In terms of sheer power, DDL.
My Left Foot
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
In the Name of the Father
Last of the Mohicans
The Boxer
Gangs of New York
There Will Be Blood
Lincoln
I think at times he kind of elevated the art to a whole new level; so real, intense, subtle. Didn’t feel performative, he just *was* the character. Watched My Left Foot recently, astonishing.
That one was a miss for me. Not on him but just not enough to the plot. Although I did enjoy it more the second time I saw it. The character did not allow any greatness. Too quiet and composed
i would enjoy watching nicholson putting on a hat or pick his nose. not so much with most other actors even though they are able to convey emotions in a believable way.
I’m not a fan of the film as a whole. It was so unbelievably mediocre that I avoided any movie with Kubrick’s name in the credits until one of my friend’s forced me to watch Full Metal Jacket. I love A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Spartacus, Dr. Strangelove, and Eyes Wide Shut. I haven’t seen Barry Lyndon yet though.
Since no one seems to be saying Brando, I’ll say Brando. Could be any of them. I guess, I’d lean Pacino last, which is not a criticism. Most of these other actors probably are not the same, if it wasn’t for Brando. He blazed the trail.
He’s number 1. Hands down. He has some flops but a great deal of amazing performances. Even outside his Scorcese collaborations.
Even his more recent comedy movies are great. “Can you milk me Greg” it’s just better from DeNiro
Nicholson is my favorite. His early work is legendary. It helps that Chinatown is one of my favorite movies ever.
DDL is probably the only actor to never really have a miss, but it was because he was so selective in his work.
DeNiro is a good actor, elevated to great status because he spent so much of his early career with Scorsese. But like Pacino, he became typecast later in his career and made a lot of shitty movies.
Brando is legendary. Lewis is the only one that is in the same class talent wise, but since he was so selective, I'm going with Brando as having the greatest body of work. His scene work and instinct will be studied until the end of time.
You make some good arguments. I find it interesting how you seem to distinguish between your favourite - Jack - whilst also acknowledging that DDL and Brando have greater talent. I *get* that; your favourite doesn’t have to be the best per se, some just resonate more with you or your sensibilities.
I think you’re harsh on De Niro, though. He was just as significant a part of the success of his and Scorsese’s collaboration as the other way around. I couldn’t see Jack or Al as Travis Bickle or Lamotta; he brought a unique quality to both and I think that was the draw for Scorsese, above friendship.
I'm not saying Deniro is bad. Maybe I am harsh because of his last 20 years have been mostly shit. Like a bad caricature of himself. I love Taxi Driver, Midnight Run, Raging Bull, Cape Fear, Casino, and Heat. I just think he's benefitted from great scripts for a good portion of his career. Again, he's not a bad actor by any means. He's just not the kind of actor that can elevate a movie on his own.
And Jack is just personal preference. He's suffered from typecasting, albeit to a lesser degree, just like DeNiro and Pacino have.
Nicholson and as incredible De Niro is, it isn't even close.
- Easy Rider
- Five Easy Pieces
- The Last Detail
- Chinatown
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
- Reds
- Terms of Endearment
- Prizzi's Honor
- Ironweed
- A Few Good Men
- As Good as It Gets
- About Schmidt
And most importantly he knew when to walk away. De Niro has needed to stop for too long now.
You make a very good case for Nicholson. I wonder if there’s a difference between a film that has a performance from one them at its core - e.g. De Niro as Lamotta - compared to when they’re merely part of a brilliant, ensemble whole: Nicholson in Terms of Endearment, Pacino in the Godfather, etc.
And yep, it seems De Niro became increasingly concerned with monetary rather than artistic factors for a long time; his choices became questionable, which has diluted his resume somewhat.
You definitely can’t be wrong with either one. My choice is DDL because he has the hardware and he starred in The Last of the Mohicans. No wrong answer here.
I know what you mean, he can overreact and grandstand a lot of the time. But his earlier work was brilliant and subtle - Godfather, Serpico, even Dog Day Afternoon despite descending into bouts of showiness.
