10 Essential Robert De Niro Performances
4. Vito Corleone - The Godfather Part II (1974)
Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro were extrinsically linked before The Godfather Part II, but, once De Niro was chosen to play the young Vito Corleone, it seemed that they were destined to become intrinsic to one another.
It’s testament to De Niro’s power as an actor that he managed to both mimic Brando - the rasping voice, the finger touches to the cheek - and create his own character. His turn as the young Vito isn't actually a ‘classic’ De Niro performance, though. His character is passive, even in murder, and there are very few hints (other than De Niro's predilection towards moments of looming silence) to the traits that would become synonymous with the actor's style and technique.
De Niro matched Brando by too winning an Oscar for his work here, a feat made more impressive by the fact that he speaks fluent Italian for the duration of the film.