GoodFellas
The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.
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- Cast:
- Ray Liotta , Robert De Niro , Joe Pesci , Lorraine Bracco , Paul Sorvino , Frank Sivero , Tony Darrow
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Reviews
Sadly Over-hyped
How sad is this?
Fresh and Exciting
Excellent, Without a doubt!!
Almost 30 years later, and this film still transcends above the rest. Although I was born years after this film came out, my heart swells when the intro starts. I believe it is Scorsese's best film. This film really takes you on a journey and puts in the shoes of these people, humanizing their lifestyle and their relationships. The soundtrack makes me giddy, and the way the film is shot truly makes you realize the art of movie making. Every time I re-watch the movie, I catch another small detail, providing more depth, beauty, and realness to the story. The first shot we see of Ray Liotta in the parking lot at the diner, the music, the camera angle, I get goosebumps every time. If you have not seen Goodfellas, stop what you are doing right now and watch it and then re-watch it immediately after again.
This film and Scorsese are overrated beyond belief! I'm sure he has many friends up high that have been pumping up his movies' reviews for decades. I'll never forget what a huge piece of garbage "Gangs of New York" was. It currently sits at 7.5/10 in IMDB. Yeaah, sure. Goodfellas is about the same theme: gangsters. It's full of mindless, excessive violence that means and teaches absolutely nothing. A film empty of any meaning. The soundtrack was nice at some points but not nearly enough to justify spending time to watch this film. I have to note that 3 of the friends I was watching it with fell asleep.
The cinematography was breathtaking. . right down to the pink Cadillac. . that became a casket.Characterization. . .unflawed.
While an argument could be made that 'Goodfellas (1990)' perhaps comes dangerously close to glamourising the gangster lifestyle it portrays, this sprawling and relentless picture depicts three-decades of mob life through the eyes of a real-life ex-mafioso who entered into the witness protection program in the early 1980s and ultimately manages to maintain an impartial stance by simply portraying all the events the way they are remembered to have occurred. Our protagonist also never actually kills anyone and his desperate, drug-fuelled downfall is just as detailed as his seduced start. Scorsese directs the piece with a real ferocious verve and the improvised dialogue lends a genuinely unpredictable edge to most sequences, leading to an almost fly-on-the-wall feel even though the techniques used are inherently cinematic. When the violence explodes onto the screen, it is just as shocking as you'd expect it to be. The only downside of all this is that the already long film feels even longer due to the fast-pace and sheer amount of scenes - a minor complaint since it's all so entertaining. 8/10