Goodfellas (1990)

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Goodfellas (1990)

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Goodfellas (1990)

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Seventeen years after revising the book on gangster movies in his breakthrough Mean Streets, Martin Scorsese returned to the netherworld of Italian-American organized crime with this stunningly ambitious, ferociously entertaining look at one man's rise and fall in a Mafia family. Shot and edited with a propulsive sense of rhythm that Gene Krupa would envy (this may be the fastest 150 minutes in film history), Goodfellas explores the 30-year career of Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) as a "mechanic" working for mob boss Paulie Cicero (Paul Sorvino). While most films about gangsters attribute their characters' criminal lives to greed or sociopathic behavior, Scorsese makes it clear Henry and his friends Jimmy Conway (Robert De Niro) and Tommy DeVito (Joe Pesci) are gangsters because they enjoy it: they like to steal, they enjoy violence, and their "work" allows them to profit from these qualities, which would be a hindrance in nearly any other career. However, while the film offers a point-blank look at New York's criminal underworld from the '50s to the '80s, Scorsese also uses this story as a unusual but clear moral fable. In the first few reels, Henry and his partners follow a strict code of honor and make sure to obey Cicero's wishes: you pay tribute to the boss, you stay away from dealing drugs, and you don't kill anyone unless it's absolutely necessary. By the mid-'70s, these guidelines have been forgotten, and as Henry, Jimmy, and Tommy slip away from Paulie's corrupt but strictly ordered ethical universe, it leads only to death and betrayal. Scorsese has long been fascinated with the actions of men searching for a moral compass in a faithless land, but he's rarely told the story with such kinetic force and audacious skill.

Mark Deming, Rovi

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Goodfellas (1990)

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Scorsese's "Godfather". Amazing camerawork, kickass performances, and Joe Pesci beating the shit out of Frank Vincent.
This is an absolutely brilliant movie. I first saw a snippet of it when I was about 14, and my dad was watching it on video in the basement. I came down, and heard, in that 30 seconds, more profanity than I had ever heard in my life up until that point. People swear a LOT in this movie. Despite my love of "The Godfather", I always felt it was a little too romanticized. It only dealt with the absolute upper levels of power. The guys in "Goodfellas" are nowhere NEAR the top of the heap. These guys are the soldiers, the guys who get all the dirty work. And they love it. What's amazing about this movie is that despite all the horrible things that Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) goes through, he still would never dream of leaving the mafia. Scorsese manages to make the mob look both attractive and repellent. The guys in the flick sure seem like they're having lots of fun. Until Robert De Niro stomps on their head. The best scene in this movie is Robert De Niro stomping on Frank Vincent's head. It's a marvel of cinematic brilliance. De Niro kicks ass in this movie, Joe Pesci kicks SERIOUS ass in this movie, but Liotta's kind of a wimp. So back to Joe Pesci. His scenes with his mom (actually Scorsese's mom) are the funniest things I've ever seen in my life. And when he shoots Spider in the foot because he's too slow getting Joe a drink, well….let's just say that the mob has never looked like so much fun. Well, I guess for everyone except Spider. And Frank Vincent. Oh, but he gets his revenge in "Casino". Yay, Frank Vincent.
The first really funny movie about the Mafia. And use this film as a tool to teach your kids to swear effectively.

Hawkboy, eFilmCritic.com

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Goodfellas (1990)

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Goodfellas (1990)

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