I am hoping that his political views didn't taint my experience, but I found De Niro dull and unconvincing. M.S. had plenty of time to develop his character and he just didn't. Toned down Joe Pesci was fine, but in past films he animated the cast with explosive actions and sharp dialogue. Don't expect that here. Trying to CGI the actors as young men didn't quite work either. He probably should have gone with some actors they could scale both younger and older. The incredible cast made it worth a look, but some of the actors were completely wasted on this. I too was surprised Anna Paquin was all but cut from the movie. Seems like an incredible waste of talent that was needed to balance out the older characters.