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Tag: robert deniro

  • Drugs, Divorce, and Directors Jail: Martin Scorsese Unpacks His Darkest Chapters in New Documentary

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    One of the most surprising realities of Martin Scorsese’s success is just how often he was on the brink of losing it. The 82-year-old auteur’s setbacks occupy as much real estate as his victories do in Mr. Scorsese, a five-part docuseries covering his film career, now streaming on Apple TV.

    Directed by Rebecca Miller, daughter of playwright Arthur Miller and wife of Daniel Day-Lewis (who starred in Scorsese’s The Age of Innocence and Gangs of New York), Mr. Scorsese follows the director from his rough-and-tumble adolescence in New York’s Little Italy neighborhood to his making of the 10-time Oscar-nominated Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)—touching on every set in between. Scorsese discusses his oeuvre in great detail—with assists from family, friends, and former collaborators such as Day-Lewis, Francesca Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mick Jagger, Steven Spielberg, Jodie Foster, and Cate Blanchett, as well as Casino’s Sharon Stone and The Wolf of Wall Street’s Margot Robbie, both of whom speak candidly about working on their respective male-dominated Scorsese projects.

    After exploring the Mob violence he grew up near on film, Scorsese was often reduced to his gangster dramas (Mean Streets, Goodfellas), but nearly as much of the filmmaker’s work is rooted in his Catholic religion (The Last Temptation of Christ, Silence). Even Scorsese’s otherwise secular titles ponder questions like, “Who are we? What are we, I should say, as human beings?” as he says in the series’ opening. “Are we intrinsically good or evil?… This is the struggle. And I struggle with it all the time.”

    That dichotomy is reflected in some of Scorsese’s darker chapters, which range from a drug addiction during the 1970s to four divorces before his marriage to his current wife, Helen Morris, in 1999. “The problem is that you enjoy the sin!” Scorsese says in the series. “That’s the problem I’ve always had! I enjoy it. When I was bad, I enjoyed a lot of it.” Ahead, some of the most revealing moments from Mr. Scorsese.

    Scorsese credits his childhood asthma with facilitating his love of cinema.

    “As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster,” Ray Liotta’s character memorably declares at the end of Goodfellas’ opening scene. But Scorsese himself actually pursued the priesthood before his love of movies took root. He grew up first in Corona, Queens, then in New York City’s Lower East Side after witnessing an altercation between his father, Charles, a Garment District worker, and their landlord. “There was an axe involved. I remember seeing an axe,” Scorsese says in the doc, without elaborating much further. “Violence was imminent all the time.”

    When not braving the mean streets or finding refuge in the Catholic Church, an asthmatic Scorsese often visited air-conditioned movie theaters and engaged in people-watching from his apartment window. In the series, Scorsese even credits that particular vantage point with instilling his love of high-angle shots in movies.
    “Marty’s life depended upon going to movies,” says Goodfellas and Casino screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi. “That’s where he could breathe.” Or as Spike Lee more colorfully puts it: “Thank God for asthma!”

    Scorsese fantasized about destroying the rough cut of Taxi Driver after it received an X rating.

    After helming the Roger Corman–produced exploitation film Boxcar Bertha (1972), his first De Niro gangster epic, Mean Streets (1973), and Ellen Burstyn’s Oscar-winning turn in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974), Scorsese had his major industry breakthrough with Taxi Driver in 1976—which had a fraught journey to the screen.

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    Savannah Walsh

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  • Hollywood Honors Diane Keaton: “Incredible and Indelible”

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    The world was stunned Saturday at the news that Diane Keaton—the iconic actor known for Annie Hall, Something’s Gotta Give, the Godfather trilogy, and many other films—had died. Keaton, who was 79, reportedly passed on Saturday, October, 11, after what’s said to have been a recent health crisis. Within hours, Hollywood luminaries began to share remembrances of Keaton, noting her distinctive style, artistic acumen, and kindness.

    Many of those tributes were posted to social media. In an Instagram post, Bette Midler, who starred in the 1996 film The First Wives Club alongside Diane Keaton, wrote “She was hilarious, a complete original, and completely without guile, or any of the competitiveness one would have expected from such a star. What you saw was who she was…oh, la, lala!” Kate Hudson, whose mother, Goldie Hawn, was also in that film, shared a clip from the movie, writing “We love you so much Diane.”

    Hawn herself wrote “How do we say goodbye? What words can come to mind when your heart is broken? You never liked praise, so humble, but now you can’t tell me to ‘shut up’ honey. There was, and will be, no one like you.”

