Robert De Niro names his favourite role of all time: “Meant a lot to me”
Robert De Niro has been the face of Hollywood for a long time now, revered for his classics such as Mean Streets and Taxi Driver, as well as his recent efforts like The Irishman. When it comes to the world of acting, few performers come close to competing with De Niro’s endless accomplishments in the field.
Throughout his career, De Niro’s best work has been produced in collaboration with one of the greatest American filmmakers in cinema history – Martin Scorsese. Even after all these years, their partnership remains as strong as ever since both are currently working on Scorsese’s upcoming film Killers of the Flower Moon.
His close collaborations with some of the industry’s greatest minds came way back at the start of his career in the 1960s when he created an early partnership with Brian De Palma, shortly before his relationship with Martin Scorsese would begin in the 1970s. Creating the likes of Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, and New York, New York together before the director reached the peak of his artistry.
In a 2015 interview, De Niro said: “He’s [Scorsese] very clear as a director, and guides it, the piece, in the direction he feels he should. He gives you a lot of support. I think that we were just lucky to work together all those times. Sometimes he would have a project and I’d have a project and we would just get together and do it. It was always a joy.”
During the same interview, the actor was asked to pick his favourites from an unimaginably extensive career. Although the interviewer probed De Niro about masterpieces such as Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Part II and Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in America, De Niro remained ambiguous about his preferences.
“I don’t like to pick out one best movie. I’m not comfortable doing that,” the actor declared. Eventually, after enough requests, De Niro claimed that there was one particular project which he valued above the rest. He said: “There is one possible movie. I’m not saying it’s the best movie but it was a movie that meant a lot to me.”
“Everybody’s Fine,” De Niro revealed. “Directed by Kirk Jones. It’s about a father who is estranged from his children who takes a road trip to try to reconnect with them.” The film was a commercial failure, and it was criticised for playing sticking to the abundant stereotypes of the Christmas movie genre.
However, De Niro’s performance received a lot of praise. While talking about the film’s commercial failure, the actor said: “They did a lousy job promoting and distributing it. Miramax was being sold by Disney around this time. I only wish it was Harvey Weinstein who represented it. It died in America.”
With Sam Rockwell, Kate Beckinsale, and Drew Barrymore, De Niro starred in the American Christmas comedy Everybody’s Fine in 2009, a remake of the Italian film of the same name from 1990. Kirk Jones’ film follows De Niro’s patriarch Frank Goode, whose children all cancel on his festive plans, leading him to take a trip to visit them all individually, soon discovering that they’re not doing as well as he thought.
Everybody’s Fine is your typical Christmas comedy-drama, released alongside a slew of other identically-postered sentimental flicks. Despite the illustrious cast, the movie doesn’t feel a cut above its counterparts, although De Niro imbues his performance with loveable charm. It might not rank among his best, but it certainly felt good for the actor to be a part of.
