Goodfellas – scorcese teaches cinema
I have a love-hate relationship with mob movies. At a level they are cool, but some kind of uncmfortable feel is always there when a mob movie ends. The connection is always not made like I would at the end of a movie like say Parenthood for example. The reason being a constant feeling of separation from the layer of society at which these movies are based on. Me being a typical middle class “good guy” always shunning away contacts with anyone even remotely tied to “politics” or “police”(my father who was in state judiciary always imploring me to stay away from both) – India’s answer to “American mob” (Offcourse the mafia is all but silent now in US while our mob is always active and always controlling). This disconnection meant I was always cold to mob movies and if at all I appreciated them, it was purely for their display of “cold-bloodedness” – a casual take at murder and mayhem. I felt Godfather was a classic as it displayed “ruthlessness” that one has come to appreciate so much these days identifying it as aggressiveness be it corporate or sports in a manner it had to be. No good, no evil, just “winning” and survival. Offcourse survival meant affiliation to family, trust and loyalty to group, codes that any military unit relies upon (a cursory nod to colonel jessops from ‘A Few good men’ is due at this point). Subsequently when I saw a movie like ‘Scarface’ , this notion of mine grew solid and I was able to look at it with more detachment and appreciate the performance of Al Pacino and the direction of Brian De Palma more. Occasionally would be amused by “reformed” gangster movie themes like ‘Carlitos’ way”. However Goodfellas which I had the chance to watch twice on cable changed my views on mob movies. The cinematic genius of Martin Scorcese and the ensemble of cast simply blew my opinion like a trash can lid on a windy day.
Goodfellas is the first movie that made me feel like ‘I am there and can sense what is going through Henry hill’. Henry hill is a real life character and the story is all too uncomfortably real and is shot in an very uncomrpomisingly realistic fashion. Ray Liotta simply breathes his life into the character of Henry hill – a kid who joins the mob and becomes a star to later give the mob up for survival. It it is the story of the Lucchese mob family headed by Paulie (played admirably by Paul Sorvino). I dont’ want to waste my post on redundant notes of praise due to De niro as jimmy conway. He is the scariest character in the movie – much more scarier than joe Pesci who did ‘Starks’ – the guy with the most volatile temper in movie history.Pesci got a deserved academy doll, but Academy as usual blundered in not handing one down to Liotta and Scorcese.
Liotta could have retired after this. In movie teaming with legends, an actor needed just more than belief and talent to pull of a Henry Hill. And Liotta simply did that. His role forms the basis for our Satya – the guy who kept the mouth shut and remained loyal. However Liotta goes million times over the sketch of Henry hill provided to him by FBI transcripts and interviews with the real Henry Hill. His laughs, queasy shyness when on a date or cocky arrogance when walking to a hotel, he is not the uni dimensional silent smart guy, talks when he has to , cocky when he is with his wife/mistress, tails between the legs when Paulie is round the corner, and free when he is with jimmy or De Vito. The one time he goes against Paulie when he dips his hand into drugs, we can see the aplologetic Henry and when he is cornered by jimmy, ditched by Paulie, tailed by the feds one gets to see the guy totally shaken up and unwillingly giving up the ‘family’ for survival. This is one character sketch I will not forget. Probably it is the narrative that aids liotta here – the first person narrative that switches between Henry hill and his wife. Unlike other first person narratives that tend to be one sided, this one is faily balanced, thanks to Scorcese who creates a great balance between superb ambience creation and effervescent performances by lead actors. Special mention of appreciation is due to the casting director for casting appropriate youth artiste for Liotta’s character.
Did a wikipedia after watching the movie and found that the movie was based on a novel ‘Wiseguy’ by Nicholas Pillegi (i missed the credits on both occasions – need to get a DVD). Following is the quote from the Wiki extract
“According to Pileggi, Scorsese cold-called the writer and told him “I’ve been waiting for this book my entire life.” To which Pileggi replied “I’ve been waiting for this phone call my entire life.”
I would conclude by saying ” I’ve been waiting to see this movie my entire life”
Tags: English - Other
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I have also been waiting for this movie! & you know what when I think about this movie I always get the story & characters mixed up with P T Anderson’s “boogie nights”
Hail Scorsese!
“As far back as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to be a gangster.”
