DVD Reviews

GoodFellas (20th Anniversary Edition) – Blu-ray Review

By Patrick Luce Mar 13, 2010, 16:45 GMT

$When Martin Scorsese, one of the world\'s most skillful and respected directors, reunited with two-time Oscar(R)-winner Robert De Niro in$

When Martin Scorsese, one of the world\'s most skillful and respected directors, reunited with two-time Oscar(R)-winner Robert De Niro in "GoodFellas", the result was one of the most powerful films of the year. Based on the true-life best seller "Wiseguy" by Nicholas Pileggi and backed by a dynamic pop/rock oldies soundtrack, critics and filmgoers alike declared "GoodFellas" great. It was named 1990\'s best film by the New York, Los Angeles ...more

While Martin Scorsese’s GoodFellas is one of the best mob films made (it ranks under The Godfather for me), this release is simply a repackaging of the 2007 Blu-ray release and the special features from the 2004 DVD release.

This edition is worth picking up if you don’t already own it thanks to a nice booklet with behind the scenes pictures and cast profiles.

Made in 1990, GoodFellas went on to earn six Academy Award nominations and featured Scorsese (who picked up a Best Director Oscar nomination) returning to the mob genre to direct what would become another masterpiece in his filmography. The film was based on Nicholas Pileggi's book "Wise Guy" with the screenplay adapted by Scorsese and Pileggi.

It featured Scorsese staples Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci along with Ray Liotta (in a role that would help the actor break big). It also featured a great performance from Lorraine Bracco (who received an Oscar nomination for her performance).

For those who haven’t seen the film, GoodFellas (which received an Oscar nomination for Best Picture) follows three street criminals, Jimmy Conway (De Niro), Henry Hill (Liotta), Tommy DeVito (Pesci), over a period of thirty years.

Starting at the bottom of the mob, the three men slowly rise in the criminal underworld until they spiral out of control due to the violence and excess that surrounds their world. The story is mainly narrated by Liotta’s Hill (the focus of the story) and his wife Karen (Bracco).

The story kicks off with Henry as a teen as he begins his criminal career by parking cars for the local mob boss Paul Cicero (Paul Sorvino). He quickly leaves school and goes to work for Cicero full-time where he is introduced to Jimmy and Tommy. He also moves up from parking cars to selling stolen cigarettes and eventually robbing trucks.

The film then jumps to Henry as a young man who goes through money almost as fast as he goes through women. Along with Tommy and Jimmy, Henry feels the world is his, and there is nothing that he can’t get away with – regardless of how bad the crime. He meets and eventually marries Karen – a Jewish girl that falls in love with him after he beats a guy who attacked her during a date.

Although Henry is married, his social life does not slow down (he explains that some nights were for the wives and some for the girlfriends), and his criminal enterprises continue to expand – he is involved in one of the largest crimes on record. Karen worries that his criminal activities will land him in jail, but Henry assures her Wiseguys only go to jail if they want to get away from their wives or are stupid.

While he continues to rise in the mob, he descends into a larger world of violence – mostly due to Tommy’s quick temper and psychotic tendencies. At times, it seems that Henry and Jimmy are mainly around to keep Tommy from killing everyone he meets.

Eventually, Henry lands in prison where he develops drug contacts – a business he expands once he is out of prison. To help with the expanding drug trade, Henry brings in Tommy and Jimmy, and the three men thrive in the new enterprise.

Once Henry is fully involved in the drug trade, his life quickly unravels, and it starts to look like he is snorting more than he is selling. The film wraps up with Henry explaining what it was like to be a Wiseguy and the audience seeing how his life ends a little less glorious than his criminal prime.

Without a doubt, GoodFellas is a masterpiece of the mob genre and one of Scorsese’s best films. It is filled with elements that would become his calling card (the introduction of criminals, the voice-over work of his main characters, and ultra-violence right in your face). His characters lack the grace and grandeur of Vito and Michael Corleone, and somehow seem more real due to the violence they use as a simple tool to get the job done.

The film features stellar performances from Liotta (probably the best of his career) and Bracco with De Niro and Pesci (who won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor) providing the type of performance you expect from the legendary actors.

Liotta begins the film smooth and full of charm. His character can do no wrong and handles all problems with ease. By the end of the film, he is frantic, paranoid and running on fumes. His character looks like he has been fried by the drugs and is totally spent. The same can be said for Bracco’s Karen – who begins the film criticizing the other mob wives and ends up looking worse than them.

Her character goes from being slightly amused by her husband’s criminal side to being totally destroyed by it. She is full of pride at the beginning (she puts Henry in his place for standing her up on a date), but totally useless by the film’s ending (where she tolerates Henry’s cheating and continues to help him with the drug dealing).

Scorsese captures these performance and adds to them by having his characters dressed to the nines in the beginning of the film (where everything seems to have a polish to it), and look more like street criminals by the end.

Director of photography Michael Ballhaus captures every detail with a grit and color that helps the film seem real - the violence right in your face so it is impossible to dismiss who the people are or be charmed by the flash of their lifestyle.

The Blu-ray looks solid, but again it is the same presentation as the 2007 release so don’t expect a new look to the film. The special features are also decent, but have been seen before. They include commentary and a look back at the making of the film. There is also a look at the film’s influence that includes interviews with directors Jon Favreau, Joe Carnahan, Antoine Fuqua, and Frank Darabont.

A second disc of features includes Public Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film and four mob-themed WB cartoons. These two features were included on Warner’s 2008 Gangsters Vol. 4 release.

If you don’t already own GoodFellas on Blu-ray, this is the better version to buy – thanks to the booklet included. The film remains a classic and is filled with brilliant performances. It is a masterpiece from a master director and only gets better with age.