    “We agreed to grow old together, and one day, maybe live together with all our girlfriends,” Hawn continued. “Well, we never got to live together, but we did grow older together. Who knows… maybe in the next life. Shine your fairy dust up there, girlfriend. I’m going to miss the hell out of you.”

    Goldie Hawn, Diane Keaton, and Bette Midler at the premiere of “The First Wives Club.”

    Vince Bucci/Getty Images

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    Eve Batey

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  • Robert De Niro Is Building a $250 Million Hotel on Princess Diana’s Favorite Beach

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    Robert De Niro is expanding his real estate portfolio. The famous Tribeca native is setting his sights on the Caribbean and building a $250 million hotel complex on the island of Barbuda, on a beach named after the late Princess Diana, who often frequented the now defunct K Club.

    De Niro has developed an impressive real estate career along with his storied film career. The two-time Oscar winner is also a co-owner of the Nobu brand, which includes about 60 Nobu restaurants and 19 hotels and is worth approximately $1 billion. With his new venture, dubbed The Beach Club Barbuda, De Niro seeks to add another resort to his portfolio.

    The secluded spot on Princess Diana Beach has captivated De Niro ever since he first visited the island, located approximately 30 miles north of Antigua. “I came on a boat from Antigua for lunch one day and I didn’t even know what the island was, but I never forgot the beach. It was just beautiful. I thought that if I ever did a resort, this could be the place,” De Niro told The Telegraph.

    De Niro is not building this resort alone. He’s working with his Australian billionaire business partner, James Packer, as well as British entrepreneur Daniel Shamoon, whom he met seven years ago when opening a Nobu restaurant at Shamoon’s Puente Romano hotel in Marbella, Spain.

    Princess Diana was fond of the Caribbean and came to Barbuda on several occasions. In 1997, shortly before her death, Diana was photographed at the K Club, stretched out on a deckchair, all smiles, in a blue-and-green bathing suit.

    The K Club, the property where Lady Diana used to recuperate on Barbuda, became available in 2014 after lying dormant and unused for 10 years. Packer and De Niro took over the lease for the 400-acre site, and De Niro renovated for himself a cottage that had belonged to the club’s architect. The Raging Bull star has described his house on the island as “modest.” “It’s very simple, just a one-level beach house with a couple of guest rooms connected to it,” he said.

    De Niro almost lost his Barbuda home when Hurricane Irma swept across the Caribbean island in 2017. Almost every building on Barbuda was destroyed, and the tiny island’s 1,600 residents were all forced to evacuate to neighboring Antigua for up to a year. “Barbuda was leveled, pretty much. In my house, the ocean had pushed the furniture into the living room and out the back window into the backyard,” De Niro said. “And then, oddly enough, there was a little table with a box of tissues that had not been touched. You see that with these disasters, where things are spared for some weird reason.”

    Post-disaster, De Niro patched up his home to make it “exactly the same way that it was,” but, as a part of the construction on The Beach Club Barbuda, he’s preparing to demolish it and rebuild it again, adding “a few extra bedrooms, a pool, and a tennis court.” Located along two miles of scenic seafront property, De Niro’s resort will include Nobu Beach Inn, a hotel with 17 villas as large as 6,000 square feet. Each villa will reportedly have a private beach garden with outdoor showers, ice baths, and even an omakase sushi bar. There will also be 25 beachfront villas that will come fully furnished and be customizable with home cinemas and wine cellars, starting at $12 million. The property is due for completion in early 2026.

    The 82-year-old De Niro shares a two-year-old daughter, Gia, with his 46-year-old partner, Tiffany Chen. Gia is the youngest of De Niro’s seven children from four different relationships, a group that also includes model and actor Airyn, who recently came out as a trans woman. As for Barbuda, De Niro told The Telegraph that he plans to spend “as much time there as my schedule allows, always with members of my family, who love it there too.”

    “It’s very calm. It’s very pleasant,” De Niro said of Barbuda. “There aren’t many people around. The donkeys come to me, that’s all.”

    Originally published in Vanity Fair France.

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    Blanche Marcel

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  • Screening at Venice: Mike Figgis’ ‘Megadoc’

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    The director’s portrait of Francis Ford Coppola’s creative process is never allowed to probe deeply enough. Courtesy Venice Film Festival

    From Leaving Las Vegas director Mike Figgis, Megadoc is a fly-on-the-wall documentary about the making of Megalopolis, Francis Ford Coppola’s white whale production, which he finally released last year. The response to Coppola’s mad utopian epic ranged from baffled to mixed, and while some, like myself, were awestruck by its ambition, there’s no denying that the $120 million self-funded saga makes for an enrapturing curio. However, it’s hard not to wonder if Megadoc is the right film to answer any burning questions, given its own troubles—which become a minor subject too, as Figgis is left with no choice but to turn the lens on himself.

