The Al Pacino School of Acting

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Lesson One: Yelling + bugging out eyes = acting.

― n/a (Nick A.), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:15 (twenty years ago)

Today's his birthday. Lighten up, buster.

― diedre mousedropping (Dave225), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:18 (twenty years ago)

His performance in Waiting for Richard says you're lying, n/a.

― David R. (popshots75`), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:18 (twenty years ago)

Lesson two: Don't just say the swear word, BE the swear word.

― n/a (Nick A.), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:19 (twenty years ago)

Lesson three: WHOOO-AH!

― n/a (Nick A.), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:20 (twenty years ago)

Let Us Now Praise Excellent Actors That Have Hammed It Up For A Paycheck.

― David R. (popshots75`), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:21 (twenty years ago)

His performance in every other film of the last ten years (except Donnie Brasco) says Waiting For Richard was a fluke.

Amst/Slocki to thread to declare his later movies to be a rare and exquisite delight, like eating caviare through a gold straw.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:21 (twenty years ago)

Is he an excellent actor? I was watching Heat last night and, great movie and all, but Pacino sucks pretty bad in it. Unless he was intentionally going for the laughs.

― n/a (Nick A.), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:22 (twenty years ago)

the n/a school of posting.

― hstencil (hstencil), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:23 (twenty years ago)

Heat is marred by the HOO-AH, but Scent of A Woman is some kind of masterpiece. Or some kind of puzzle movie. I mean... what the hell is that performance? What in God's name got into him? What kind of movie is this?

― happy fun ball (kenan), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:28 (twenty years ago)

Heat is marred by the HOO-AH, but Scent of A Woman is some kind of masterpiece
Kenan, are you are saying there are both good and bad uses of the HOO-HAH!?

He was pretty bad in the Insomnia remake too: "I think I'll have myself a bee-ah." I'm not sure what this is lesson-wise, maybe

Lesson four: Bizarrely drawn-out drawling is acting too, if you're old and famous enough.

― Ken L (Ken L), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:35 (twenty years ago)

Al Pacino and Robert deNiro are both in my book as actors who totally jumped the shark in their later years for paychecks. That doesn't make them any less awesome; I mean Al Pacino's performance in The Insider is...something else. I think both of them have kind of decided to try to play the exact same character, in slightly different permeations, for the past 20 years or so, with a handful of exceptions of varying successes.

I spent a night on AIM once questioning my entire friends list on who was the most Italian person in Hollywood, Pacino was eliminated fairly early on in favor of deNiro v Pesci, with a write in vote for the dude who plays Joey on Friends.

― Allyzay do not obtain to make download of yours MP3 (allyzay), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:36 (twenty years ago)

And Scent of a Woman is possibly one of the most inexplicable movies I've ever seen, up there with Anchorman and Dune with the "Shouldn't this be better than it is? What are these people doing? Does this make sense? Are they even acting or are they all drunk?" questions.

― Allyzay do not obtain to make download of yours MP3 (allyzay), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:38 (twenty years ago)

Panic in Needle Park, yo.

― The Sensational Sulk (sexyDancer), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:43 (twenty years ago)

haha is n/a Tom Carson?

― Matos-Webster Dictionary (M Matos), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:44 (twenty years ago)

I don't get it.

― n/a (Nick A.), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:46 (twenty years ago)

don't mind them, n/a, you are correct.

― Allyzay do not obtain to make download of yours MP3 (allyzay), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:47 (twenty years ago)

Al Pacino made 3 or 4 good movies and has pretty much coasted the rest of the time.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:47 (twenty years ago)

Well, if you had to OPO American movie role, the classic of classics, Michael Corleone is the one.

― happy fun ball (kenan), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:49 (twenty years ago)

(x-post)Which is less than Jack Nicholson or Robert DeNiro, but more than John Travolta.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:50 (twenty years ago)

The Godfather is incredibly overrated.

― Allyzay do not obtain to make download of yours MP3 (allyzay), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:51 (twenty years ago)

THERE I SAID IT. AGAIN.

― Allyzay do not obtain to make download of yours MP3 (allyzay), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:51 (twenty years ago)

It is, but it's still good. So is Panic in Needle Park and Dog Day Afternoon (even though it is probably the beginning of overacting Al.)

