There is no doubting the acting ability of Robert De Niro. Considered one of the best of his generation he set the screen alight with outstanding performance after outstanding performance. He starred in lauded films such as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Untouchables, Goodfellas, Heat, and Meet The Parents over a span of nearly thirty years. However, from 2000 onwards, something happened, something bad.
He started starring in bad films, a lot of them. Films that were either too bad for him to save or ones where his performances were not up to scratch. Instead of hit after hit it became miss after miss, with the odd revival thrown in. Some notable flops over the past fifteen years include Godsend, Hide and Seek, Stone, Killer Elite, and The Family. If some of them sound unfamiliar, then it’s probably a good thing. 2012 was a bright spot with Silver Linings Playbook but otherwise it’s been a pretty bleak millennium for the maestro. David O. Russell looks set to momentarily resurrect him again with Joy but after that he could go lower than he’s ever gone before.
In 2016 he will star in a sex driven comedy alongside Zac Effron. It’s called Dirty Grandpa. Yep, you heard right. Here’s the trailer.
While it’s never good to be presumptuous, there’s only one place this movie can go. Down some dirty plughole into the sewer where it belongs. There is nothing original here, nor is there anything particularly funny. In fact, it wasn’t even very sexy. This film is so far below Robert De Niro that it makes you wonder just what is going on with him. Has he gotten to a stage in his career where he doesn’t care anymore? Cashing cheques as some might say. Someone asks him to be in a movie and instead of mulling over the script, he just says yes. Another possibility is that acting is often a young man’s game so now the best roles are one’s that he’s simply not considered for. Or maybe a few bad performances led to the best scripts being sent elsewhere. All of these can and have happened before. Actors get older but apparently still need to make a living so they take the films they’re offered, regardless of the quality. This is understandable and you can’t really blame someone for accepting money for a performance they could probably give while sleepwalking. But this is Robert De Niro we’re talking about. While he’s sure to be remembered forever for his early career, if he keeps this up he’ll be tarnishing a legacy he built when he obviously still had passion for filmmaking.
He could arrest the slide if he wanted to. Denzel Washington has at times appeared to be headed in the same direction but he’s actively kept himself up by choosing his roles carefully in recent times. Is De Niro willing to do the same?
