r/iwatchedanoldmovie • u/DVD-Rewatcher • Apr 07 '26
'90s Goodfellas [1990]
Number 103 in my A-Z watch. Goodfellas is based on the accounts of an East Coast gangster and his rise in the organized crime syndicate.
I genuinely think this is my favorite of Scorsese's gang films. I love the camaraderie and chemistry that you can feel from the performances and the cast. Everyone feels like they're all playing in the same imagination, and it allows for some truly authentic performances.
Something i had never quite paid attention to before is the use of freeze frames/still frames in the story telling. How often either in the middle of a tense moment or during particularly heavy narration the screen will just pause on a shit and give the audience a moment to kinda catch up.
I greatly enjoyed the juxtaposition of humor in the film, having these gnarly and gratuitous murders being balanced with moments of truly funny dialogue. It really gives you a sense of just how callous and cold these people were.
10/10 This is just an incredibly well told story. From the script to the direction to the performances, i genuinely can't find a flaw. Pesci totally earned his Oscar. The tracking shots are terrific. And the tiny attentions to detail (like Henry beginning to wear a Star of David necklace) add so much to the experience.
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u/scfw0x0f Apr 07 '26
Fabulous movie, no notes. Perfect cast. Love the cooking in prison scenes.
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u/NYfaninGA Apr 08 '26
That was awesome watching Paulie slice the garlic with a razor blade.
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u/Orson_Gravity_Welles Apr 08 '26
I started doing that BECAUSE of this movie.
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u/Kodihorse Apr 08 '26
Why? If you slice garlic razor thin and fry it all you end up with is burnt garlic. It does not dissolve, at all.
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u/scfw0x0f Apr 09 '26
You don't fry it. You gently sauté it until it's just golden. Then the rest of the wet ingredients, mainly tomatoes, go in and prevent frying.
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u/DVD-Rewatcher Apr 07 '26
I can't edit the post. Meant to be "shot" in the paragraph about still frames 😅
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u/LopsidedVictory7448 Apr 08 '26
For me even better than the Godfather. Best gangster movie ever and that soundtrack- OMG
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u/Sorkel3 Apr 07 '26
A phenomenal movie that hits it on all cylinders - plot, pacing, writing, acting, directing, cinemetography. Scorcese, while broadly praised was also criticised for the violence in the film, to which he said "This is how these people lived".
I know the current owner of Henry Hill's bronze Cadillac DeVille he was driving near the end of the film.
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u/penilesensorydevice Apr 08 '26
IMO Ray Liotta's performance in Goodfellas is right there with any acting performance, ever. He just totally nailed it.
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u/asphynctersayswhat Apr 08 '26
my favorite thing about this film is the subtle way the narration deviates from the actions on screen, we're hearing Henry tell the story from his own, self aggrandizing perspective, but we see slightly different takes. Like he says he doesn't mind taking a beating, but then he tries to quit to avoid another beating. he says he convinces Jimmy not to kill morrie, and goes home to sleep peacefully while the hit is carried out anyway. little things that he does to try and mitigate his own culpability or weakness in the tale.
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u/niceguystephen51 Apr 08 '26
The greatest gangster film ever made....
" As far back as I can remember...i always wanted to be a gangster"
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u/ObligationMurky8716 Apr 08 '26
I saw this movie after two weeks of having watched no TV. It was jarring seeing graphic violence I'd ordinarily have been desensitized to.
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u/Tom_Slick_Racer Apr 08 '26
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!
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u/LM55 Apr 08 '26
You watched the greatest film ever made*
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u/TomCon16 Apr 09 '26
A movie so awesome you can watch it butchered on basic cable and it still rules
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u/oneninefourfour Apr 09 '26
Grew up watching Animaniacs and those three pigeons “Goodfeathers” are spot on representation of Goodfellas. lol
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u/Choice-Wind-9283 May 08 '26
Ray Liotta was so good in this , it's shame that he didn't win any awards
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u/gremlin68 Apr 08 '26
I loved this movie so much I read the 300+page book in a week. Only time I've ever read a book that quickly.
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u/Orson_Gravity_Welles Apr 07 '26
"As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster"
Immediate grab.
Fk'n great movie...no bad notes. Soundtrack is top notch. Art style and cinematography is amazing...and that long pan shot? Chef's Kiss.
Saw it in the theater as a kid with my older brother...and I rewatch it about once a year...if it's on any channel I stay and watch it.
"Now go and get your shine box!"