Al Pacino - favorites

[The NZA]

Ok, had to leave off "Serpico", "...and Justice for all", "Dick Tracy", and "The Insider" but I havent really seen much of those ones, so its my fault; be sure to mention em if one of those is your favorite.

I predict most folks'll go with Godfather or Scent of a Woman, and those are by far & away some of the best; still more might go for fan-favorite Scarface.

Me, i'm goin with Carlito's Way...Yahven & others tell me he wasnt a "convincing" Puerto Rican, but the flick was one of those Yojimbo type stories - some folks think it was a gangster flick, but it just as easily couldve been a western, samurai, etc.  Good stories like this transcend their genre; while i too have a hard time denyin Scent of a Woman, this poll is for either favorite flick or best performance (so try to explain your pick if you can), and myself, im goin for favorite. so Carlito it is (screw Yahven, i like the title! )

 

"No matter what, you don' sell out your friends.  For better or worse, that's who I am."

[JunkerSeed]

I went for Scent of a Woman, it's a predictable choice for a reason, he's one of the most likeable characters I've ever seen.  Didn't go for godfather because I guess I'd pick best performance, not best movie.  Surprised that Donnie Brasco wasn't up there, but then again, you only have ten slots.

 

"Tits. Hoo-hah! Big ones, little ones. Nipples staring right out at ya, like secret searchlights."

 

"When in doubt, fuck."

 

"The day we stop looking, Charlie, is the day we die."

 

Goddamn that was a great movie.

[The NZA]

..fuck! Dont know how i forgot that one...a good one, to be certain, one of the ones that helped Depp outta the pretty boy stereotype, i think.  Doubt its a favortie of many but certainly deserved a slot, shoulda put that instead of "Sea of Love", that one was alright but not as good.

Only one reply/vote? Cmon this is such a more interestin poll than the Spielberg one!  Go on, ignore Al! Suckers of satan's cock, each and every one of ya!  

Heh. I always laugh at that stuff..."my poll's been up three fuckin hours now, why hasnt anyone responded!?"  

Anyway, when you folks are by, lemme know what ya think, curious to see if Scarface dont win it.

[MyLeakyBucket]

Shit, this is probably the hardest poll to decide on I've had during my stay here.

 

Absolutely huge Pacino fan. Well I've narrowed it down to either Scarface or Carlito's Way. I'll vote later when I decide.

 

"Say hello to my little friend." Scarface

 

"Wanna see a trick shot?" Carlito's Way

[Reverend Jax]

..fuck! Dont know how i forgot that one...

That's why I always check out filmographys for these movie polls. When I created the Spielburg I would have forgotten Empire of the Sun and The Color Purple without checking it out. If I had forgotten them I might have had to include AI and Hook Anyway, if your doing an actor with a long career like Al checking out an online filmography is a good idea. Side note: I know this is probably beyond any admin's control, but I'd love to see a poll where you could split your between one of more choices, so overall you had the same weight, but it would be distrubutie among more than one choice. Ah, pipedreams!

[The NZA]

Yeah, but with Al (im a big Pacino fan), aside from Brasco & his broadway stuff, i think i had almost his entire filmography in mind there.  Normally, yeah, id look but ive tried to see damn near every film this man's in, theyre just not all on DVD yet.

As for splittin votes, maybe in a future board upgrade, but for now, i prefer we be decisive!  If youre torn between Scarface & Scent, think it over & lemme know why you picked the one ya did, thats why i created the poll anyway!

Side note: On the Preacher board, Johnny Marr (Johny over here) says Pacino's fallin into a typecast, much like John Wayne did (tho that was the Duke's goal); that, with his recent speeches & such, he's basically the same guy in his last so many films.  I tend to think that, if that's true, than just like the Duke, i dont notice 'cause i like that character he's creatin.  What does everyone else think?

[JunkerSeed]

I think that's sort of true.  But I don't think he's completely pingeonholed into one specific role.  He just plays a certain type of character.  I just think that Pacino won't be known for being able to play any role thrown at him, but he'll be known for playing the type of character he does really well.  Oh, and his next movie looks to be a bit different.  Called "Simone" (I think), it's about computer generating a fake celebrity, a comedy, I'm pretty sure, should be something different for him.  I read an interview for insomnia that said something kind of interesting.  That he plays a pretty typical character so we all start off with a character we all already know and sympathize with, then it puts him through all sorts of shit.  That sounds good.  I dont think that all actors need to be known for their versatility.  Pacino's doin' fine picking roles that suit his style of character perfectly, when he needs to something different, he will.  Robin Williams was stagnating and basically rotting away playing the same character in a bunch of flops, so he's finally switching it up.  I figure that good actors know when to pick something different, and if Pacino finds himself making something that's the equivelant of "patch adams" he'll pick a different role real fuckin quick.

