Greg & Scott Pick Al Pacino's 10 Best Performances
Scott and Greg here again, and today we're going to take turns reviewing our picks for the ten best performances of our favorite living actor. At the beginning of his Hollywood career, Pacino was a methodical emotionally intense actor. In later years he's amped up the hoo hah, and can get somewhat over the top. But it's his performances in these ten films, that almost make us forgive him for making out with Adam Sandler in drag in Jack and Jill.
On another note, for those of you who don't use Facebook and may be having difficulty with the rather annoying comment feature on this website, please feel free to email any comments to Scott at scottgingold@mail.com
10. SCARFACE - 1983 - GREG
LOUD. BRAZEN. CONTROLLING. TONY MONTANA. As Tony Montana, the previous Frank Serpico, Michael Corleone and Bobby Deerfield vanish as a character so iconic and recognizable, makes them all translucent for the 170 minutes that Tony Montana convinces us he’s real. Brian De Palma reboots Howard Hughes’ 1932 Paul Muni classic and takes it into the cocaine powdered 1980’s. Pacino plays Antonio Montana an immigrant from Cuba who comes to Miami with big dreams. His dreams take a blood red turn when he starts climbing the drug cartel ladder and makes himself one of the most powerful drug lords in Florida. While his character falls quickly out of control from one scene to another, Pacino seems to gain even more control over his portrayal as the Cuban King. From his authentic accent to his unabashed ego and sense of entitlement, Pacino lets us know that if Montana is going to die, he will do it how he sees fit.
9. THE GODFATHER PART III - 1990 - SCOTT
The Godfather Part III has gotten a lot of unfair flack over the years. People complain about the slow pace, Sofia Coppola's nonexistent acting skills and an overall feeling of disappointment in comparison to the two previous films. But they would be neglecting the stellar performance at the center of the movie by Mr. Pacino. We have watched Michael change over the course of the films. He went from a mild mannered war hero to a vengeful killer to a cold hearted mob boss. Now it is about twenty years later and we get a repentant Michael. He's still the same man who once ordered his own brother's death, but he's trying to put the past behind him. He gets involved with the church, he takes pride in his children and he even attempts to rekindle a relationship with his ex wife Kay. But Kay has this new Michael pegged. He can wrap himself up with the robe of the church all he wants, but that's not going to stop him from going to hell for everything he's done. And he may be through with the past, but the past ain't through with him. Pretty soon he is pulled back into the life by a jealous gangster and his hot-headed nephew. Pacino is wonderful here, showing an older, sadder, but not necessarily wiser Michael. He has a few emotional outbursts, but it's a rather low key performance. You can see how Michael would have evolved to this stage and Pacino doesn't let us forget the man Michael was, as much as he may want to.
8. YOU DON'T KNOW JACK - 2010 - GREG
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Barry Levinson revives Pacino’s dormant talent in a made for HBO movie about the deadly Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Misunderstood and with a golden heart, Dr. Kevorkian wanted to give people an option that they didn’t have before, to choose to die a dignified death on their own terms and without pain. Pacino decided to resurrect his acting talents and become a different person again, the way actors are supposed to and in a way he hadn’t for a long time. In You Don’t Know Jack, Pacino isn’t yelling about a great ass or yelling about carrying on the devil’s lineage or yelling at Adam Sandler dressed as a woman. In this very respectable adaptation of real events, Levinson and writer Adam Mazer let Pacino explore the personality of a man who wants to test organized relgion and the US government by asking them to have empathy and to think in someone else’s shoes for once. And remarkably, this is exactly what Pacino does in this role, he wears the shoes of Dr. Death. Pacino becomes a man who wants to challenge the definition of sin while slowly losing his faculties as he accepts old age and everything that sometimes comes with it.
