By Ranjan Bhaduri
Dec.30, (THAINDIAN NEWS) Veteran actor Robert De Niro was recently honored by the Kennedy Center. The stalwart actor who has wooed the critics and viewers alike in his illustrious career spanning several decades, spoke at length with Julie Chen about his life and films. He told the co-anchor that the honor made him humble. While the actor did not say much on his acting, the fellow actors were full of praise for his excellence and capabilities. Actor Ed Norton confessed that he was inspired to take up acting as a career after watching the films of Robert De Niro. Meryl Streep said that Robert De Niro can be considered as the gold standard.

However, Robert De Niro said that he did not plan strategically for his acting career and he just enjoyed what he did as an actor. His collaboration with maverick director Martin Scorsese dates back to 1973. They worked in 8 movies together and all of them are considered landmarks in global cinema. The first movie of the duo was Mean Street. He praised the director for his penchant for trying out new things in his films.

Robert De Niro had his first stint with the Oscars after he acted in The Godfather, directed by Francis Ford Coppola. He won an Academy award again for his scorching performance in Raging Bull. He had to work very hard for the part of the boxer he played in that film. However, apart from serious and brooding roles, the actor has also dabbled with comedy in his career and enjoyed doing it.