Al Pacino

Because after having seen his dream come true of playing Shylock in The Merchant of Venice , and having given free rein to his desire to direct with Looking for Richard , a unique project that showed love for Shakespeare from every pore, one can almost say that Al Pacino has already done everything. It remains for him if anything to demonstrate his skills as a comedian, although we have seen some hint of his power in this field in films like Essence of a woman or S1m0ne .

1940, the Bronx, New York. Here Alfredo Pacino was born and lived his first years. A lover of cinema since he was a child, he is capable of repeating entire phrases from his favorite movies. At school he takes part in theatrical performances. He likes that, so he decides to dedicate himself to it: he will study at the Actor’s Studio and at the Herbert Berghof Studio, he will soak up the Method, he will live each of his roles to the full. In the scene he carves out a prestige that culminates in a Tony award. He doesn’t know it then, but his destiny is the cinema, a job that he will come to say, comparing it to the theater: “For me, making movies is much harder in many ways. For one, it’s a 14-hour-a-day job. You work and then you wait, you work and wait again. It’s so intermittent. For me, it’s much more difficult.”

His first major film leads him to give life to a junkie: Panic in Needle Park (1971). Its composition is intense, although it is a minority film. But Francis Ford Coppola has seen him, and he wants Al to be Michael Corleone from The Godfather (1972). He embroiders his work as the heir to the Corleones, and will give new nuances to the character in the second installment (from 1974, with the decision to eliminate Fredo) and in the third (from 1990, where his determination is to redeem himself, reach the forgiveness). With Sidney Lumet , he is a cop in a world of corruption ( Sérpico , 1973), or a clumsy bank robber ( Dog Afternoon, 1975). Pacino remains a subscriber to thrillers or intense drama, but he knows how to give each new role something new: the lawyer in Justice for All (1979), his gangster Tony Montana from The Price of Power (1983), his detective from Melody of Seduction ( 1989). On the other hand, he fails in his foray into historical cinema ( Revolución , 1985), and the thing weighs to the point of remaining four years off the screen.

“When I was younger, I put my head on paper a lot more. He stayed with her mood the whole time. Now, I feel like I can get in and out more easily.” You can tell that what Al Pacino says is true. His composition of Big Boy Caprice in Dick Tracy (1990), cloaked in a thick layer of makeup, he does almost with his eyes closed. Works like Frankie & Johnny , Essence of a Woman (Oscar at Last) and Glengarry Glen Rose , seem to flow with great ease. In Donnie Brasco , The Dilemma , Heat (for the first time, opposite Robert De Niro ), Trapped by her past, it would seem that it is enough for him to stand in front of the camera and recite his dialogue. Sensation confirmed by his natural work in recent The test , S1m0ne , Confidential relationships , Insomnia .