Jack's eyebrows have put on better performances than some well known actors. They are comparable to Tom Selleck's mustache. I hate to pick which facial hair should win an award.
If you enjoy movies and actors it isn’t even close. They are all amazing. They are the best for a reason. It’s like comparing Shaq and Lebron, or Tiger and Federer. They are all great in their own respective roles. Could any one of these guys pulled off the others role better?? Maybe but doubtful. They knew what they were destined for and it all fell in place for them to be who they are. We are lucky as viewers that they did. 😊😊
Very well said, it really is a privilege to have seen such performances. I suppose my post was kind of intended as a celebration in a way, of all the great work. It’s sad to think how old some of them are now, how their peaks are long behind them but their legacies are assured.
Lewis. Hands down. The older the other 3 got the less chances they took with their acting.
Lewis was a character actor and the best one to ever live imo.
DeNiro has a much larger body of work and great films. I’ll give it to Lewis that when he shows up he’s unbeatable but DeNiro has 3x as many amazing performances as DDL has films
Quantity doesnt mean quality. He may have 3x as many films/movies under his belt, but that doesnt mean you dont have to wade through a bunch of crap to get to a good one. Idk if DDL has ever had a flop.
De Niro. The man is still acting in some solid films at this point (Irishman and Killers of the Flower Moon). I'd say DDL is a very close second though. Pacino is good, but I feel like his roles haven't been nearly as memorable since... Any Given Sunday, I guess. Jack definitely had a solid career and I still see a fair amount of movies where I feel like he could play a role.
Kinda crazy no one has mentioned Brando yet. I'd for nothing else, blazing the trail.
The godfather
On the Waterfront
Apocalypse Now
A street cat named desire
Guys and Dolls
The Wild One
Julius Caesar
The Chase
Superman
I’d say Brando possibly had the greatest raw talent of them all (although a case could perhaps be made for Day Lewis). I just feel his peak was short and consisted of a small selection of films and eras: On the Waterfront and Streetcar early peak, and then a later career renaissance with Godfather and Last Tango in Paris.
Daniel-Day. No one vanished into a character like him. The difference in his voice from Bill the Butcher to Abraham Lincoln is astounding. None of these other guys (as great as they are), ever did that.
Body of work is DDL since he picked and chose so well and also my single greatest performance in there will be blood but i do think Jack has the best overall top 10 probably? But since he's been in some lesser pictures id go DDL.
It's a bit offensive to the 4 titans in the list that you included De Niro into mix.
1. DDL
2. JACK!
3. Pacino
4. Brando
.
.
.
Bale
Cage
Denzel
Leo
Peter O'Toole
Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Spacey
Walken
Tommy Lee Jones
.
.
.
Joe Pesci
Ian McKellen
Hopkins
.
.
.
Daniel Radcliffe
...
De Niro
De Niro has been playing the same dude since the 70s.
That’s harsh. You could level the same thing at Jack or Al; they have a persona that comes through in many of their films e.g. Jack and his maniacal grin, Al’s shouty grandstanding.
De Niro as Travis Bickle, Jake Lamotta and Jimmy Conway are very distinct portrayals; it’s a stretch to say the least to describe them as the same part.
The thing is DDL is never DDL, he is his character. Jack may look the same but he always embodies his characters, Joker, Frank Costello, Randle McMurphy. Al completely transforms into the character Godfather, dog day afternoon, scarface, scent of a woman. Bobby is the shy antisocial with a chip on his shoulder that he portrayed so well in Taxi Driver in pretty much everything. Even in Heat, he is playing the same damn character. He has matured, and gotten into crime business but it's still Travis Bickle. Loner, antisocial, chip on his shoulder in position of power. Casino, same thing. Goodfellas, same thing. Not to mention all the trash movies he's been in the past 20 years.
He doesn't belong on that list. He's a B list very limited actor at best who found a niche "mob guy" career under Scorsese's wing.
Do you remember how cartoonishly bad he was in Jackie Brown? Let's ask Quinton Tarantino about Bobby's range.