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:52 (twenty years ago)

As far as latter day Pacino, I'll stick by Richard & Glengarry Glen Ross (if only because Mamet's dialogue totally fits his "I'm SCREAMING because I CAN because I'm AL FUCKING PACINO!" MO) (ha - maybe his GGR work lead him to DO this THING he DOES so MUCH) (ha ha: Pacino's response to critics bitching about his post-Scent work = "FUCK YOU! PAY ME!"). & maybe Merchant of Venice (tho I haven't seen it, I'd like to think honoring Will Shakes might reign Tony M. in a bit).

I can't think of anything DeNiro's done away from Scorscese (sic?) of late worth mentioning (for its quality, that is). Godsend? Mary Shelley's Frankenstein? That Dakota Fanning imaginary friend flick?

― David R. (popshots75`), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:53 (twenty years ago)

I hate David Mamet so much.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:53 (twenty years ago)

the fametracker audit of Pacino makes a good case that he hasn't just been taking jobs for money. Dude really doesn't take that many movies (esp. compared to DeNiro). Working in the same amount of time, he's been in ~1/2 or 1/3 as many films.

― milozauckerman (miloaukerman), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:53 (twenty years ago)

Dick Tracy is the only film of his I've seen. Seriously.

― jel -- (jel), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:54 (twenty years ago)

DeNiro has definitely fallen apart completely. Still he did more good stuff than Pacino.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:54 (twenty years ago)

also, the thing about Al Pacino's schtick is that it never gets old. It's always enjoyable to watch on-screen. Where DeNiro's tough-nervous-crazy-guy schtick was worn out in 1976.

― milozauckerman (miloaukerman), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:54 (twenty years ago)

Oh bullshit. Most of DeNiro's best performances are post-76.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:55 (twenty years ago)

When's the last time DeNiro did that schtick, tho?

― David R. (popshots75`), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:56 (twenty years ago)

HOOO AH!

― n/a (Nick A.), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:56 (twenty years ago)

In my book, DeNiro earned the right to lean on that schtick (if he did), just for, "I fuck you where you breathe".

― David R. (popshots75`), Monday, 25 April 2005 18:57 (twenty years ago)

Heat isn't a great example because that's one of those movies that would be good WITHOUT pacino, and also you're full of shit for implying that he is "going for laffs" in the scene in the diner with deniro, and the scenes with his wife.

Scarface is the best example, to me, of a movie that would totally blow ass except Pacino was in it. Best because everybody's seen it a dozen times and because it's funny to try and think of ANY OTHER ACTOR in the world doing the "bad guy" speesh onna way otta da ressa'ront.

Dog Day Afternoon is another great one, would've been nigh unwatchable without him carrying it though. Who else can get away with that?

I don't really think DeNiro and Pacino are that similar, to be honest. They're definitely not interchangeable in the least. I mean look at Cape Fear, that is what happens when you put the wrong one in a movie. You could definitely make a Pacino-Stallone Flowers For Algernon though.

I need to watch all of these again, sometime soon! Except Cape Fear, god.

― TOMBOT, Monday, 25 April 2005 18:57 (twenty years ago)

I didn't say Pacino was going for laughs in Heat. I offered up the idea that he was going for laughs as a tongue-in-cheek excuse for his acting in that movie. Like when he's questioning his informant and he starts singing "By the Time I Get to Phoenix." What a nut.

― n/a (Nick A.), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:00 (twenty years ago)

last DeNiro movies I remember seeing the schtick - the Fan and Great Expectations. So we're talking late-90s at a minimum.

I will give DeNiro major credit for Jackie Brown, though.

― milozauckerman (miloaukerman), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:02 (twenty years ago)

I'm not arguing that Deniro doesn't have schtick, nor that Deniro hasn't been in crappy movies in the past twenty years, but claiming he's been a one note actor since '76 or that he hasn't done anything worthwhile since then is just fucking madness.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:04 (twenty years ago)

Roeper asked a great question about DeNiro: "Is he trying to take Charles Grodin's career away?"

― happy fun ball (kenan), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:06 (twenty years ago)

That question doesn't make any sense.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:08 (twenty years ago)

Unless DeNiro is angly for a quickly cancelled talk show or the wimpy dad part in Beethoven 6.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:09 (twenty years ago)

but that schtick is his calling card, fallen back on many times over the years (plus variations/caricatures like the wiseguy in Analyze This), and it never gets any fresher. Whereas Pacino's schtick constantly rejuvenates itself, because you get the impression he's enjoying his job more and not taking it too seriously. (I don't know much about their styles, maybe this is a Method issue?)

