There are few actors working today who can match the career that Robert De Niro has had. Some, like Brad Pitt or George Clooney, have been in plenty of great movies, but even they don’t stack up to the kind of career that De Niro has had over the last half century. De Niro’s success can be chalked up, at least in part, to his collaboration with great directors. De Niro has been in some of Martin Scorsese’s best movies, and Scorsese isn’t the only director who knows how to use him.
Really, though, it’s De Niro himself who deserves a lot of the credit. Although he’s been in plenty of schlock, the best movies of his career are up there with the best movies ever made. When he emerged on the scene, De Niro showed off his ability to play a range of different types, and his skills have only deepened as the years have gone by.
Raging Bull (1980)
GoodFellas (1990)
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The Irishman (2019)
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Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
The Godfather: Part II (1974)
Taxi Driver (1976)
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Heat (1995)
The Deer Hunter (1978)
Once Upon a Time in America (1984)
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The King of Comedy (1982)
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