AI vs All

From the debut part in 'Me, Natalie' to the upcoming 'Trial of Axis Sally', his film career has been a whirlwind, as wayward as his life: of a troubled 'Bronx' childhood, deserting father, depressed mother, street gang patronage, and a host of desperate ways of earning money - from shoe shining to moving furniture.?

Thanks to the 'Panic in Needle Park', Francis Ford Coppola discovered him for the world's benefit, fighting Paramount Pictures and Mario Puzo who were dead against casting a 'nobody' resorting to ad-lib to play Marlon Brando's youngest son in 'The Godfather', a pivotal character with maximum screen footage.

The rest is a lot of history, geography and civics.?

We are not lucky enough to witness his theater performances like? 'Hello, Out There',? 'Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie?', 'Richard III', 'Merchant of Venice', or 'Salome.'?

However, we do have an equally engaging option of watching his films all over again.?

His 'Micheal Corleone' is of course part of folklore, but he is unforgettable in most parts, save for a few trashy flicks where the shoddy material mars his sincerity, which hence appears gaudy. And we are not referring to "Godfather III" which had only him as the saving grace.

It is so easy to excuse this short man of tall stature for all his temperamental liberties.?

Simply pull back your chair without fastening the seat belt, such that you can feel the length and breadth of the character's screen turbulence:

Just picture Sonny's stunned expression in the concluding frame of 'Dog Day Afternoon', astutely set against the ruthless aerodrome noise, or the dazed look at the fag end of 'Scarecrow' which has Pacino delivering some 24 carat magic in the stellar company of thespian Gene Hackman.

Or you could recall the lovable Cuban Tony Montana in any scene of 'Scarface' - whatever the choice, the effect will be the same! Tony makes us believe in all the nonsense he believes in. There's no visible effort - either his or ours.?

You could go 'Carlito's way' for some high quality entertainment which becomes believeable only because Pacino is at work.

You could rekindle the memories of the whistleblower cop Frank 'Serpico' who famously remarked - "I am retarded - I mean I am retired."?

You could marvel 'You Don’t Know Jack' for his version of Dr. Jack Kevorkian who famously said “Self-determination is a basic human right”

Why not relive Arthur's heartrending wail from 'And Justice for All' - I can't appeal it, he's dead! he's dead! Half hour after they put him in the lockup, he hanged himself!" or the famous speech from 'The scent of a woman': "I'm not finished! As I came in here, I heard those words, "cradle of leadership." Well, when the bough breaks, the cradle will fall. And it has fallen here; it has fallen. Makers of men; creators of leaders; be careful what kind of leaders you're producin' here."

There is an easier way out - you could simply exclaim "Hooha" with all your might.

Pacino is not your everyday method actor; he makes method and madness delightfully synonymous. Precisely why his talent doesn't need the validation of Academy Awards, nor the showy endorsement of a blatantly exhibitionist media, nor a gaudy film like 'Heat', which was a poor attempt to bring two legends in one frame - Robert De Niro and Al Pacino - just for the heck of it. And Martin Scorcese should have done way more with the Pacino magic than what the inconsequential part in 'The Irishman' produced. Well, If you could invest a lifetime in Joe Pesci, how could you ignore the master. No offense meant to Pesci, who was brilliant in 'The Irishman.'

At 84, Pacino wants to play Pablo Picasso.

Kind attention dream merchants of Hollywood, Alfredo James Pacino deserves this treat as one of his swansongs. Throw it for the sake of good cinema - you have enough money at hand for that, we know that!

Just that Pacino shouldn't be allowed to stop at Picasso. Let him say - "Just when I thought I was out ...they pull me back in."

Hooha!? ?