For more than 50 years now,Al Pacinohas remained one of the best and most exciting actors not just of his generation, but of all time. Though his breakout role as Michael Corleone inThe Godfathergave him the chance to impress with a quietly intense performance, he eventually gained a reputation for hamming it up on screen, looking like he was having a blast, and in turn being a blast to watch.
Not all his roles involve scenery chewing or copious amounts of swearing and yelling, but some of his most famous and well-beloved movies do feature Pacino going big, and getting loud. The following arguably rank as his most over-the-top performances, but they’re generally over-the-top in a good way. He’s amazing in most of these movies, and is the sort of actor whoshows there’s genuine skill and an overall art to delivering grand and showy performances.
15’House of Gucci' (2021)
Appeared as Aldo Gucci
To be fair to Al Pacino, he’s actually rather subdued compared to some of the other actors who star inHouse of Gucci. This is a regrettably big crime movie in more ways than one; first and foremost, it’s much too long, and secondly, there are some really hammy performances that are fun at first, but do eventually get tiring, particularly when paired with that bloated runtime of 2.5+ hours.
Jared Letois probably the worst offender, andLady Gaga definitely gives it her all(and then some), with Al Pacino being a moderately large ham; perhaps hammy enough. Everyone puts on exaggerated Italian accents and gets some borderline-camp dialogue to chew on, and yes, it’s a good time… for a while, but thenyou might well find yourself begging for actors and editors alike to bring it down a bit.
House of Gucci
14’Ocean’s Thirteen' (2007)
Appeared as Willy Bank
The original trilogy ofOcean’smovies is a bit of an odd one, because things started well, by heist movie standards, withOcean’s Eleven, fell considerably withOcean’s Twelve, and then picked up a little withOcean’s Thirteen. Sure, this threequel isn’t great, but it is an improvement on the first sequel, and Al Pacino’s entry into the series is a welcome one.
He plays the central villain here, and the ultimate target for another heist, which is made personal after he causes a heart attack of someone close to theOcean’screw. Al Pacino might not chew scenery outright throughout, but he certainly nibbles on it at the very least, andseems to be having fun playing a pretty unambiguously bad guy throughout, and getting to clash with an all-star cast all the way.
Ocean’s Thirteen
Rent on Apple TV
13’Gigli' (2003)
Appeared as Starkman
Gigliwas an honestly pretty dreadful moviethat deserves most of its infamy, and wasbad enough that it’s something of a miracle the actors who starred in it (largely) bounced back, career-wise. It’s sort of a romantic comedy that’s also a crime movie, but it’s not particularly romantic, it’s only infrequently funny at best, and it fails to provide much by way of thrills, intrigue, or suspense, as far as the crime stuff’s concerned.
Thankfully, for Pacino, he’s mostly just here for an extended cameo, and he does succeed in bringing a little energy toGiglioverall; he andChristopher Walken(who also has a small role) at least make their scenes watchable. Perhaps it’s the sort of film where you’re best off just watching the minimal highlights on YouTube, since the actual overall experience ofGigliis an arduous and difficult to recommend one.
12’Phil Spector' (2013)
Appeared as Phil Spector
While it might not be one ofthe absolute worst Al Pacino movies,Phil Spectorprobably deserves to be considered one of his lesser films for sure. It takes a look at the murder trial of the infamous titular music producer, with Al Pacino playing him andHelen Mirrenplaying his defense attorney,Linda Kenney Baden, with the strange relationship between the two of them explored throughout.
There is some silliness toPhil Spectorthat can make it a bit of a morbid curiosity.
It’s not particularly gripping as far as courtroom dramas go,but there is some silliness toPhil Spectorthat can make it a bit of a morbid curiosity. Pacino is playing someone who could charitably be called a pretty strange guy here, and he brings a little by way of over-the-top sentiments to that role… though, to be fair, it’s a wig he eventually wears that does much of the heavy lifting, regarding any potential hamminess.
Watch on Max
11’Jack and Jill' (2011)
Appeared as Al Pacino
InJack and Jill, Al Pacino gets to play an exaggerated version of himself, in what amounts to an extended cameo that is understandably regarded as a low point in Pacino’s career. He’s not inJack and Jilla huge amount, thankfully and, to his credit, he isprobably responsible for the scenes in the movie that come the closest to actually being funny, for what little that might be worth.
