�I always liked the script,� De Niro said of �Stone,� which deals with hypocrisy and guilt, and is set in the rapidly decaying environs of post-recesson Detroit.
�I thought the whole thing had an interesting tone and feel about it,� the Oscar winner told Reuters in an interview.
De Niro plays Jack Mabry, a prison parole officer just days from retirement who has to deal with the manipulative Gerald �Stone� Creeson as one of his final assignments.
Played menacingly by Norton with cornrows and a hard stare, Stone is not above using his sexy wife Lucetta � model-actor Milla Jovovich in a shift from her �Resident Evil� action films � as the bait to force Jack to recommend an early release.
However, the line between criminal and upstanding citizen blur as Stone undergoes a spiritual transformation, while Jack�s encounters with Lucetta pressure his already decaying marriage and force him to compromise his own principles.
None of the characters are easy to sympathize with, and the film�s ending could best be described as ambiguous.
�I think that most of the films that I�ve really been affected by in my life have been the ones that really left me with a lot of questions in my head, a lot to think about,� Norton told Reuters.
De Niro-Norton rematch
The pairing of De Niro and Norton, considered among the greats of their respective acting generations, reunites the co-stars of the 2001 heist flick �The Score.�
But Norton said it took some convincing to get him to sign on. �At first the script was a little bit elusive for me. I didn�t really get it,� until director John Curran won him over, he said.
�But I definitely thought it was great to work with somebody a second time. (De Niro) has a very particular way of working.�
De Niro � known for immersing himself completely in roles, such as when he gained 60 pounds to play boxer Jake La Motta in �Raging Bull� � will often go off script in the middle of a scene to get a more authentic response from his co-stars.
�He really makes you earn scenes. He can be very resistant to doing things that just are following scripts. If you don�t earn the response, he kind of won�t give it to you,� Norton said. �It�s very bracing, actually.
While the scenes with Norton and De Niro might be a delight for film buffs who enjoy a good old acting showdown, the film, which hits theaters October 8 has earned mixed initial reviews.
Kirk Honeycutt of the Hollywood Reporter calls it an �unconvincing melodrama that few viewers are willing to buy.�, while Erik Childress of Cinematical says the film is �thrilling for what we�re left to ponder afterwards more than any suspense inherit in the interaction during it.�
Norton admitted that moviegoers looking for the characters to redeem themselves at the end of the film may come away disappointed, but he said the film�s strength lies in its ambiguity and unanswered questions.
�I see a lot of really crappy movies that are making sure you understand that redemption took place and they just put me to sleep,� he said.
�Everything doesn�t get redeemed in life, and I don�t think that�s the only thing that makes a movie have an impact.�
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