7. INSOMNIA - 2002 - SCOTT
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In this remake by Christopher Nolan, Pacino plays Will Dormer, a homicide detective sent up to Alaska to investigate the death of a teenaged girl. Alaska at this time of year is daylight all the time, making it difficult for Will to get any sleep. During the investigation Will makes a tragic mistake which results in the death of his partner, Plagued by guilt and weary from lack of sleep, Will is pulled into a game of cat and mouse by the very man he's been chasing, played by Robin Williams. This is one of Pacino's quietest performances. He plays Will as smart, but burnt out, as he tries to stay one step ahead of the killer, but is too tired to keep up. Pacino and Williams play off each other marvelously, both toying with each other as the characters try to dominate the other with their intellect. It seems as though both actors have reigned each other in, with Pacino being more restrained than usual, and Williams abandoning his trademark zany improv. Pacino is worn, volatile, resilient and hard. He has seen it all before and just wants this case to be over, so he can get some sleep.
6. SCENT OF A WOMAN - 1992 - GREG
Some people point to Scent of a Woman and others point to Godfather Part III when addressing the change of Pacino’s acting from nuanced and calibrated to bold and brash. However I believe that Scent of a Woman is the exception to that rule based on how Bo Goldman’s screenplay clearly mapped out the hostile, jaded character of Lt. Col. Frank Slade. Charlie Simms played by Chris O’Donnell is a pending graduate of the private prestigious Baird school who takes a job babysitting a blind man to earn money to get home for Christmas. What he doesn’t plan on is the blind man taking him on a weekend adventure of all the things he enjoys in life before ending it all. Simms, already caught up in a moral dilemma at school that could put his college and career life in jeopardy, must now battle the suicidal tendencies of a blind veteran who nobody else likes. In my view, this was the last great performance of Al Pacino’s career and he absolutely deserved the Academy Award he graciously won for it. Pacino captured the bitterness that comes with fighting a life he never wanted and eating the resentment of the family and friends he spat on along the way. Throughout the movie, he takes us on the rollercoaster of angry and nostalgic emotions as he battles his depression by driving a Ferrari (BLIND), dancing the tango, yelling at his big brother and ordering a prostitute. Pacino drew us in, playing a fantastically mean villain and left us in the end loving the heart of the war hero we all hoped was inside the brutal exterior.
5. DONNIE BRASCO - 1997 - SCOTT
Pacino plays Lefty Ruggerio, a low level gangster who inadvertently brings an FBI agent Joe Pistone, played by Johnny Depp into the world of the mob. Lefty is a far cry from Michael Corleone. He's angry, bitter, worn-out, self depricating and emotional. He wishes he got further in life than he got and resents those who have left him behind. He has cancer and his own son is a drug addict, which makes him embrace Joe posing as Donnie as a son. The movie builds up such a sympathy towards Lefty, that when he does get violent, it's almost shocking until you realize that ruthlessness was always a part of him. Pacino is terrific as he suspects Donnie's betrayal but doesn't want to believe it. When he is forced to deal with the reality of the situation, Pacino is just heartbreaking as he prepares himself and calmly accepts his fate.
4. SERPICO - 1973 - SCOTT
Pacino plays Frank Serpico, a narcotics detective who plays to the beat of his own drums. He dresses unorthodoxly with a wool cap and scraggly beard. He just doesn't seem to fit in with his hippie persona amongst all the macho cops. He chooses to not accept bribes from criminals and look the other way, like most of the other officers do. This causes his co-workers to lose trust in Serpico, eventually putting him intentionally into a dangerous situation. Pacino puts on an unusual voice which has a rather nasal quality, further making him stand out from the crowd. It's a rather understated performance as he disappears into the look and feel of Serpico.
