Film Study: "Goodfellas"

Goodfellas, Bad Judgment

People often forget when discussing this seminal film about the direction Martin Scorsese's career was taking at the time of release. He had just came off directing his passion project, pun unintended, with The Last Temptation of Christ, sparking immense controversy. Before that, he made several forgettable, albeit not bad, movies in the 80s like After Hours and The Color of the Money. The King of Comedy was seemingly an unconventional piece in his filmography but it's aged well and proved to be his most underrated. Thinking he would retire from filmmaking after Raging Bull, he pushed nearly all of his creative energy into that one film, making it, in my opinion, his masterpiece. From a passionate fan's perspective, it seemed the auteur almost stumbled through the 80s, unclear what avenue he wished to take his career. Would he sell out and make strictly commercial movies? Or would he somehow craft uniquely artistic films within the studio system itself?

Thankfully, the answer was the latter.Goodfellas, released in 1990, showed that the master still had a lot to say and a great voice to express it. This film started the second phase in Scorsese's filmography that refreshed him creatively and got him back to the basics of how to craft a cinematic story. It seems eerily natural for him to followup such a taxing and controversial experience like The Last Temptation of Christ with this gangster epic. This story was very personal to him and took him to his roots, which were originally showcased in his debut, Mean Streets, to spectacular effect.

In this movie, the protagonist, Henry Hill, is a half Irish-half Italian wannabe wiseguy who's ambition gets in the way, costing him money, relationships, and potentially his life. Hill represents the mafia from an outsider perspective. Sure, he's dear friends with and has grown up along all of these criminals. But his heritage gets in the way and is ultimately the reason why many of the problems he runs into cost him so much.

However, despite the character itself being as good as it is, the only thing that holds this movie back is Ray Liotta's performance. Sure, some may consider this a biggie, considering his name is headlining the movie. But he does just enough to get by and his supporting cast definitely helps him out. Not even Liotta could prevent this movie from being an absolute masterpiece.

The rest of the cast is Oscar worthy, with Joe Pesci defining himself to the movie going public as Tommy, a hothead who gets himself into way too much trouble after erupting at anyone who gets in his path. The famous "Do You Think I'm Funny" truly does live up to the hype, with many forgetting the reactions of the people surrounding Liotta and Pesci are just as good. One can't forget to mention the great Robert De Niro as Jimmy Conway, the more calm but in some ways more sadistic of the three mobsters. In a career full of great, memorable performances, this one has always stood out to me as one of his most understated and low key ones, despite some revolting and brutal moments.

The direction here by Scorsese exceeds the best work of some of the greatest directors who ever lived, despite the fact, in my opinion, that's its not even HIS best work (I would rank it at number 3). One of the best directed films ever crafted, he expertly takes us into an exotic world of organized crime. He made the anti Godfather with Mean Streets, de-romanticizing the Mafia world and bringing it down to a much more gritty, street level enterprise. Goodfellas is somewhere in the middle: suggesting the spoils that a gangster can take in life but showing the dark reality of betrayal and incarceration. With Scorsese being hands down my favorite director, watching him at work and absorbing his style is still one of the most enjoyable cinematic experiences I encounter, despite the fact I've seen this movie countless times. The lighthearted sequences of the beginning are mostly wide shots, with the tense, paranoia third act being presented in a more tight way onto Hill, as the dark side of his friends and family, the law, and even himself becoming too much to bear. The fact that Scorsese was passed over for his work here and elsewhere nearly invalidates the Academy of Motion Picture (F)Arts and Sciences altogether.

The music used throughout the film is easily one of the best soundtracks in cinematic history. I feel that too often, people write it off as period music that serves only to transport the viewer to the time of the film. But the music comments on the action taking place and gradually becomes much more rock and roll, compared to the softer, lounge singer/doo wop tunes in the 50s and early 60s. This musical accompaniment of image is the perfect example of the true power of cinema: transposing media to achieve works of art.

Roger Ebert famously declared this 1990 film the "best mob movie ever". Many will have a knee jerk reaction, including myself, as its generally agreed that The Godfather 1 and 2 hold that crown. But no film has accurately given us a portrait of organized crime and the characters that inhabit it like this Scorsese classic (and this is coming from someone who considers those Coppola films my #1 and #3 films of all time). While Scorsese outdone himself with Raging Bull and Taxi Driver, Goodfellas may be his "ultimate" or "defining" film. If I were ever to meet someone who had never seen any of his works, I would encourage them to start here. It exemplifies everything great about the filmmaker: his brash, unapologetic, and ultimately tragic view of the American man.