A few tips for stars whose wrinkles are showing on their faces and their careers

The road to stardom can be treacherous: With talent and luck, an actor can hit the straight, smooth road, cruising along comfortably to classy retirement. A wrong choice here and there? Well, more than a few, and a once-promising career has suddenly derailed. (Yes, you, Al Pacino.) A few case studies, and suggestions for career recovery:

Diane Keaton, 62
The Ride: We fell in love with Keaton for her loopy intelligence, her vulnerable strength, the watchful wisdom behind the fluttery tics and twitches. And such range: Annie Hall, Reds, Baby Boom. Her star turn in Something’s Gotta Give (2003), where she flirted and fought with Jack Nicholson, possessed moments of sheer brilliance.
The Slide: Ironically, it was Keaton’s protracted crying jag in Something’s Gotta Give that seems to have put her on her recent unsatisfying path, introducing a desperate edge that has hung over her like a toxic cloud ever since.
The U-turn: What Keaton needs is a smart, literate, slightly neurotic comedy of Manhattan manners.

Robert De Niro, 64
The Ride: From Mean Streets and Taxi Driver to The King of Comedy and Goodfellas De Niro’s uncanny command, commitment and chameleon-like mutability rarely wobbled through the 1990s. And he proved he could operate comfortably outside his tough-guy wheelhouse in comedies both dark and light.
The Slide: The Analyze This and Meet the Parents franchises have not worn well. Upcoming projects include a cop drama with Al Pacino and a Michael Mann hit-man thriller. Ummm.
The U-turn: No more hit men, no more gangsters, no more cops and serial killers. No more Fockers, big or little. Astonish us. Drop the self-parody. Get a dye job and the right glasses; option Angler, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post series about Dick Cheney (or opt to play him in Oliver Stone’s upcoming W).

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