3. THE GODFATHER PART II - 1974 - GREG
2. DOG DAY AFTERNOON - 1975 - GREG
8690909191
Dog Day Afternoon will go down in history for being one of
the greatest bank robbery films of all time while also changing the world’s
view on homosexuality. Pacino’s Sonny
and John Cazale’s Sal rob a NYC bank on one of the hottest days of the summer of
1972. After the NYPD are called, Sonny
and Sal are trapped in the bank with hostages as they negotiate their escape. Coming off a very underplayed role as Michael
Corleone in 1974’s The Godfather Part II, Pacino taps into what I would
consider a much better version of what we know as present day Pacino, being
extraverted and manic. But his
performance as Sonny comes in waves as what first seems to be a desperate
family man at the end of his rope, quickly is revealed to be a closeted
homosexual who is trying to leave his wife and children to run away with his
other wife played by Chris Sarandon.
Pacino shows both sides to the character, one who still loves his family
and the other in deep love with Sarandon, while now revealing a third side who
is like a rat trying to survive an unwinnable situation. Very notable is John Cazale’s performance as
Sal, Sonny’s dull-witted partner in crime who wanted to escape to the country of
Wyoming… I would consider this to be one
of the greatest performances from any actor in cinematic history and I wish he
had won the Oscar for this role that he was nominated for in 1975.
1. THE GODFATHER - 1972 - SCOTT
Of all the characters in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather, Michael Corleone undergoes the most drastic transformation. At the beginning, Pacino plays Michael as calm, confident but still full of hope for his future with Kay, away from the family business. When his father Vito is shot, something clicks into gear with Michael. Propelled by his love for his father, he fully takes control the situation at the hospital. He thinks quickly and proactively, some of the same qualities that will come into play later on. After learning of McCluskey's betrayal, Michael makes a conscious choice to avenge his father and join the family business. The scene at the restaurant after he gets the gun but right before he shoots the two men, is the best eye acting I have ever seen. In a few moments, Pacino shows Michael's fear, panic, and seething anger, all with his eyes. After this we next catch up with Michael who is hiding out in Sicily speaking fluent Italian. His attempts to carve out a new life for himself with Apollonia show us a lighter side of Michael, romantic, confident and even a bit manipulative as he cozies up to her father. This all changes in an instant when her car explodes. In that moment I think, all traces of the old Michael are gone. When we next see him when he seeks out Kay a year later, he is a changed man, cold, calculating and not afraid to use violence to get what he wants. This is a remarkable performance from Pacino showing a complete character arc. This leads in perfectly to the Michael we see in Part II as he slowly begins to lose his soul.
On another note, for those of you who don't use Facebook and may be having difficulty with the rather annoying comment feature on this website, please feel free to email any comments to Scott at scottgingold@mail.com
10. SCARFACE - 1983 - GREG
LOUD. BRAZEN. CONTROLLING. TONY MONTANA. As Tony Montana, the previous Frank Serpico, Michael Corleone and Bobby Deerfield vanish as a character so iconic and recognizable, makes them all translucent for the 170 minutes that Tony Montana convinces us he’s real. Brian De Palma reboots Howard Hughes’ 1932 Paul Muni classic and takes it into the cocaine powdered 1980’s. Pacino plays Antonio Montana an immigrant from Cuba who comes to Miami with big dreams. His dreams take a blood red turn when he starts climbing the drug cartel ladder and makes himself one of the most powerful drug lords in Florida. While his character falls quickly out of control from one scene to another, Pacino seems to gain even more control over his portrayal as the Cuban King. From his authentic accent to his unabashed ego and sense of entitlement, Pacino lets us know that if Montana is going to die, he will do it how he sees fit.