[Reverend Jax]

I think Al just knows what he's good at.

[MyLeakyBucket]

Nah the typecasting talk is bollocks. He's done such a wide variety. Yes he's done the whole Gangster thing with DB, SF and CW (like the acronyms ), but Serpico was completely different, and definitely among my favourites. Sympathised so much with him, the only straight cop in a corrupt world. And Dog Day Afternoon, telling me that ain't different?

 

The way I see it, Al Pacino is always plays the same role, the same way Stephen King always writes horror books, they don't but there just the most famous ones.

[Reverend Jax]

Exactly, Steven King knows what he's goes at, so he doesn't try to write the biography of Cindy Crawford, for example. Same with Al.

[King of Snake]

Another way to say it would be that all Nirvana songs sounded alike. True he has a distinctive acting style but he does still diversify his roles.

 

I'd love to vote for Glengarry Glen Ross as it's a favorite of mine, one of the finest acted movies you may ever see, but it's more of an ensemble piece. I haven't seen half the films on this poll, so I'll abstain.

[dinghy]

Not that I've seen many of them at all....have to keep working on the collectin. I know it's a shame , nick has em all here!.....But it's gatta be scent of a woman . Love that flick!

[soldier of fortune]

Scarface without a doubt!!

 

Oh yeah thats the one!!

[Reverend Jax]

Yes, Al Pacino is good, Stephen King is good, Nirvana is good, but there's something to be said about artists who really mix it up and do a wide range of themes in there art. Like Johnny Depp, Kevin Spacey and Bruce Willis in acting (yes, Bruce Willis, no one takes him seriously, but I think he's a damn good versitale actor with an incredible capacity for choosing his roles, excluding 'Unbreakable'), and the Beatles, The Who, Eric Clapton and REM in music. Being good at your craft is certainly admirable, but I have added respect for those artist who really strive to expand their horizons (no drug analogies intended).

[JunkerSeed]

Kevin Spacey?  As good as he is, I don't think he mixes it up at all, he has made a career of being the smartest character in his movies.

[MyLeakyBucket]

Agree with Junk on that, but taking nothing away from the guy, damn fine actor (although K-Pax looks like a pile of kaka).

 

Bruce Willis as well, surely he has to be one of the most type-cast actors around at the mo?

 

Back to Al though, he's done so many varied roles. "Any Given Sunday" I thought was very different. Showed remnants of the old man character he played in Donnie Brasco, but otherwise really different. Not that great a movie anyway but as Walter said in The Big Lebowski, "Thats not the issue here Dude!"

[Reverend Jax]

Bruce Willis is a good actor. When he was in The Honeymooners and people heard he was gonna be in an action movie called Die Hard, they said "the guy from The Honeymooners? I can't see him doing action." Then when people heard he was doing a drama thriller called The Sixth Sense they said "Bruce Willis? I can'r see him doing drama". Between the action of Die Hard, The Last Boy Scout and The Fifth Element; the comedy of Look Who's Talking, The Whoel Nine Yards, and Bandits; the drama of Pulp Fiction, The Sixth Sense, and 12 Monkeys (his best preformance in my book, along with Brad Pitt's), Bruce is the most versatille actor in Hollywood that nobody seems to take seriously. I didn't take him seriously until someone pointed out how many damn good movies he's been in and the range of them and how they actually have good preformances.

 

And I think Kevin Spacey is versatille, but I can't argue that comment too much.

[The NZA]

Bruce is cool.  Unbreakable was great, dammit. Al is gooood.  Insomnia was good but not nearly my favorite.

I go back to work now.    

PS Bruce baby woo hoo

[MyLeakyBucket]

Al Al he's our pal, yeah!

 

Say hello to my liddle friend.....

 

[soldier of fortune]

Ah yes, totally agree there MLB!!!

[MyLeakyBucket]

I'm still trying to decide between Scarface and Carlito's Way. Scarface has the cooler dialogue and bigger guns, but Carlito's Way has the better climax, which takes place in NY Central train central.

 

I need

[Reverend Jax]

I need

You certainly do.

[The NZA]

I say Carlito's Way; soon as more folks see this poll, Scarface might shoot through the roof, and Carlito deserves more.  But hey, its your call.

 

"Were even, you hear me? Say it! Say we're even!"

[MyLeakyBucket]

"Theres a line you don't cross..."

 

Alright, you've convinced me, Carlito's Way gets it.

 

Also, JMT, whats that supposed to mean?

[Reverend Jax]

That you need help. What? Do you think you are an island? Independent of all other people in the world? Face it MLB, you wouldn't be here today without somebody's help.