In what appears to be a move that could be called as such only on the assumption that Robert De Niro has forgotten that he made his name with performances and not through politics, the legendary actor took potshots at another celebrity in the recent interview – this time at the fellow actor James Woods. In this interview De Niro said: “(Woods) has lost all credibility by being ignorant and never getting any respect in Hollywood.”
It is hard to say much in favor of the statement that was clearly designed to show how smart the actor is in the matters he has not done anything serious in – but not without an apparent hope of showing some kind of moral superiority over his coevals as well. At least, Woods was quite prompt in his answer: “At least I never had to sell my soul for flop movies.”
It seems that this single sentence has done as much to De Niro’s credibility as his last few interviews combined: it showed him for what he now really is – an outspoken advocate of the views he supports regardless of the film industry standards.
De Niro’s career of the recent years could be described as the period of constant campaigning and constant attacks on the political adversaries of the star. It is hardly surprising that such an attitude could result in making of De Niro not a real artist but a kind of a constant scold. This explains the fact that a significant number of his later projects had to fail.
Woods, unlike De Niro, does not give in to political pressure of the contemporary film world. This makes him abrasive and outspoken, this makes him unpopular among the filmmakers – but it makes him one of those rare artists who can speak their mind without having to think whether this or that view is fashionable or not.
In the irony of it all, it is just about as perfect as it can get. While De Niro is trying to say that Woods lacks credibility, the truth is that he himself, with his works in the recent past failing to get a large audience outside those who are ready to clap, should not be saying anything about credibility. Woods just went straight to the bottom line of what cost was incurred in exchange for that trade.
This is an exchange that is highly unlikely to put a stop to the endless discussions. De Niro will keep speaking. People will still refer to Woods as an inconvenience. The difference here is that the path taken is shorter. When you sell your soul for a bad movie, the price paid remains high enough. Woods, however one chooses to criticize him, never did.
