Amid the chaos of Covid-19 pandemic and a busy work schedule, I found some spare time to rewatch one of my favourite movies from the 90s. I'm talking about Goodfellas, a 90s Classic often hailed by critics as one of the best gangster movies Hollywood has ever produced.
Goodfellas, director Martin Scorsese’s all-time Classic, has stood the test of time and succeeded in maintaining its unique place among other best Hollywood gangster movies such as Godfather, Scarface, Casino, The Irishman etc. Even after 30 years, the movie still holds my interest and presents to me some interesting details which I missed in my previous viewings.
Unlike many other Hollywood gangster movies from the 90s, Goodfellas has aged like fine wine. The movie definitely lifted my spirits and I just want to share with you why I love Goodfellas and consider it as one of the best gangster movies Hollywood has ever made.
Clever Use Voiceover Narration
The movie opens up with the protagonist’s narration about the life he always wanted to live. “As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster” says the protagonist Henry Hill in a voice over narration.
It is shocking because Hill’s narration starts immediately after fellow gangsters Tommy ( Joe Pesci) and Jimmy ( Robert De Niro) kill mobster Billy Batts. Tommy stabs Batts (Batts is laying half-dead in the trunk of Hill’s car) with a long knife and Jimmy shoots Batts a couple of times.
Hill then closes the trunk and here comes the iconic narration while Scorsese freezes the frame. Further, midway through the film, the point of view changes to that of Karen (Lorraine Bracco), the wife of Hill. Yet, I admit that almost every Scorsese movie is told through the voice over of its lead characters ( Consider Mean Street’s opening line You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets. You do it at home. The rest is bullsh*t and you know it.” ).
The narration is the key tool that Scorsese uses to let us enter into the world his characters inhabit. These are mobsters, their lives are quite different from us. We don’t know much about the lives of gangsters. With the use of the first person narrative, Scorsese let us even root for the main characters who, in real life, are despicable killers.
The Way Scorsese Builds Tension
Scorsese’s mastery in creating tense moments is brilliantly perceptible in Goodfellas. And you don’t need to look nowhere else than the ‘how am I funny’ scene involving Ray Liotta and the brilliant Joe Pesci. The audience know Tommy is a dangerous guy and he would not hesitate to draw a gun and shoot the guy who offends him.
Here, Hill says Tommy is a funny guy, but Tommy seems apparently offended. He asks Henry why he thinks Tommy is funny. ‘What the f**k makes me funny’. The sudden shift in the tone of voice keeps Hill on toes. Tommy is offended, Henry knows this and he is unable to utter a word. Here Scorsese builds tension by using silence. There is no dialogue, music, or any kind of sound during the tense pause. Absolutely brilliant!!!
It is the flashes of genius like these that makes Goodfellas not only one of Hollywood’s best gangster movies but one of the great movies in the entire movie history.
Colour Composition Sets the Mood
Just like David Fischer, Martin Scorsese uses colour theory to great effect in his films. While Fincher is known for his use of yellow, Scorsese uses red. The title ‘Goodfellas’ appear onscreen in red. The restaurants and bars Henry, Tommy or Jimmy dine in are all coloured in red.
What does it signify? The blood? Violence? Or does it signify the evil that these guys are steeped in ? All of these may be the answer to why Scorsese uses red in his movies, especially in Goodfellas. Look at the opening sequence in Goodfellas which I mentioned ath the beginning of this blog: Henry is about to shut the trunk of the car when Scorsese focuses the camera on his face. Henry’s face is shining in red, it’s probably a hint to the evil world we are about to enter.
Parting Shot
Here I just mentioned the three top things that struck me while rewatching Goodfellas recently. I don’t remember when I watched this great gangster movie for the first time. But this time I discovered many things which my brain failed to record in the previous viewings. Before hitting the stop button, I will mention a particular scene that still intrigues me:
It’s the sequence where Karen goes to meet Jimmy after Henry becomes broke. Jimmy says he would give some of his stolen clothes to Karen but she needs to pick it up from the warehouse, which is just ‘right around the corner.’
Karen goes to the warehouse but hesitates to enter as she sees Jimmy’s men there. She panics and doubts whether it’s part of Jimmy’s ploy to kill her off. She runs onto her car and drives off from there.
This scene perfectly encapsulates all the paranoia and fear that defines the latter part of Henry and Karen’s life. Scorsese cleverly leaves it to us to decide whether Karen was right or not judging Jimmy’s intentions.
Goodfellas is more than the aforementioned points. It’s one of the best gangster movies that is relevant even in today’s times. What makes this gangster movie from the 90s a classic is not its thematic aspects but the excellent craftsmanship of Martin Scorsese and the performance of the cast.
Comments
Post a Comment