9. THE GODFATHER PART III - 1990 - SCOTT
The Godfather Part III has gotten a lot of unfair flack over the years. People complain about the slow pace, Sofia Coppola's nonexistent acting skills and an overall feeling of disappointment in comparison to the two previous films. But they would be neglecting the stellar performance at the center of the movie by Mr. Pacino. We have watched Michael change over the course of the films. He went from a mild mannered war hero to a vengeful killer to a cold hearted mob boss. Now it is about twenty years later and we get a repentant Michael. He's still the same man who once ordered his own brother's death, but he's trying to put the past behind him. He gets involved with the church, he takes pride in his children and he even attempts to rekindle a relationship with his ex wife Kay. But Kay has this new Michael pegged. He can wrap himself up with the robe of the church all he wants, but that's not going to stop him from going to hell for everything he's done. And he may be through with the past, but the past ain't through with him. Pretty soon he is pulled back into the life by a jealous gangster and his hot-headed nephew. Pacino is wonderful here, showing an older, sadder, but not necessarily wiser Michael. He has a few emotional outbursts, but it's a rather low key performance. You can see how Michael would have evolved to this stage and Pacino doesn't let us forget the man Michael was, as much as he may want to.
8484848585Barry Levinson revives Pacino’s dormant talent in a made for HBO movie about the deadly Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Misunderstood and with a golden heart, Dr. Kevorkian wanted to give people an option that they didn’t have before, to choose to die a dignified death on their own terms and without pain. Pacino decided to resurrect his acting talents and become a different person again, the way actors are supposed to and in a way he hadn’t for a long time. In You Don’t Know Jack, Pacino isn’t yelling about a great ass or yelling about carrying on the devil’s lineage or yelling at Adam Sandler dressed as a woman. In this very respectable adaptation of real events, Levinson and writer Adam Mazer let Pacino explore the personality of a man who wants to test organized relgion and the US government by asking them to have empathy and to think in someone else’s shoes for once. And remarkably, this is exactly what Pacino does in this role, he wears the shoes of Dr. Death. Pacino becomes a man who wants to challenge the definition of sin while slowly losing his faculties as he accepts old age and everything that sometimes comes with it.
7. INSOMNIA - 2002 - SCOTT
8585858686In this remake by Christopher Nolan, Pacino plays Will Dormer, a homicide detective sent up to Alaska to investigate the death of a teenaged girl. Alaska at this time of year is daylight all the time, making it difficult for Will to get any sleep. During the investigation Will makes a tragic mistake which results in the death of his partner, Plagued by guilt and weary from lack of sleep, Will is pulled into a game of cat and mouse by the very man he's been chasing, played by Robin Williams. This is one of Pacino's quietest performances. He plays Will as smart, but burnt out, as he tries to stay one step ahead of the killer, but is too tired to keep up. Pacino and Williams play off each other marvelously, both toying with each other as the characters try to dominate the other with their intellect. It seems as though both actors have reigned each other in, with Pacino being more restrained than usual, and Williams abandoning his trademark zany improv. Pacino is worn, volatile, resilient and hard. He has seen it all before and just wants this case to be over, so he can get some sleep.
6. SCENT OF A WOMAN - 1992 - GREG
Some people point to Scent of a Woman and others point to Godfather Part III when addressing the change of Pacino’s acting from nuanced and calibrated to bold and brash. However I believe that Scent of a Woman is the exception to that rule based on how Bo Goldman’s screenplay clearly mapped out the hostile, jaded character of Lt. Col. Frank Slade. Charlie Simms played by Chris O’Donnell is a pending graduate of the private prestigious Baird school who takes a job babysitting a blind man to earn money to get home for Christmas. What he doesn’t plan on is the blind man taking him on a weekend adventure of all the things he enjoys in life before ending it all. Simms, already caught up in a moral dilemma at school that could put his college and career life in jeopardy, must now battle the suicidal tendencies of a blind veteran who nobody else likes. In my view, this was the last great performance of Al Pacino’s career and he absolutely deserved the Academy Award he graciously won for it. Pacino captured the bitterness that comes with fighting a life he never wanted and eating the resentment of the family and friends he spat on along the way. Throughout the movie, he takes us on the rollercoaster of angry and nostalgic emotions as he battles his depression by driving a Ferrari (BLIND), dancing the tango, yelling at his big brother and ordering a prostitute. Pacino drew us in, playing a fantastically mean villain and left us in the end loving the heart of the war hero we all hoped was inside the brutal exterior.