So DeNiro hitting a peak in a different mode is still great (Jackie Brown), but Pacino is just steadily damn-good and often (as Tombot says) the difference between a good movie and an unwatchable one.

― milozauckerman (miloaukerman), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:09 (twenty years ago)

xxpost:
Is it some kind of reference to Midnight Run, that maybe backstage they did some voodoo-style/Freaky Friday/Young Frankenstein switcheroo?

― Ken L (Ken L), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:10 (twenty years ago)

i had a running joke with a friend for years about-- well, back up, do you remember those little toys that looked like remote controls with lots of buttons and if you hit one of them it would make a funny sound like something exploding or a siren going off? so we thought there should be an "al pacino simulator" along the same lines with the salient bits from his movies:

"I CHOOSE TO FIGHT! BACK!"

"HOO-AA!"

etc.

that said, i actually like him , and i think the moment in "heat" where he says "because she's got a--GREAT ASS" and makes that silly ass-shaping hand gesture is great acting.

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:10 (twenty years ago)

Pacino is the reason why so many Al Pacino movies are unwatchable. DeNiro just happens to be making a bunch of unwatchable movies (Godsend wouldn't have been any better with Morgan Freeman in it.)

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:10 (twenty years ago)

pacino's directors are more to blame, i think.

― hstencil (hstencil), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:11 (twenty years ago)

"Whereas Pacino's schtick constantly rejuvenates itself, because you get the impression he's enjoying his job more and not taking it too seriously."

This makes me laugh. AL PACINO is always playing AL PACINO! He never reinvents himself.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:12 (twenty years ago)

Stence OTM.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:12 (twenty years ago)

the Pacino factor has only driven me away from one movie: The Merchant of Venice.

I like Any Given Sunday quite a bit, but imagine it would have been the worst movie ever with anyone else as the Coach.

― milozauckerman (miloaukerman), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:12 (twenty years ago)

ANY GIVEN SUNDAY IS THE WORST MOVIE EVER!

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:13 (twenty years ago)

Spellings of Al Pacino's Catchphrase From Scent Of A Woman -POX.

― Ken L (Ken L), Monday, 25 April 2005 19:14 (twenty years ago)

Skipping 132 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

Perhaps we should also consider the GENE WILDER school.

― Ken L (Ken L), Tuesday, 26 April 2005 21:55 (twenty years ago)

"oh yeah, there's a good movie with tom cruise, jerry maguire! "

I just caught a bunch of this on TV the other day and, um, no. Movies about sports, with cute little kids and Cuba Gooding Jr. (to say nothing of the presence of Tom Cruise) are doomed from the start.

― Shakey Mo Collier, Tuesday, 26 April 2005 21:59 (twenty years ago)

it's NOT a bad thing, it's only bad when it's not called for. like when erroll flynn was cast in "meaty" roles, you're like, "duh, he's ERROLL FLYNN.

if this isn't a gag about flynn's legendary schlong...i want it to be.

― Masked Gazzzza, Tuesday, 26 April 2005 22:20 (twenty years ago)

it can be, if you want it

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 26 April 2005 22:25 (twenty years ago)

he originally wanted to call his autobiography "in like me!"

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 26 April 2005 23:24 (twenty years ago)

better if it had an ellipse: "in like... me"

http://www.icr.ac.uk/everyman/tacheback/images/photo_flynn.jpg

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 26 April 2005 23:26 (twenty years ago)

"in like... moi!"

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 26 April 2005 23:29 (twenty years ago)

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0743246934.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 26 April 2005 23:35 (twenty years ago)

http://lpc1.clpccd.cc.ca.us/lpc/express/Entertainment/Tis.jpg

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 26 April 2005 23:37 (twenty years ago)

I read the Flynn autobiography, My Wicked, Wicked Ways...it was very entertaining!

― n/a (Nick A.), Wednesday, 27 April 2005 17:36 (twenty years ago)

four months pass...

Back to school : Whoo-Haaa!

― k/l (Ken L), Wednesday, 7 September 2005 00:09 (twenty years ago)

AWW!! WHAT A BIG MAN YOU AHH!

