Martin Scorsese’s rueful, poignant 2019 film “The Irishman,” starring longtime collaborator Robert De Niro, was a reflection on (or perhaps even a eulogy for) the kind of gangster film that the pair made famous, like Scorsese saying farewell to the genre, ruminating on what it means to tell stories about men of violence.But if you thought De Niro was out, he’s back in for one last job (for now), reuniting with another frequent collaborator, director Barry Levinson, for the mob movie “The Alto Knights,” scripted by “Goodfellas” and “Casino” screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi.But there’s a catch, a gimmick even, as De Niro stars opposite himself, playing both Frank Costello and Vito Genovese, the notorious Italian American mafiosi.
It was a seismic moment when De Niro and Al Pacino shared the screen for the first time over coffee in Michael Mann’s epic 1995 crime drama “Heat,” and similar moments are presented here as De Niro faces off against himself, though they don’t have the same electricity as De Niro vs. Pacino.As you’re reminded of these other films, it becomes clear that “The Alto Knights” is more interesting in the context of Robert De Niro’s filmography than it is necessarily as a stand-alone picture.
Like “The Irishman,” there’s a reflective quality to the film as a meditation on mob movies. It’s a reminder that De Niro is one of one, that his presence as an actor and signifier of the gangster film looms so large that only he .