    There’s no denying that Megadoc has at least some academic value: it’s the kind of documentary students might watch in a Production 101 class to get a taste of the chaos of big movie sets. This might sound like a backhanded compliment, but as the 77-year-old Figgis narrates in the opening minutes (about the 86-year-old Coppola), he’s never actually seen another director at work. Megadoc is a mood piece and a process piece, shot up close with lo-fi video equipment, but it’s never allowed to probe deeply enough. With jagged cuts mid-scene, several unfolding threads are left feeling incomplete, while the movie’s two leads—Adam Driver and Nathalie Emmanuel—barely feature, which Figgis attributes to their reluctance to be filmed on set. Much like Megalopolis, Megadoc faces challenges while searching for its voice. However, where Coppola succeeds in his pursuit by the end, Figgis does not, despite the movie’s many gestures toward riveting topics.

    The documentary not only chronicles the early days of Megalopolis rehearsals—during which Coppola plays theater and improv games, establishing his credo of having fun—but it also flashes back to earlier taped readings and screen tests from two decades ago, during which stars like Uma Thurman and Ryan Gosling were once part of the production. The long road to finally making Megalopolis just about fades into view, but the doc seldom seems to have enough footage to follow a single train of thought.

    MEGADOG ★★1/2 (2.5/4 stars)
    Directed by: Mike Figgis
    Starring: Francis Ford Coppola, Eleanor Coppola, Adam Driver, Aubrey Plaza, Nathalie Emmanuel, Dustin Hoffman, Giancarlo Esposito, Chloe Fineman, Shia Labeouf, Laurence Fishburne, Jon Voight, Talia Shire, Robert DeNiro
    Running time: 107 mins.

    Figgis, on the occasions that he speaks to the camera, seems acutely aware of his role as a storyteller in search of on-set conflict, which he finds most often in the relationship between the experienced Coppola and the hot-headed former child star Shia LaBeouf, a pair whose respective playful and logistical philosophies make for an awkward fit. LaBeouf references the controversies that have made him persona non grata in Hollywood, and how his precarious employability informs his initially cautious approach. This care is eventually shed, leading to numerous intriguing and hilarious clashes between the duo, but the film either isn’t interested in expounding upon Shia’s life (and the way it informs his mindset) or isn’t able to get the right sound bites. Either way, it comes achingly close to finding its heart and soul in the oddball, pseudo father-son relationship between the director of The Godfather and the star of Nickelodeon’s Even Stevens, and what a joy that would have been. However, the numerous times they end up at loggerheads, with their diametrically opposed approaches to meaning and artistry, end up lost in the shuffle of the doc’s many other concerns.

    There are tidbits about budgets, costumes, visual effects and so on, but Figgis’ record is too straightforward and too chronological (often in a literal, day-by-day sense) to capture the fraught process of filmmaking and how its challenges are overcome. Anytime the department heads are seen trying to pull off some practical magic trick, Megadoc seldom establishes what goal they’re working toward, in the form of either concept art or finished footage. Although we’re allowed to glimpse the finished product of certain shots, in the meantime, all we’re left with are scenes of people tinkering and working toward objectives that are rarely clear to even viewers who have seen Megalopolis.

    Some interviews with more experienced actors like Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight provide wise insight about Coppola’s process, while relative newcomer Aubrey Plaza forms an amusing bond with the director, based on sarcastic banter. But there’s never enough cohesion behind Megadoc to make it more than just a behind-the-scenes special feature. For a filmmaker like Figgis, whose 2000 four-way split-screen movie Timecode remains a landmark of digital experimentation—it was the first feature made in one take (that too four times over), even though Russian Ark wrongly gets the credit—capturing Coppola at his most wildly experimental ought to feel like a spark of madness burning through the screen. Whether or not it actually instilled these feelings in Figgis is hard to tell, but given Megadoc’s languid unveiling, the mad science on display rarely ends up felt, and is most often observed at a casual and disappointing distance.

    Screening at Venice: Mike Figgis’ ‘Megadoc’

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    Siddhant Adlakha

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  • Ripping the Headlines Today – Paul Lander, Humor Times

    Ripping the Headlines Today – Paul Lander, Humor Times

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    Making fun of the headlines today, so you don’t have to

    The news, even that about Taco Bell, doesn’t need to be complicated or confusing; that’s what any new release from Microsoft is for. And, as in the case with anything from Microsoft, to keep the news from worrying our pretty little heads over, remember something new and equally indecipherable will come out soon: 

    Really all you need to do is follow one simple rule: barely pay attention and jump to conclusions. So, here are some headlines today and my first thoughts:

    Taco Bell
    Taco Bell order is easy prey for a hungry bear.