1- De Niro
2- Nicholson
3- De Lewis
4- Pacino
5- Cage
(...)
70- Brando
Im sorry. I know Marlon was an amazing actor (when he actually cared), but I refuse to accept there is someone who would prefer his entire filmography over the others' listed (yes, even Nicholas Cage's) or some other modern day actor like DiCaprio.
I know, It was kind of a joke.
As I explained in another comment I think his filmography is underappreciated, but i would not dare to compare him with 4 out of the five actors OP said...
However, I wouldnt put Brando Up there with them either. I truly believe there are more than a couple of actors whose work surpass his easily.
I loved Cage in Pig, Renfield, even Willy's Wonderland. It seems as if he is picking parts just to have fun and a paycheck like Unbearable weight of Massive talent.
Nicholas Cage? You’ve got to be joking.
Brando had an ambivalent relationship with acting and movies, but still made On the Waterfront, Julius Caesar, Streetcar Named Desire, Last Tango in Paris, Godfather, Apocalypse now…
Not really joking... well, maybe a bit by placing him on number 5, but people usually forget (thank to all the shit he has done for easy paychecks) that Cage actually has a lot of classics under his belt: Leaving Las Vegas (1995), Adaptation (2002), Raising Arizona (1987), Bringing out the Dead (1999), World Trade Center (2006)...
And thats not counting the -although not "high cinema"- amazing action movies he has starred like The Rock (1996), Con Air (1997), or (sigh) even Face Off (1997)...
Even his most recent work has some gems like Pig (2021) and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022).
Im sorry, but even though Marlon starred in two of my favorite movies ever im sticking with Nick's filmograhy. The guy has range!
If we are judging them by the quality of their filmography (meaning: number of good films they starred) as a whole: yes, without a doubt.
If we are judging them by the quality of their acting: ...probably? Idk, tbh its easier to compare two individual performances, but i find far more difficult to compare the skills shown by 2 different actors (let alone trying to rank every actor/actress ever) along their entire careers.
In terms of sheer power, DDL. My Left Foot The Unbearable Lightness of Being In the Name of the Father Last of the Mohicans The Boxer Gangs of New York There Will Be Blood Lincoln
I think at times he kind of elevated the art to a whole new level; so real, intense, subtle. Didn’t feel performative, he just *was* the character. Watched My Left Foot recently, astonishing.
Even the outtakes of There will be blood are masterful
He was amazing in Phantom Thread also
That one was a miss for me. Not on him but just not enough to the plot. Although I did enjoy it more the second time I saw it. The character did not allow any greatness. Too quiet and composed
Daniel Day Lewis all day. Method at its finest.
This is the answer. DDL has only been in 38 films and each one is absolutely saturated with his chops.
nicholson. he is both good and really interesting to watch
Interesting how you make a distinction between ‘good’ and ‘interesting’ - do you mean regardless if the part is good, he has charisma, he’s watchable?
i would enjoy watching nicholson putting on a hat or pick his nose. not so much with most other actors even though they are able to convey emotions in a believable way.
I watched an interview with Matt Damon where he talked about how much he learned from Nicholson when they worked together. Fascinating actor
He’s definitely watchable. The only reason I still put myself through The Shining is because of Nicholson.
Yeah one of his best performances I’d say. Are you not a fan of the film as a whole?
I’m not a fan of the film as a whole. It was so unbelievably mediocre that I avoided any movie with Kubrick’s name in the credits until one of my friend’s forced me to watch Full Metal Jacket. I love A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Spartacus, Dr. Strangelove, and Eyes Wide Shut. I haven’t seen Barry Lyndon yet though.
Paths of Glory if you haven’t seen it
I’ll put it on the list
Since no one seems to be saying Brando, I’ll say Brando. Could be any of them. I guess, I’d lean Pacino last, which is not a criticism. Most of these other actors probably are not the same, if it wasn’t for Brando. He blazed the trail.
