Chris R
07-25-2008, 12:26 PM
It's about time Mr. De Niro gets serious. Those two comedies with Ben Stiller among others recent films were bloody awful.
From The Independent.co.uk
Robert De Niro: 'You talkin' to me? Oh, OK, then...'
It's been painful to watch Robert De Niro's decline from Travis Bickle to starring with a cartoon moose. Time to get serious again, the actor tells Kaleem Aftab – starting with his latest film
Friday, 25 July 2008
Robert De Niro seems to be taking stock of his career, both on screen and off. The 64-year-old is one of the most feted actors in the history of cinema, but even he seems to have realised that filmgoers are weary of watching the mesmerising star of Raging Bull and Taxi Driver going through the motions in lacklustre comedies.
Now, with his reputation in some danger of being lost, he's decided return to more serious work. A wish to set the record straight might also explain why his turn in Barry Levinson's What Just Happened? seems almost autobiographical.
Trying to maintain a career at the top of an industry as transient as the movies is the theme of What Just Happened?. De Niro plays Ben, a movie producer who, in spite of his reputation as a big hitter, knows that his career is on the slide. (Sound familiar?) His latest production, starring Sean Penn, is destined to flop and his next payday is in doubt because Bruce Willis won't shave his beard. Ben's desperately concerned about how he's going to pay his alimony cheques and maintain his Hollywood lifestyle.
One of the main gripes in this Hollywood satire concerns the power actors have in the film industry. Perhaps surprisingly, it's a concern De Niro shares. "Stars have a lot of power because the ultimate question in Hollywood is, 'Who's in it?'" he says. "The second question is who is directing it, or what team is putting it together – the director/producer combination. If they're very, very famous, their decision about whether they do a film or not will decide if the film will go ahead."
De Niro is certainly one of those actors with the clout to get the green light for a picture, but the New Yorker feels that this power can easily be abused. It's this concern that has led him to announce that he doesn't believe actors should follow through on the strike currently mooted by the Screen Actors Guild.
He says: "I don't know if it's time to be doing this, and also all the other trade unions will be affected by the strike. With the economy as it is at this time, it doesn't seem like a great idea. Issues always come and need to be resolved every few years and if we can't make an agreement today, then we should continue to negotiate and when the matter is settled impose the deal retroactively."
He wishes that actors could be more like directors, a fraternity he joined in 1993 when he made A Bronx Tale. "The Directors Guild of America made an agreement by doing their homework and discussing the issues. Directors, because of their occupation, have to be problem-solvers and so it is no surprise to me that they could agree [without going on strike]."
Given that What Just Happened? takes such a dim view of actors, it's worth pointing out that, if it wasn't for De Niro, the film would probably not have been made. It's based on the memoirs of the producer Art Linson, and De Niro read the book because he's cited in it. He enjoys recounting the episode: "I am taking part in a reading of a script and I bring some friends of mine along. I can't remember exactly what project it is, as it's been a while since I read the book. I got input from some people I brought along as I had a feeling it wasn't right, and so I didn't do the movie. He writes about that, but in a funny way. But I'm the one that said to Art Linson, 'You should write a screenplay about your life.' The characters in the film are based on his experiences."
...
The return to more serious acting is a signal of intent from De Niro that he's not going to let his reputation go without a fight.
'Righteous Kill' opens on 19 September; 'What Just Happened?' opens on 10 October.
Full article at:
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/film-and-tv/features/robert-de-niro-you-talkin-to-me-oh-ok-then-876213.html
From The Independent.co.uk
Robert De Niro: 'You talkin' to me? Oh, OK, then...'
It's been painful to watch Robert De Niro's decline from Travis Bickle to starring with a cartoon moose. Time to get serious again, the actor tells Kaleem Aftab – starting with his latest film
Friday, 25 July 2008
Robert De Niro seems to be taking stock of his career, both on screen and off. The 64-year-old is one of the most feted actors in the history of cinema, but even he seems to have realised that filmgoers are weary of watching the mesmerising star of Raging Bull and Taxi Driver going through the motions in lacklustre comedies.
Now, with his reputation in some danger of being lost, he's decided return to more serious work. A wish to set the record straight might also explain why his turn in Barry Levinson's What Just Happened? seems almost autobiographical.
Trying to maintain a career at the top of an industry as transient as the movies is the theme of What Just Happened?. De Niro plays Ben, a movie producer who, in spite of his reputation as a big hitter, knows that his career is on the slide. (Sound familiar?) His latest production, starring Sean Penn, is destined to flop and his next payday is in doubt because Bruce Willis won't shave his beard. Ben's desperately concerned about how he's going to pay his alimony cheques and maintain his Hollywood lifestyle.
One of the main gripes in this Hollywood satire concerns the power actors have in the film industry. Perhaps surprisingly, it's a concern De Niro shares. "Stars have a lot of power because the ultimate question in Hollywood is, 'Who's in it?'" he says. "The second question is who is directing it, or what team is putting it together – the director/producer combination. If they're very, very famous, their decision about whether they do a film or not will decide if the film will go ahead."
De Niro is certainly one of those actors with the clout to get the green light for a picture, but the New Yorker feels that this power can easily be abused. It's this concern that has led him to announce that he doesn't believe actors should follow through on the strike currently mooted by the Screen Actors Guild.
He says: "I don't know if it's time to be doing this, and also all the other trade unions will be affected by the strike. With the economy as it is at this time, it doesn't seem like a great idea. Issues always come and need to be resolved every few years and if we can't make an agreement today, then we should continue to negotiate and when the matter is settled impose the deal retroactively."
He wishes that actors could be more like directors, a fraternity he joined in 1993 when he made A Bronx Tale. "The Directors Guild of America made an agreement by doing their homework and discussing the issues. Directors, because of their occupation, have to be problem-solvers and so it is no surprise to me that they could agree [without going on strike]."
Given that What Just Happened? takes such a dim view of actors, it's worth pointing out that, if it wasn't for De Niro, the film would probably not have been made. It's based on the memoirs of the producer Art Linson, and De Niro read the book because he's cited in it. He enjoys recounting the episode: "I am taking part in a reading of a script and I bring some friends of mine along. I can't remember exactly what project it is, as it's been a while since I read the book. I got input from some people I brought along as I had a feeling it wasn't right, and so I didn't do the movie. He writes about that, but in a funny way. But I'm the one that said to Art Linson, 'You should write a screenplay about your life.' The characters in the film are based on his experiences."
...
The return to more serious acting is a signal of intent from De Niro that he's not going to let his reputation go without a fight.
'Righteous Kill' opens on 19 September; 'What Just Happened?' opens on 10 October.
Full article at:
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/film-and-tv/features/robert-de-niro-you-talkin-to-me-oh-ok-then-876213.html