Robert De Niro is arguably the greatest screen actor who ever lived. The two-time Oscar winner won his first Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in The Godfather II, in which he spoke very few lines of English. Six years later, De Niro won an Oscar for Best Leading Actor in Raging Bull, directed by Martin Scorsese.
De Niro and Scorsese have reunited once more for the upcoming crime saga The Irishman, which is set to debut in limited theaters on November 1st. The film will also premiere on Netflix on November 27th. What better time to rank the 10 Best Robert De Niro Movies, According to IMDB?!
The Untouchables (7.9/10)
While De Niro made a career out of playing original gangsters and mafia dons, The Untouchables presented him with the challenge of playing one of the most infamous real-life criminals: Al Capone!
In the film, De Niro works with Scarface director Brian De Palma for the first time since Hi Mom! in 1970. Together, they bring the true tale of prohibition-era racketeering under Capone to life. The criminal mastermind meets his biggest match when Elliot Ness (Kevin Costner) is assigned to bring him and his cohorts to justice.
The Deer Hunter (8.1/10)
De Niro earned his third Academy Award nomination for The Deer Hunter, which ended up winning five Oscars including Best Picture.
While his costar Christopher Walken won a gold statuette for Best Supporting Actor, De Niro’s leading turn is the heart and soul of the movie. The film follows a trio of Pennsylvania factory workers who join the ranks to fight in the Vietnam war. The sprawling epic is renowned for its stark authenticity and complicated examination of PTSD among U.S. soldiers. It also focuses on the ramifications of small-town folks whose lives are upended by war.
Raging Bull (8.2/10)
De Niro won the Academy Award for Best Leading Actor following his tour-de-force performance in Raging Bull. It’s still considered one of the all-time finest screen performances to date.
De Niro gained more than 40 pounds to play the role of heavyweight pugilist Jake LaMotta. Working with his most frequent collaborator, Martin Scorsese, De Niro was afforded the time to gain weight after filming the segments which required him to have a skinnier physique. Even still, it’s the conflicts outside of the ring that proves just as devastating to LaMotta in the end.
Casino (8.2/10)
Five years after the game-changing Goodfellas, De Niro reunited with Martin Scorsese to embark on a Las Vegas-set crime saga of epic proportions. Talk about having an Ace up your sleeve!
In the film, De Niro plays Sam “Ace” Rothstein, a high-rising casino mogul who just wants to run his business by the book. However, things get complicated when his longtime pal, Nicky Santoro (Joe Pesci), arrives with criminal intent. As Ace tries to control his wild gangster friend, their relationship faces another test when his wife Ginger (Sharon Stone) drives a wedge between them.
Heat (8.2/10)
In yet another sweeping crime drama, this time set in L.A., De Niro faced-off with contemporary Al Pacino for the first time. Let’s hope their scenes in The Irishman live up to the one they share in Heat!
Under the skillful direction of Michael Mann, De Niro plays the ice-cold professional thief Neil McCauley. When McCauley puts together an all-star team of robbers to conduct an elaborately planned bank heist, Lt. Vincent Hanna (Pacino) is assigned to bring him down. With some of the most awesome action shootouts ever filmed, Heat remains one of the most beloved De Niro films.
Taxi Driver (8.3/10)
De Niro earned his second career Oscar nomination for his blistering turn as Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver. While he lost to Peter Finch in Network, the character is as memorable as anything De Niro has done since.
The complex character portrait of a disgruntled, PTSD-ridden Vietnam vet who drives cabs through the dirty streets of NYC at night is the stuff of cinematic legend. We sympathize with him at first, then turn on him when he becomes a crazed potential assassin. In the end, Bickle redeems himself by saving a young girl from the throes of abusive prostitution.
Once Upon A Time In America (8.4/10)
Before making the iconic gangster films with Martin Scorsese, De Niro went to work for famed Italian director Sergio Leone in Once Upon a Time in America. Sure he did Mean Streets, but it’s the mafia we’re talking about!
In the film, De Niro plays Noodles, a Jewish mobster during the prohibition-era of NYC. With his closest associates, including best friend Max (James Woods), Noodles climbs the ranks of the criminal underworld during a 35-year career. The movie is so good that it currently ranks as #72 on IMDB’s Top 250 Films of all time.
Goodfellas (8.7/10)
Believe it or not, eight years had passed between the last time De Niro and Scorsese worked together BEFORE Goodfellas. And yet, they didn’t skip a beat(ing)!
In what is universally hailed as one of the best gangster films ever made, De Niro owns the screen as Jimmy Conway, a non-Italian gangster. While that means he could never be a made man, what Jimmy does after his best friend Tommy DeVito is whacked is more than honorable. De Niro has made a career of playing organized criminals, and he’s never been better than in Goodfellas.
Joker (8.9)
Joker is still a new enough release that its rating may fall in the future, so take this one with a grain of salt. However, the title character was inspired by at least one other past De Niro performance.
Indeed, director Todd Philips has gone on record admitting that the Joker character is an homage to De Niro’s performance as Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver. Well, Joker may also be inspired by De Niro’s role in The King of Comedy as well. Either way you slice it, fans can’t get enough of what Joker has to say!
The Godfather Part II (9.0/10)
De Niro won his first Academy Award for his non-English speaking role in The Godfather Part II. If that wasn’t impressive enough, consider how the film is currently ranked as the #3 best movie ever made. Hard to top that!
In what is also considered one of the best sequels ever produced, The Godfather Part II continues the Corleone saga. De Niro plays a young version of Vito Corleone as he comes of age and climbs the criminal ranks in Italy before emigrating to America.
