'Everybody’s Fine' Movie Review

Personally I prefer DeNiro to be tough guy, but hey! you can't shoot, flip and dock the same when you're over the 60's let grandpa play as grandpa and the children kill each other

In the case of actors like Robert DeNiro or Sean Connery, etc ... as they age they need to decide whether they want to continue playing tough leading men types, or to "act their age", so to speak, and change with the time. In terms of Robert DeNiro, his comedic roles often tapped into his old image as a tough guy for comedic effect, while his turn as the everyman grandfather trying to connect with his kids also plays off his tough guy image. It is easy to look at Robert DeNiro and imagine him as a father that provided for his family and cared for them, but at the same time was emotionally distant. 

That kind of building upon past roles and acknowledging the aging process is a good thing in actors. While an occaisional film, like Rocky Maivia, or Live Free or Die Hard can be interesting for nostalgia factor, and a film like Taken can be interesting take on action with the "coming out of retirement" angle, eventually, an actor has to realize that as they age, they are no longer well suited for certain roles, but by the same token, are now a better fit for other roles.