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Reputation: 1047

Is Robert Deniro a great actor or just good at playing the same person over and over (and over)?

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7 Answers

  • Expurt_small
    Reputation: 782

    Great actor, duh. See Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Godfather II and tell me those are all the same character. His comedy characters are pretty similar, but when you've made the first four movies fucking classics, you can pretty much do whatever the fuck you want.

    Now Tom Hanks, that guy's made a career out of playing "Tom Hanks."

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  • Mcgriddle2_small
    Reputation: 199

    I'd like to ask the same about Bill Murray. I know it wouldn't be a total yes. But it sorta seems very close to a yes at times.

    I know, I know, bill murray is fucking super awesome rad and the best ever blah blah. heard it!

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  • Avatar_default
    Reputation: 21

    No, De Niro from 1970 to somewhere in the 90s (maybe Jackie Brown, maybe Ronin) was dynamite worth all the acclaim he got. Its only since then, that yes, he's famous for playing Robert De Niro. Same thing with pretty much all the class of the 70s - Nicholson, Pacino, Hoffman - even Keitel, who had the benefit of really breaking out late in the game ('92), is kind of too old to do the daring work that always made him the edgier one of the bunch.

    That, and Hollywood has grown so stale that you really can't blame them for doing boring work.

    In fact, gangster films are one of the few places Hollywood lets a movie have any balls, so you really can't blame him for taking those roles over and over. They probably are some of the best stuff he gets handed.

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  • Photo_499_jpg-magnum_small
    Reputation: 40

    I feel he breaches the slightly pyschotic nerd character in "Taxi Driver" that differs from thug bravado of his other films...maybe you're just confusing him playing the same character with him being SEXY all the time. Cuz he is.

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  • Chickdork_jpg-magnum_small
    Reputation: 166

    What about Rupert Pupkin from King of Comedy? About as far as you can get from Travis Bickle. Just sayin. Don't fuck with Deniro.

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  • Black_wolf__small
    Reputation: 412

    People ask the same question about Nicholson. Valid, but, nah.

    He's perfectly capable of a great range. We just don't see him in a lot of roles that call on him to explore that range.

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  • Owl_4_clip_small
    Reputation: 414

    You talking to me? You talking to ME? Well, there ain't nobody else around here but me... (Same character over and over...)

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