To me, these opening lines were refreshed by The Departed’s “I don’t want to be a product of my environment”, the same Scorsese pull, which hauls you out of your ‘oh ya I am watchin’ a gangta flick’ to the real business that is talked about in the film. This makes me wanna go back and revisit Goodfellas one of these days, but for me, it was this constant assault of ‘fuck’ almost to the point of getting disturbed from the real flow of the film. It was my first reaction. Now, its an entirely different story altogether. His films are a feast for me, they just never like the ‘Pause’ button.
Talking about the classics, The Godfather, to me, was this intense parallel worlds of family & crime, the unyielding ‘ethics’ of Vito Corleone and the silent submission of Michael, amidst a perfectly realised reality of mob violence. Read Ebert or Pauline on it. Compulsive reading.
Goodfellas is different images for me, mostly inhabited by Liotta’s eyes & his smirk, De Niro’s loving perpetually annoyed expression & Pesci’s timeless anger….
Henry Hill: You’re a pistol, you’re really funny. You’re really funny.
Tommy DeVito: What do you mean I’m funny?
Henry Hill: It’s funny, you know. It’s a good story, it’s funny, you’re a funny guy.
[laughs]
Tommy DeVito: what do you mean, you mean the way I talk? What?
Henry Hill: It’s just, you know. You’re just funny, it’s… funny, the way you tell the story and everything.
Tommy DeVito: [it becomes quiet] Funny how? What’s funny about it?
Anthony Stabile: Tommy no, You got it all wrong.
Tommy DeVito: Oh, oh, Anthony. He’s a big boy, he knows what he said. What did ya say? Funny how?
Henry Hill: Jus…
Tommy DeVito: What?
Henry Hill: Just… ya know… you’re funny.
Tommy DeVito: You mean, let me understand this cause, ya know maybe it’s me, I’m a little fucked up maybe, but I’m funny how, I mean funny like I’m a clown, I amuse you? I make you laugh, I’m here to fuckin’ amuse you? What do you mean funny, funny how? How am I funny?
Henry Hill: Just… you know, how you tell the story, what?
Tommy DeVito: No, no, I don’t know, you said it. How do I know? You said I’m funny. How the fuck am I funny, what the fuck is so funny about me? Tell me, tell me what’s funny!
Henry Hill: [long pause] Get the fuck out of here, Tommy!
Tommy DeVito: [everyone laughs] Ya motherfucker! I almost had him, I almost had him. Ya stuttering prick ya. Frankie, was he shaking? I wonder about you sometimes, Henry. You may fold under questioning.
Tushar!
Joe Pesci was more amusing, but De niro was scarier wasn’t he. particularly after the Lufthansa – 6 million heist, the way he talks, and his reaction on the pay phone when he hears abt Tommy getting whacked instead of being made – Only a de niro could do that. Pacino would have screamed to break the glass, but De niro he does it differently and in ways only he could do. In between all this Liotta holds his own and makes this movie as his!! The way Scorcese has let these performers do their thing without curbing them – thats amazing!!! While everyone talk about the hand held shot in the restaurant, for me the scene that does it is the one where morrie is whacked and his wife comes to Henry’s house asking abt her husband. The whole sequence is delightfully done by the director and actors.
Abso-fuckin’-lutely!
@ Jaiganesh –
u can’t have the title u chose, and then just go over some character traits. A more detailed analysis is called for. Please indulge. Scenes, characters, tension…etc.
Doniie brasco for the win ^_^
johhny depp>all
im just biased :P
I would prefer ‘Casino’ over ‘Goodfellas’ any day. I didn’t understand why Scorcese decided to give Lorraine Bracco’s character (Henry’s wife) a narrative role. Her role doesn’t contribute enough to the movie to justify that. Maybe much more was shot and got edited out to accomodate Pesci and De Niro…
Thanks Tushar for posting that scene. It’s an mazing scene…:)
Ok…I am like a BIGGGGGGGGEST fan of this movie and of Scorcese…so as soon as I saw the GODFELLAS lin the link, I clicked it.
I am writing this to correct something jaiganesh has written in a post above…the shot in the restaurant in GOODFELLAS where Liota leads Lorraine Bracco thru the winding ways in the back of the restaurant and kitchen was not a handheld shot…it was the longest tracking shot and one of my Film professors from NYU told me they did the take 2 times and they it right the second time…that too after a lot of rehearsals.
So long,
Eshwar