    Nacho average bear: Florida mammal swipes $45 Taco Bell order from porch after Uber Eats delivery

    That’s like 9,000 tacos and a churro worth …

    Black Friday sales surge, despite economic uncertainties

    Actually, I went to an after-Thanksgiving sale once. Never again … because it’s true, ‘once you go Black Friday you never go back.’

    Joe Biden confused Britney Spears for Taylor Swift

    … While Trump confused his ex-wife with the woman he sexually assaulted.

    21 warning signs someone is Bipolar

    For one, they think there are 42 signs.

    NATO jets intercept Russian military plane over Baltic States

    … As opposed to NY Jets, who only get intercepted.

    Leonardo DiCaprio celebrated his 49th Birthday

    … Big turnout, probably because it wasn’t on a school night.

    Trump releases a letter from a doctor declaring that the former president’s “overall health is excellent” and “cognitive exams were “exceptional”

    So, it was signed Dr. George Santos, MD.

    Swimmer spots ‘once in a lifetime’ sight of sea lion battling octopus, video shows

    Weirdest thing was guest ref Sponge Bob Referee Pants.

    Former US first lady Rosalynn Carter dies at 96

    … And, not just a First Lady, but always a lady first. God speed.

    Founder of far-right Catholic site resigns over breach of its morality clause, group says

    I believe they made the announcement on XXX.

    Robert De Niro didn’t appreciate the claim that he would take phone calls while using the bathroom

    No word if bad cell service in bathrooms forced him to ask callers: ‘Hello, hello. You talking to me?’

    Republicans only care about the debt when a Democrat is president

    Yup, otherwise they suffer from ‘Lack of Attention To The Deficit Disorder.’

    Britney Spears’ memoir sold 1.1 million copies in its first week

    With all the dating revelations In Britney Spears’ new book, instead of the ‘Woman in Me,’ it should be called ‘The Men in Me.’

    Virginia Democrat Susanna Gibson loses state House race after sex video scandal

    … People were shocked seeing a politician with their actual spouse …

    Paul LanderPaul Lander
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    Paul Lander

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  • She’s The Man!

    She’s The Man!

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    They’d say I hustled, put in the work

    They wouldn’t shake their heads and question how much of this I deserve

    What I was wearing, if I was rude

    Could all be separated from my good ideas and power moves

    Taylor Swift, “The Man”

    When
    Barbie premiered in July, women felt seen in the cinema — perhaps for the first time in a long time. Greta Gerwig’s Barbie was more than a beginner’s feminist manifesto, but also a meditation on what it means to be both a woman and mother in today’s world. It was a gentle reminder that maybe we’re all just trying our best — and that our best is enough.

    It also encouraged women celebrate each other more.
    The Barbie effect had us all wearing pink, emulating Margot Robbie’s cowboy-chic style, and referring to men as our “Kens.” And with help from Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, her friendship bracelets, and sense of community, women were winning. It’s the first year in history that women dominated the Billboard Hot 100 twice (thanks to Swift and her Midnights and 1989 (Taylor’s Version) album). Like I said, it’s a good year to be a woman.

    This celebration of women and our successes is long overdue, but the promising news is that it isn’t slowing down.
    Barbie’s feminist wave has shifted how we are accepting ourselves (and others) as women.

    So it’s no surprise that women are raking in awards this year too, dominating the Grammy nominations and more. We hail celebrities for all sorts of achievements: Patrick Dempsey is
    People’s Sexiest Man Alive (deserved), Taylor Swift is the world leader (they literally projected her welcome onto Christ the Redeemer), and Austin Butler is Best Elvis (because somehow we have multiple).

    And one of the buzziest celeb awards is run by
    GQ (short for Gentlemen’s Quarterly), whose “Men Of The Year” award is a highlight of every fall/winter. Similar to TIME’s 100 list, GQ likes to celebrate those who have taken the world by storm annually.

    This year, the recipient of the Man of the Year award is none other than
    Kim Kardashian…and they’re not wrong.

    Kim has been taking her empire to new heights in 2023: building on the 2022 launch of her
    SKKN-care line, breaking ground with Skims’ Men’s campaign, the Nipple Bra, and becoming the official partner of the NBA/WNBA, working on prison reform, filming The Kardashians on Hulu, starring alongside Emma Roberts in Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story as Siobhan Corbyn, I could go on.

