Six Robert De Niro films that explore alienation, isolation and loneliness
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Domenica, Giugno 2, 2024
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“Loneliness has followed me my whole life,” says Robert De Niro’s character, Travis Bickle, in Taxi Driver.
Key Points:
- “Loneliness has followed me my whole life,” says Robert De Niro’s character, Travis Bickle, in Taxi Driver.
- He seems drawn to characters who experience, either through choice or circumstance, a life of loneliness and isolation.
- Here are six examples (among many) in which De Niro’s roles embody a sense of isolation, alienation or loneliness, both visually and thematically.
Taxi Driver (1976) and The King of Comedy (1982)
- Taxi Driver deals with undiagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder, insomnia and a simultaneous desire and inability to forge meaningful relationships.
- The King of Comedy, meanwhile, is a narcissistic odyssey about comedic stardom.
- Paul Schrader, who wrote the script for Taxi Driver, has discussed his specific style of “monocular vision” within the film, meaning that the central protagonist is present in almost every scene.
Raging Bull (1980)
- Those themes of extreme isolation, performance and even stand-up comedy come together again in another De Niro and Scorsese collaboration – Raging Bull.
- Raging Bull charts how LaMotta’s success came at the extreme price of estrangement from his family and friends.
- His obsession with dominating in the ring spilled out as toxic behaviour in his domestic life, driving every meaningful relationship away.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1994)
- In his career of strong, character-driven roles, some may overlook De Niro’s performance as the monster in Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of Mary Shelly’s gothic novel, Frankenstein.
- Branagh’s version, a faithful retelling, depicts Victor Frankenstein’s obsession with creating a living creature from human remains.
- Eventually, this fuels the monster’s hatred towards Frankenstein for giving him life without love.
Heat (1995)
- “Don’t let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you feel the heat around the corner.” This is the mantra of career criminal Neal McCauley (De Niro’s character in Heat) who adopts isolation as a calculated strength.
- His discipline and precision make up the impetus of this crime noir, structured around a protagonist who is “alone but not lonely”.