5. DONNIE BRASCO - 1997 - SCOTT
Pacino plays Lefty Ruggerio, a low level gangster who inadvertently brings an FBI agent Joe Pistone, played by Johnny Depp into the world of the mob. Lefty is a far cry from Michael Corleone. He's angry, bitter, worn-out, self depricating and emotional. He wishes he got further in life than he got and resents those who have left him behind. He has cancer and his own son is a drug addict, which makes him embrace Joe posing as Donnie as a son. The movie builds up such a sympathy towards Lefty, that when he does get violent, it's almost shocking until you realize that ruthlessness was always a part of him. Pacino is terrific as he suspects Donnie's betrayal but doesn't want to believe it. When he is forced to deal with the reality of the situation, Pacino is just heartbreaking as he prepares himself and calmly accepts his fate.
4. SERPICO - 1973 - SCOTT
Pacino plays Frank Serpico, a narcotics detective who plays to the beat of his own drums. He dresses unorthodoxly with a wool cap and scraggly beard. He just doesn't seem to fit in with his hippie persona amongst all the macho cops. He chooses to not accept bribes from criminals and look the other way, like most of the other officers do. This causes his co-workers to lose trust in Serpico, eventually putting him intentionally into a dangerous situation. Pacino puts on an unusual voice which has a rather nasal quality, further making him stand out from the crowd. It's a rather understated performance as he disappears into the look and feel of Serpico.
3. THE GODFATHER PART II - 1974 - GREG
Many Pacino fans will
agree that picking between Godfathers Part I & II is extremely difficult
because the two movies outdo each other in many ways while seemingly competing
to be the greatest film of all time. As
Pacino’s Michael Corleone continues his family’s legacy now living out in
Nevada, half the film also follows his father Vito Corleone as he made his
bones in the Cosa Nostra in the 1920’s. Years have now passed since Vito died in New
York and Michael has eliminated the heads of the five families, but now in
almost complete power of the Mafia near Las Vegas, Michael still has
enemies. In Part I, Pacino exhibited
mild and even shy behavior patterns as Michael, which slowly turned cold as he
watched one loved one after another murdered by his family’s foes. By Part II, Pacino has abandoned the quiet,
meek Michael persona altogether and embodies the cruelest facade of the
trilogy. Pacino is steadfast in his new image, which makes the screenplay
extremely easy to fall into place as one terrible deed unfolds after
another. A once empathetic and
optimistic young man is now seen as a cold-blooded murderer whose thirst for
power and trust of no one leaves him angry and alone.
2. DOG DAY AFTERNOON - 1975 - GREG
86909091911. THE GODFATHER - 1972 - SCOTT
Of all the characters in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather, Michael Corleone undergoes the most drastic transformation. At the beginning, Pacino plays Michael as calm, confident but still full of hope for his future with Kay, away from the family business. When his father Vito is shot, something clicks into gear with Michael. Propelled by his love for his father, he fully takes control the situation at the hospital. He thinks quickly and proactively, some of the same qualities that will come into play later on. After learning of McCluskey's betrayal, Michael makes a conscious choice to avenge his father and join the family business. The scene at the restaurant after he gets the gun but right before he shoots the two men, is the best eye acting I have ever seen. In a few moments, Pacino shows Michael's fear, panic, and seething anger, all with his eyes. After this we next catch up with Michael who is hiding out in Sicily speaking fluent Italian. His attempts to carve out a new life for himself with Apollonia show us a lighter side of Michael, romantic, confident and even a bit manipulative as he cozies up to her father. This all changes in an instant when her car explodes. In that moment I think, all traces of the old Michael are gone. When we next see him when he seeks out Kay a year later, he is a changed man, cold, calculating and not afraid to use violence to get what he wants. This is a remarkable performance from Pacino showing a complete character arc. This leads in perfectly to the Michael we see in Part II as he slowly begins to lose his soul.
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