characters, and two of them have gone down as some of the best characters in the history of film. I wouldn’t say never, but we’ve rarely seen a bad guy like you again Al.

The edge goes to De Niro in this category for one role only, his turn as Jimmy in Goodfellas. Not only was it a great performance, but it had one thing that Pacino’s gangster roles don’t have, the sense of realism to what a gangster was. De Niro played the real deal here, nothing romantic about Jimmy Conway. On top of that, De Niro took a role that was immortalized by the great Marlon Brando and held his own. Who’s your daddy Michael Corleone?

Memorable Quotes

-“I know it was you Fredo, you broke my heart.”

-“SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIEND!!”

About the Author

Paul Huffman

143 Articles Published

Favorite Movies: Good Will Hunting, Stand By Me, Star Wars, The Godfather trilogy, read more Goodfellas, Casino, Tombstone, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, The Lost Boys, Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Point Break, Scarface, Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Rear Window, American Beauty, Rocky, The Departed, Chasing Amy, Jurassic Park, Forrest Gump, The Incredibles, Devil's Rejects, Hook (gotta love childhood nostalgia), The Lion King, The Matrix, Scream, Fight Club, Jaws, The Shining, Pan's Labyrinth, and way too many more to list

Likes: Movies, music of all sorts, reading autobiographies (and everything else), photography, read more science, writing, boozing, broads, history, baseball, cooking, nature, pondering human nature, technological advances, the internet (cuz it pays me!)