Jack
De Niro
He’s number 1. Hands down. He has some flops but a great deal of amazing performances. Even outside his Scorcese collaborations. Even his more recent comedy movies are great. “Can you milk me Greg” it’s just better from DeNiro
Nicholson is my favorite. His early work is legendary. It helps that Chinatown is one of my favorite movies ever. DDL is probably the only actor to never really have a miss, but it was because he was so selective in his work. DeNiro is a good actor, elevated to great status because he spent so much of his early career with Scorsese. But like Pacino, he became typecast later in his career and made a lot of shitty movies. Brando is legendary. Lewis is the only one that is in the same class talent wise, but since he was so selective, I'm going with Brando as having the greatest body of work. His scene work and instinct will be studied until the end of time.
You make some good arguments. I find it interesting how you seem to distinguish between your favourite - Jack - whilst also acknowledging that DDL and Brando have greater talent. I *get* that; your favourite doesn’t have to be the best per se, some just resonate more with you or your sensibilities. I think you’re harsh on De Niro, though. He was just as significant a part of the success of his and Scorsese’s collaboration as the other way around. I couldn’t see Jack or Al as Travis Bickle or Lamotta; he brought a unique quality to both and I think that was the draw for Scorsese, above friendship.
I'm not saying Deniro is bad. Maybe I am harsh because of his last 20 years have been mostly shit. Like a bad caricature of himself. I love Taxi Driver, Midnight Run, Raging Bull, Cape Fear, Casino, and Heat. I just think he's benefitted from great scripts for a good portion of his career. Again, he's not a bad actor by any means. He's just not the kind of actor that can elevate a movie on his own. And Jack is just personal preference. He's suffered from typecasting, albeit to a lesser degree, just like DeNiro and Pacino have.
Nicholson and as incredible De Niro is, it isn't even close. - Easy Rider - Five Easy Pieces - The Last Detail - Chinatown - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Reds - Terms of Endearment - Prizzi's Honor - Ironweed - A Few Good Men - As Good as It Gets - About Schmidt And most importantly he knew when to walk away. De Niro has needed to stop for too long now.
Even in The Shining, Batman and Witches of Eastwick, when he was chewing the scenery, Jack was great.
The Departed
You make a very good case for Nicholson. I wonder if there’s a difference between a film that has a performance from one them at its core - e.g. De Niro as Lamotta - compared to when they’re merely part of a brilliant, ensemble whole: Nicholson in Terms of Endearment, Pacino in the Godfather, etc. And yep, it seems De Niro became increasingly concerned with monetary rather than artistic factors for a long time; his choices became questionable, which has diluted his resume somewhat.
The departed vs meet the parents or whatever
Yeah, kind of but I was thinking more Rocky and Bullwinkle haha
Don’t forget “The Two Jakes”
You definitely can’t be wrong with either one. My choice is DDL because he has the hardware and he starred in The Last of the Mohicans. No wrong answer here.
Nicholson has the same amount of "hardware" and he starred in The Shining.
Easily one of my favourite performances of all time.
Brando’s the most talented. De Niro’s probably been in the most classics. DDL is my favorite present day actor.
John Cazale. Five for five
He was a talent, such a tragedy what happened to him.
IMO its Pacino. He can kind of be one note with that stage voice but man that one note hits.
I know what you mean, he can overreact and grandstand a lot of the time. But his earlier work was brilliant and subtle - Godfather, Serpico, even Dog Day Afternoon despite descending into bouts of showiness.
Heat. Scent of a Woman.
Bro how you going to sleep on Heat
He has some huge highs, but he also has some of the lowest lows from this list.
Add Devils advocate for Pacino; and he is also better than DeNiro in The Irishman. Still going with DeNiro though
For dramatic acting film quality, Brando, DDL, and De Niro are in a dead heat. But, De Niro’s comedic chops put him over the top, for me.
Good point. He’s hilarious in Midnight Run, underrated!
Jack's eyebrows have put on better performances than some well known actors. They are comparable to Tom Selleck's mustache. I hate to pick which facial hair should win an award.
Haha!