― pr00de, where's my car? (pr00de), Wednesday, 7 September 2005 00:42 (twenty years ago)

three years pass...

http://unrealitymag.com/index.php/2008/11/03/a-video-compilation-portraying-the-evolution-of-al-pacinos-yelling-and-speaking-voice/

― Dr Morbius, Tuesday, 3 February 2009 17:12 (seventeen years ago)

that godfather test reel is great!

― ice cr?m, Tuesday, 3 February 2009 17:24 (seventeen years ago)

He really is much better than the other actors reading for the part -- you can immediately sense his subdued resentment at the whole family enterprise whereas I'm not sure exactly what the others are going for.

― autosocratic asphyxiation (Hurting 2), Tuesday, 3 February 2009 17:30 (seventeen years ago)

s1ocki is the only person who ever makes sense in these threads

― welcome to the own zone population you (cankles), Tuesday, 3 February 2009 17:30 (seventeen years ago)

had never caught The Panic in Needle Park (Al's 1st starring role) til last night, maybe the best American heroin movie til Drugstore Cowboy. A must if you're a fan of old grungy NYC locations too.

― Dr Morbius, Wednesday, 4 February 2009 15:20 (seventeen years ago)

Here he'll get to howl instead of shout, we can hope:

Al Pacino will play the title role in "King Lear," an adaptation of the Shakespeare play that will be directed by Michael Radford.

Radford, who wrote the script, is making his second Shakespearean foray with Pacino after their 2004 collaboration "Merchant of Venice," which cast Pacino as Shylock.

Pic will be produced by Barry Navidi, who teamed with Pacino on "Merchant" as well as the upcoming "Salomaybe?," which Pacino directed and stars in. That film, based on the Oscar Wilde play, is in post-production.

Salomaybe??

― Dr Morbius, Wednesday, 4 February 2009 18:33 (seventeen years ago)

one year passes...

i'm really sad i found this challopsy thread

― Phoenix in Flight (Cattle Grind), Monday, 19 April 2010 01:38 (fifteen years ago)

don't be sad, early ILM is essentially an infinite loop of challops. try to read it in that light and your tears will turn into yawns.

― _▂▅▇█▓▒░◕‿‿◕░▒▓█▇▅▂_ (Steve Shasta), Monday, 19 April 2010 01:45 (fifteen years ago)

He was on 60 Minutes last night. What a strange guy

― Bill Magill, Monday, 19 April 2010 18:10 (fifteen years ago)

in the kevorkian HBO dealie he sounds like michael corleone 1.0

― Astronaut Mike Dexter (Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved), Monday, 19 April 2010 22:50 (fifteen years ago)

Just watched Heat for the first time in a while and seriously, WTF AL? The movie would have been so much better with just about any other movie star in his role. And mid-90s Al as a badass supercop was a really bad decision aside from all the insane acting decisions he made.

― Matt Armstrong, Monday, 19 April 2010 23:15 (fifteen years ago)

^^^^^^ RONG on a million levels -- god it's like there's a challop contest and everybody's rushing to get their entries today. The scene with DeNiro in the diner has muted tension that you can cut with a knife, not to mention the subtle facial expression Pacino shows when the mother of a slain adolescent cries on his shoulder...a combination of sadness, disgust, and desensitization.

But he yelled in about 5 minutes of the movie, so obviously he sucked, amirite?

― Phoenix in Flight (Cattle Grind), Monday, 19 April 2010 23:27 (fifteen years ago)

you could get killed walkinyodoggie

― Astronaut Mike Dexter (Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 03:44 (fifteen years ago)

But he yelled in about 5 minutes of the movie, so obviously he sucked, amirite?

― Phoenix in Flight (Cattle Grind), Monday, April 19, 2010 11:27 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark

He certainly sucked in those 5 minutes.

― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, 20 April 2010 04:11 (fifteen years ago)

the part where he tells his wife that he's gotta stay sharp and snaps his fingers is pretty bad too.

― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, 20 April 2010 04:11 (fifteen years ago)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYZr8wSkvXo&feature=related

― █▓▒░ 97 people sleep immediately after seeing this video ░▒▓█ (dyao), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 12:34 (fifteen years ago)

pacino, walken are gods walking among us and i'm glad people point cameras at them and show the results to millions of people for very reasonable prices.

de niro, though- he's just boring, isn't he? boring guy.

