Al Pacino names his favourite superhero movie: “In its genre, it was done very well”
Al Pacino has conquered pretty much every genre he has ventured into. In the realm of gangster films, he is untouchable, thanks to performances in Scarface, Donnie Brasco, and The Godfather trilogy. He’s dazzled in The Insider and Serpico, two movies about ordinary people tackling large institutions, and he’s even got a great sports drama under his belt thanks to Oliver Stone’s Any Given Sunday.
One thing the iconic actor has never done is an honest-to-goodness superhero flick. The closest he’s come is 1990’s Dick Tracy, which is based on a comic strip, but nobody would go as far as to say it was a ‘comic book movie’. Considering how many legendary names have been courted by the likes of Marvel or DC in recent years, it is somewhat surprising that Pacino hasn’t turned up in this world. Maybe he just doesn’t like superheroes? Not so, if one interview is to be believed.
In conversation with Vulture, Pacino named a comic book movie that he really enjoyed – Marvel’s 2014 release Guardians of the Galaxy. “I thought the Galaxy thing was a very interesting movie,” he said, giving the film the respect it deserves by seemingly forgetting its name. “In its genre, it was done very well. I saw it with my little kids, and they liked it, and I liked it. I thought it was inventive and funny and dark at times. I thought, ‘Gee, it’s a big movie, and you saw it on a big screen with sound’, and it was, I thought, well produced, well directed, acted. I was happy sitting there.”
Guardians, as it is known amongst fans, marked the biggest risk the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) had taken at the time of its release. The titular superhero team – comprised of Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldaña), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper), and the monosyllabic Groot (Vin Diesel) – were not household names.
It seemed like a very random choice to give them their own film before characters like Ant-Man or Black Panther, but the movie’s mixture of humour, drama, and touching relationships made it a big hit. Not only did it get two sequels, but the major players were also heavily involved in the big Infinity War/Endgame finale to the first MCU saga. Star-Lord is almost the entire reason the ‘Snap’ happens – something most Marvel fans still haven’t forgiven him for.
When asked if he’d want to do something similar to James Gunn’s opus, Pacino admitted he “wouldn’t know” how to behave in a superhero situation. “It’s what I can do,” the then-74-year-old said. “What my life is at this point, having young children too, I have older children. Whatever my life allows me to do, I will do… I feel sometimes like I do what my life dictates.”
If Pacino was worrying about his age when he made these comments, then he needn’t have bothered, as the ‘Guardians’ franchise became something of a haven for older actors. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 features appearances from both Kurt Russell and Sylvester Stallone, the latter of whom plays a grizzled space pirate character that Pacino would have absolutely relished.
He might have never been in one, but it’s nice to hear somebody of Pacino’s stature praise superhero cinema, especially as the likes of Martin Scorsese have publicly poured scorn on the genre. The star is still working well into his ninth decade, so there’s still plenty of time for him to don that spandex.