Right from the trailer, this never looked good, and the final product ended up being a real slog; the broadest of broad comedies, with everyone involved sleepwalking or goofily blustering their way through it.Adam Sandler, playing both titular roles, did the former, while Pacino is more entertaining because he opted to do the latter, having what almost feels like fun, hamming it up as “himself.”
Jack and Jill
10’And Justice for All' (1979)
Appeared as Arthur Kirkland
Emotions tend to run high when it comes tothe courtroom drama genre, and so when you couple a movie centering on a trial with Al Pacino in a starring role, things are inevitably going to get heated. This is the case forAnd Justice for All, which sees Pacino playing a lawyer who’s more or less forced into defending a client he knows is guilty, which challenges his sense of ethics.
And Justice for Alldoesn’t see Pacino in full-on shouty mode for its entire runtime, but the film does build and push its central character further and further, which eventually results in a famous outburst.Pacino’s character yelling: “You’re out of order! You’re out of order! The whole trial is out of order!”is the most well-known part of the film, so And Justice for All is worth mentioning here for that part alone.
And Justice for All
9’The Irishman' (2019)
Appeared as Jimmy Hoffa
Al Pacino gets to work with a range of emotions throughoutThe Irishman, portraying the real-lifeJimmy Hoffain a movie that’s certainly long enough to give him various opportunities to shine. That’s also to say that it’s not a film where Pacino is consistently bombastic, but he does get many of the film’s best lines, and certainly gets to be animated enough at certain points to make an impression.
Hoffa is shown to be a charismatic and somewhat larger-than-life figure, but he needs to be, given his passion is what draws others to him and his ferocity is what makes him an effective (perhaps too effective for some) union leader.Robert De Niro and Joe Pesciturn in somewhat subtler performances, providing a nice contrast to Pacino; all three are great, and all give refreshingly different performances from the others, too.
The Irishman
8’Dog Day Afternoon' (1975)
Appeared as Sonny Wortzik
There’s a natural amount of tension found withinDog Day Afternoon, perhaps comparably so to the high-intensityAnd Justice for All.Dog Day Afternoonis also something of a crime/drama film, but Pacino plays a bank robber out of his depths here, instead of a lawyer, withmost of the movie showcasing the aftermath of a heist gone wrong; one that ends up attracting heavy media attention.
Unfolding not quite in real-time, but still in a fairly short window of time,Dog Day Afternoonis continually nerve-wracking, sweat-drenched, and uneasy, and Al Pacino is more than up to the task of adding to such feelings with his jittery and high-strung performance. He’s excellent throughout, and effectively showy when he needs to be. In contrast,John Cazale(who appeared alongside Pacino in the first twoGodfathermovies) also impresses as the other robber wrapped up in the whole situation, though his role is a much quieter one.
Dog Day Afternoon
7’Any Given Sunday' (1999)
Appeared as Tony D’Amato
Oliver Stonedoesn’t tend to enjoy subtlety, so him directing Al Pacino should be a match made in heaven.Any Given Sundayshows this is kind of the case; it’s not one of Pacino’s best films, but could be considered underrated, as though it’s a bit bloated and uneven, it does work here and there as a high-energy (and sometimes surprisingly brutal) sports movie.
Pacino plays a coach who’s faced with challenges in his life, given he’s getting older, and he’s finding his job to be increasingly difficult. He goes through a good deal emotionally, andAl Pacino gets to convey it all in his typically effective and oftentimes loud way. He doesn’t hold much backthroughoutAny Given Sunday, but as a few soon-to-be-mentioned films show, the man can very much go even bigger.
Any Given Sunday
6’Glengarry Glen Ross' (1992)
Appeared as Ricky Roma
InGlengarry Glen Ross, Al Pacino is just one part of an impressive ensemble cast, but he easily makes enough of an impression for the film to be considered one of his best. Narratively, it focuses on a group of men working in the real estate business, and the cutthroat competition that comes about when they’re told that after a certain amount of time, all but two of them are going to be fired.
What begins as a drama soon starts to feel even more high-stakes and gripping, almost to the point whereGlengarry Glen Rossfunctions as something like a thriller. All the actors going big here have more than enough reason to, given the pressure most of the characters are put under, andit’s the perfect sort of movie for showcasing how passionate and intense Pacino – in particular – can get as an actor.