― just darraghmac tbh (darraghmac), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 12:39 (fifteen years ago)

deniro may be boring IRL, but he's a much more accomplished actor than pacino and walker.

― Daniel, Esq., Tuesday, 20 April 2010 13:01 (fifteen years ago)

IRL? don't remember making that distinction.

― just darraghmac tbh (darraghmac), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 13:27 (fifteen years ago)

oh, my mistake. you think deniro's boring as an actor? o_0.

maybe nowadays (his late-period career choices are bizzare). not in his prime, tho.

― Daniel, Esq., Tuesday, 20 April 2010 13:45 (fifteen years ago)

Just find it incredibly hard to get interested in or empathise with any of his performances. yeah, 'less is more' and all that, but unless the role suits perfectly I tend to find him a bit of a non-event.

― just darraghmac tbh (darraghmac), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 13:55 (fifteen years ago)

Have you seen King of Comedy? His best performance imo, although maybe I only feel that way because the film has a very different surface tone to a lot of his more high profile 70s work.

― I'm being a smartass here, but in a fun way (NotEnough), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 15:09 (fifteen years ago)

hah, I feel one of the flaws of the King of Comedy is precisely the way in which Deniro is unable to sand off his sharp edges, too often I found myself thinking "this is Deniro playing Deniro playing rubert pupkin"

― █▓▒░ 97 people sleep immediately after seeing this video ░▒▓█ (dyao), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 15:12 (fifteen years ago)

His best 'fun' performance that I've seen is maybe Jackie Brown

Haven't seen King of Comedy.

― just darraghmac tbh (darraghmac), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 15:15 (fifteen years ago)

!!! get thee to a DVD rentery forthwith

― Dr. Morbius' Moist Deployment (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 16:51 (fifteen years ago)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eU6TBPQRM0c&feature=related

― Dr. Morbius' Moist Deployment (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 16:54 (fifteen years ago)

de niro, though- he's just boring, isn't he? boring guy.
― just darraghmac tbh (darraghmac), Tuesday, April 20, 2010 5:39 AM (4 hours ago)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rm81LSKJC2k

― _▂▅▇█▓▒░◕‿‿◕░▒▓█▇▅▂_ (Steve Shasta), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 16:55 (fifteen years ago)

just watched jackie brown for the first time in years, i love deniro as a fuck-up almost as much as i love him as a consummately professional spy.

― emotional radiohead whatever (Jordan), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 17:12 (fifteen years ago)

yeah jackie brown is some real against-type casting. his child-rapist moustache is a nice touch.

deniro is really good in a quiet role in true confessions w/ robert duvall.

― by another name (amateurist), Tuesday, 20 April 2010 18:33 (fifteen years ago)

one year passes...

omg SIMONE. this movie is amazing.

― metally ill (Shakey Mo Collier), Monday, 6 June 2011 16:00 (fourteen years ago)

You mean "S1m0ne."

― jaymc, Monday, 6 June 2011 16:06 (fourteen years ago)

As sublime as he is in two of the three Godfathers, I now believe this one scene must be factored into any comprehensive evaluation of Pacino:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jR7y7g8h1y4&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

― clemenza, Monday, 6 June 2011 16:10 (fourteen years ago)

Obv, tight budget couldn't cover a dancin coach for Al.

― Aimless, Monday, 6 June 2011 19:16 (fourteen years ago)

three years pass...

Devil's Advocate is on HBO Go.

I'm a FAN of MAN.

― Kiarostami bag (milo z), Friday, 10 April 2015 02:45 (ten years ago)

four months pass...

Never seen these commercials before:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnYfrV_X6ZM

― ... (Eazy), Sunday, 23 August 2015 16:35 (ten years ago)

"thizazgookoffy"

― skateboards are the new combover (Dr Morbius), Sunday, 23 August 2015 18:01 (ten years ago)

five years pass...

can't stop thinking about japanese dub al pacino pic.twitter.com/0lGX9YhXuA
— ▀▀▀▀▀▀ (@immolations) October 20, 2020

― xyzzzz__, Tuesday, 20 October 2020 08:54 (five years ago)

four years pass...

He reads his autobiography thing on Spotify
“Great ass!”

― calstars, Sunday, 24 November 2024 20:12 (one year ago)

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