The latest collection of Inside the Actors Studio DVDs feature several acting legends from three consecutive decades: from the 1970s, Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, from the 1980s, Sean Penn, and from the 1990s, Russell Crowe. The number of Academy Awards between them is impressive but more importantly, the number of classic films that these men have collectively generated is staggering. They are responsible for uttering some of well-liked culture’s most quotable dialogue and appearing in some of the most memorable scenes creating iconic characters.
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First up is De Niro who we learn had parents that were accomplished artists in their occupy just - shapely art painters. Naturally, host James Lipton, asks the actor how he met Martin Scorsese and several of their collaborations are discussed, including Mean Streets (Special Edition), Taxi Driver (Two-Disc Collector’s Edition), Raging Bull (Special Edition) and so on. The actor covers other milestone performances like The Godfather, Portion II (Two-Disc Widescreen Edition) but a glaring omission is powerful of his 1980s output: The King of Comedy, The Untouchables (Special Collector’s Edition), and Midnight Accelerate, or his most memorable turn in the 1990s, Heat (Two-Disc Special Edition) . One gets the feeling that some of these films might have been covered but were edited out. De Niro doesn’t reach across as the most verbal guy and, at times, it feels like Lipton is working hard to plot answers out of him.
In dissimilarity, Al Pacino is grand more eloquent about his craft and his experiences working on sure films. He also comes across as surprisingly humorous and humble which is nice considering what a larger than life figure he is. One keen factoid that comes out of this interview is that he got his open as a stand-up comedian and one gets the impression that he’d like to do more comedies but has a reputation for being an intense, dramatic actor. Naturally, they conceal the usual career highpoints: The Godfather DVD Collection (The Godfather/ The Godfather - Piece II/ The Godfather - Fragment III), Serpico (Widescreen Edition) and Dog Day Afternoon (Two-Disc Special Edition) . With these last two films, he talks about what he learned from working with director Sidney Lumet. Speaking of his turn in Scarface (Platinum Edition), Pacino praises Oliver Stone’s screenplay and how he spent months preparing for the role. They also touch upon his turn as slick salesman Ricky Roma in Glengarry Glen Ross and about Heat and what it was like finally getting to work with De Niro and their distinguished scene together.
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With his ever-present lit cigarette, Sean Penn is his usual no-nonsense, opinionated self as he talks about early signature roles like Spicoli in Speedily Times at Ridgemont High (Widescreen Special Edition) and his solid turns in underrated films, Awful Boys and The Falcon and the Snowman. He and Lipton also discuss one of his best performances in At Halt Range and how he paralyzed Christopher Walken in a pivotal scene where he brandishes a gun. Naturally, they talk about his directing efforts and how he was tired of films being unprejudiced entertainment and he wanted to execute ones that mattered, like the motion pictures he admired in the 1970s. The result was The Indian Runner. Of his `90s work, I enjoyed his candid comments about making Carlito’s Blueprint - Ultimate Edition and how he admired Pacino’s unpredictability.
Russell Crowe came into prominence in the 1990s with several blistering performances of tall intensity but comes across as quite horrified in this interview. He speaks candidly about how he was told not to do Romper Stomper (Special Edition) because it would end his career. He also offers his seize on Bud White, whom he played so well in L.A. Confidential. Crowe stresses the importance of preparation and research. He also talks about his surprise at getting the role of Jeffrey Wigand in The Insider because he was so mighty younger than the dependable man. Of course, he talks about his iconic role in Gladiator - Extended Edition (Three-Disc Extended Edition) and how they started filming with only 30-odd pages!
You really can’t go depraved with this lovely collection and for fans of any of these actors this is a must-have.
In addition to including an introduction to each episode by Lipton, there are “Substantial Moments That Didn’t Beget the Cleave,” a collection of deleted scenes with even more anecdotes by the interview subjects. De Niro talks about making The Deer Hunter (Universal Legacy Series) and gaining weight as well as achieving Al Capone’s haircut for The Untouchables.
Pacino tells an comic sage about when he bought his first car and how the same day it was stolen. There’s also a comical clip where Kevin Spacey talks about working with Pacino on Glengarry Glen Ross and does a colossal impersonation of him.
Penn talks about working with Walken on At End Range and how the faded actor would sometimes play Penn’s fraction in a scene when he couldn’t figure something out. He also talks about how a Bruce Springsteen song inspired The Indian Runner.
Crowe talks about how he abstained from drinking beer while making L.A. Confidential because James Ellroy said that his character didn’t drink it. He also talks about how he adopted the notice of Wigand in The Insider and the challenge that it presented.
I saw the Al Pacino interview on DVD, and they have edited the language, objective like the TV version.
What is the relieve of buying the DVD version if we cannot hear the paunchy dialogue of these mountainous actors?
Terrible decision to edit the DVD. I recently saw the Robin Williams interview on Bravo. Enormously droll, which made me consider about buying the DVD version, if it exists. However, the TV version is heavily edited or “bleeped” out. Now I know the DVD version is exactly the same as the TV version. I consider that one of the benefits of buying a program is that we accept to recognize the paunchy, raw interview. Not for this series, unfortunately.
4 stars for the interview, 0 stars for the Actors Studio dopes who decided to heavily edit what these astronomical actors are saying.
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