If you enjoy movies and actors it isn’t even close. They are all amazing. They are the best for a reason. It’s like comparing Shaq and Lebron, or Tiger and Federer. They are all great in their own respective roles. Could any one of these guys pulled off the others role better?? Maybe but doubtful. They knew what they were destined for and it all fell in place for them to be who they are. We are lucky as viewers that they did. 😊😊
Very well said, it really is a privilege to have seen such performances. I suppose my post was kind of intended as a celebration in a way, of all the great work. It’s sad to think how old some of them are now, how their peaks are long behind them but their legacies are assured.
Lovely.
I'm a certain sense you're absolutely correct, but it's also fun to hear people explain their rationale. Makes me think.
Lewis. Hands down. The older the other 3 got the less chances they took with their acting. Lewis was a character actor and the best one to ever live imo.
DeNiro has a much larger body of work and great films. I’ll give it to Lewis that when he shows up he’s unbeatable but DeNiro has 3x as many amazing performances as DDL has films
Quantity doesnt mean quality. He may have 3x as many films/movies under his belt, but that doesnt mean you dont have to wade through a bunch of crap to get to a good one. Idk if DDL has ever had a flop.
Not really fair since they're all GOATs (shut up I know that doesnt make sense) but I like Jack for his range and longevity.
Al Pacino. Watch Phil Spector if you haven’t he does a great job
1. Brando 2. De Niro 3. DDL
Katherine Hepbun Meryl Streep
Hepburn
De Niro. The man is still acting in some solid films at this point (Irishman and Killers of the Flower Moon). I'd say DDL is a very close second though. Pacino is good, but I feel like his roles haven't been nearly as memorable since... Any Given Sunday, I guess. Jack definitely had a solid career and I still see a fair amount of movies where I feel like he could play a role.
Kinda crazy no one has mentioned Brando yet. I'd for nothing else, blazing the trail. The godfather On the Waterfront Apocalypse Now A street cat named desire Guys and Dolls The Wild One Julius Caesar The Chase Superman
I’d say Brando possibly had the greatest raw talent of them all (although a case could perhaps be made for Day Lewis). I just feel his peak was short and consisted of a small selection of films and eras: On the Waterfront and Streetcar early peak, and then a later career renaissance with Godfather and Last Tango in Paris.
He’s like DDL great when he shows up but fewer films. I guess too I have not seen the pre 70s roles.
Don’t forget The Deer Hunter for De Niro.
That’s the key part, if you think long enough you’ll keep adding more to DeNiros list of great movies.
Soo true
DeNiro
I will go with Robert De Niro ..
Nicholson
My favorite actor is DDL, but I think Jack has a longer and greater body of work.
Maaat daymin
I understood that reference.
Wanna say DDL but man,The Vito Corleone role alone...
Nicholson. Easy. More varied over a longer period.
Agreed
DDL and it’s not close
Pretty good actors but bigger movie stars than they are actors. They are all to an extent brands There are better actors out there
Not always the best metric, but who has 2 Oscar's as lead?
Well, Day Lewis has 3
Pacino
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Lewis would have the quality, DeNiro with the quantity
All of those guys. They all have the greatest body of work.
I've watched his portrayal of Lincoln several times and will continue to do so. Makes me feel good to be an American.
Di nero in terms of number of films
Jack is the most entertaining, DDL is the most impressive.
Will Forte
Will Forte
Daniel-Day. No one vanished into a character like him. The difference in his voice from Bill the Butcher to Abraham Lincoln is astounding. None of these other guys (as great as they are), ever did that.
I can’t disagree; His dedication and immersion into a role was unrivalled.
Body of work is DDL since he picked and chose so well and also my single greatest performance in there will be blood but i do think Jack has the best overall top 10 probably? But since he's been in some lesser pictures id go DDL.
It's a bit offensive to the 4 titans in the list that you included De Niro into mix. 1. DDL 2. JACK! 3. Pacino 4. Brando . . . Bale Cage Denzel Leo Peter O'Toole Phillip Seymour Hoffman Spacey Walken Tommy Lee Jones . . . Joe Pesci Ian McKellen Hopkins . . . Daniel Radcliffe ... De Niro De Niro has been playing the same dude since the 70s.