    Calling someone “the man” has now become synonymous with “a winner.” Saying “you’re the man” is a sign of their success. And though this might have problematic roots, women are reclaiming the term — like the Taylor Swift song.
    And in the grand scheme of things: Kim Kardashian is the man.

    Some hard working men get the title alongside Kim in the
    GQ issue. The other MOTY honorees include Jacob Elordi (AKA Elvis #2, who’s starring in blockbusters like Sofia Coppolla’s Priscilla and Saltburn alongside Barry Keoghan), Buffalo Bills’ safety Damar Hamlin, designer-turned-filmmaker Tom Ford, and Travis Scott. But you have to admit that Kim hasn’t come up for air this year.

    It’s right there for us to see in episodes of
    The Kardashians: Kim flying from country to country for another event on her booked and busy schedule. She’s literally everywhere at once, officiating recently divorced Chris Appleton and Lukas Gage’s wedding, shooting countless magazine covers and promo shoots for her growing enterprise, opening a Skims popup here, and shooting an episode of AHS there.

    Is there anything she can’t do?

    Meet The Previous Recipients Of GQ’s Men of the Year

    Kim Kardashian is one of the few women to grace the cover of
    GQ’s Man of the Year edition. Technically dubbed “Tycoon of the Year”, acknowledging her business successes over the past few years (and for the gender neutrality of it all)- Kardashian joins a host of some of the most famous men in the world. Let’s take a look at the past five years:

    2022: Brendan Fraser, Andrew Garfield


    2021: Lil Nas X, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tom Holland


    2020: Megan Thee Stallion, George Clooney, Trevor Noah


    2019: Jennifer Lopez, Tyler, The Creator, Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino


    2018: Michael B. Jordan, Henry Golding, Jonah Hill

    Women are normally recognized during the Men of the Year ceremonies, as it is a celebration of all people who emulated pop culture that year…however, no year has celebrated women quite like 2023.

    The Men of the Year Awards 2023 were held on November 15 at London’s Royal Opera House where cover stars like Jeremy Allen White, boygenius, and Kardashian were in attendance.

    Other female recipients included Megan Thee Stallion and Rihanna, who have paved their own paths in both the music and fashion industry. Rihanna with her Savage x Fenty inclusive lingerie line and Fenty Beauty has been changing the makeup and underwear game for a while now. Megan Thee Stallion is coming off a high-profile trial that she won against Tory Lanez, under immense public scrutiny, has become a figure for mental health and domestic violence while still creating hit records.

    It’s one of the most female-dominated
    GQ events we’ve seen, which is a pattern. The GRAMMY Award nominations just rolled out with so many female artists nominated, you’d think it’s a record. In the top three categories, female acts make up seven out of eight nominees.

    This year, women are the man. It’s an exciting, uplifting time where we get to celebrate with each other instead of tearing one another down. Kim K is just another example of the
    Barbie effect.

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    Jai Phillips

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  • New Dad Robert De Niro Celebrates His Other Baby, the Tribeca Film Festival

    New Dad Robert De Niro Celebrates His Other Baby, the Tribeca Film Festival

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    Robert De Niro, the 79-year-old screen legend, founder of the Tribeca Film Festival, and new dad (mazel!) of baby No. 7 with girlfriend Tiffany Chen, arrived at the kick-off of the festival Wednesday night for the premiere of Kiss the Future, this year’s opening selection. 

    De Niro and Chen walked the red carpet hand-in-hand before taking in the documentary, which was produced by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. 

    Chen wore a black dress, an oversized beige cardigan, aviator sunglasses, and heels, while De Niro went with the classic “off-duty dad” ensemble of a polo and blazer with dark slacks. Unlike Chen, he opted for flats. 

    The baby everyone’s buzzing about, Gia Virginia Chen De Niro, was born two months ago on April 6, but the world was made aware of her last month when De Niro corrected an interviewer who called him a dad of six. “Seven, actually,” he said. Pardon? “I just had a baby.” There’s a 51-year age gap between Gia and De Niro’s eldest child, Drina, whom De Niro adopted in 1976 with his ex-wife Diahnne Abbott. 

    Chen and De Niro were first seen out and about together in August 2021. Chen is a martial arts instructor, and also had a role in De Niro’s 2015 film The Intern, co-starring Anne Hathaway. 

    Earlier Wednesday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams presented De Niro with a key to the city in thanks for his activism and support of the arts. Typically, keys are a choking hazard for babies and young kids, but this one’s mounted on a plaque, so baby-proofing fanatics can breathe easy. 

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    Kase Wickman

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