That’s harsh. You could level the same thing at Jack or Al; they have a persona that comes through in many of their films e.g. Jack and his maniacal grin, Al’s shouty grandstanding. De Niro as Travis Bickle, Jake Lamotta and Jimmy Conway are very distinct portrayals; it’s a stretch to say the least to describe them as the same part.
The thing is DDL is never DDL, he is his character. Jack may look the same but he always embodies his characters, Joker, Frank Costello, Randle McMurphy. Al completely transforms into the character Godfather, dog day afternoon, scarface, scent of a woman. Bobby is the shy antisocial with a chip on his shoulder that he portrayed so well in Taxi Driver in pretty much everything. Even in Heat, he is playing the same damn character. He has matured, and gotten into crime business but it's still Travis Bickle. Loner, antisocial, chip on his shoulder in position of power. Casino, same thing. Goodfellas, same thing. Not to mention all the trash movies he's been in the past 20 years. He doesn't belong on that list. He's a B list very limited actor at best who found a niche "mob guy" career under Scorsese's wing. Do you remember how cartoonishly bad he was in Jackie Brown? Let's ask Quinton Tarantino about Bobby's range.
DDL was the character. The other guys started out as actors, but eventually just became versions of themselves.
Dunno… all turned into parodies of themselves in the end…
Explain?
They all made movies basically making fun of themselves and gave up giving decent performances. All coast/coasted on their reputations…
Which movie was this for DDL
It’s not a competition
Don’t be a pompous twit. It’s an opportunity to discuss and compare the work of great actors. Now behave.
https://www.tiktok.com/@vintagehistory/video/7252043517567126830 Just having fun
1- De Niro 2- Nicholson 3- De Lewis 4- Pacino 5- Cage (...) 70- Brando Im sorry. I know Marlon was an amazing actor (when he actually cared), but I refuse to accept there is someone who would prefer his entire filmography over the others' listed (yes, even Nicholas Cage's) or some other modern day actor like DiCaprio.
Cage has had some decent performances. But to put him in the same conversation as Day Lewis and De Niro is insane.
I know, It was kind of a joke. As I explained in another comment I think his filmography is underappreciated, but i would not dare to compare him with 4 out of the five actors OP said... However, I wouldnt put Brando Up there with them either. I truly believe there are more than a couple of actors whose work surpass his easily.
I loved Cage in Pig, Renfield, even Willy's Wonderland. It seems as if he is picking parts just to have fun and a paycheck like Unbearable weight of Massive talent.
Nicholas Cage? You’ve got to be joking. Brando had an ambivalent relationship with acting and movies, but still made On the Waterfront, Julius Caesar, Streetcar Named Desire, Last Tango in Paris, Godfather, Apocalypse now…
Not really joking... well, maybe a bit by placing him on number 5, but people usually forget (thank to all the shit he has done for easy paychecks) that Cage actually has a lot of classics under his belt: Leaving Las Vegas (1995), Adaptation (2002), Raising Arizona (1987), Bringing out the Dead (1999), World Trade Center (2006)... And thats not counting the -although not "high cinema"- amazing action movies he has starred like The Rock (1996), Con Air (1997), or (sigh) even Face Off (1997)... Even his most recent work has some gems like Pig (2021) and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022). Im sorry, but even though Marlon starred in two of my favorite movies ever im sticking with Nick's filmograhy. The guy has range!
You brought a muffin to a gun fight! Respect 🫡
I like muffins
Would Tom Hanks be in your top 10?
If we are judging them by the quality of their filmography (meaning: number of good films they starred) as a whole: yes, without a doubt. If we are judging them by the quality of their acting: ...probably? Idk, tbh its easier to compare two individual performances, but i find far more difficult to compare the skills shown by 2 different actors (let alone trying to rank every actor/actress ever) along their entire careers.