GoodFellas, directed by the legendary Martin Scorsese, is not just another mob movie, it’s a masterpiece that gives a twist to the saturated crime genre. Many crime movies (e.g. The Godfather) glorify and glamorize the luxurious, dangerous, and betrayal ridden life style of the mafia, but Goodfellas takes those aspects and enhances them by showcasing the exhilarating and intoxicating life of real life mobster– Henry Hill– while also capturing the paranoia and crash that comes with that type of life style. Martin Scorsese does a fantastic job at capturing the climb, peak, paranoia, and collapse of Henry Hill and other members of the Lucchese Crime Family.
What makes this film great is that it’s told directly from the perspective of Henry Hill. The character detail in the film is one of its biggest strengths. Henry, as portrayed in the film, wasn’t particularly a genius or dangerous criminal — he was an average kid who was seduced by the luxurious lifestyle of the mafia. Henry saw the power, money, and attention that came along with being a wiseguy and was all in before he was aware of the dangers it may bring. Jimmy Conway (Robert De Niro) isn’t the cliche “tough guy” but a quiet, calculated and ambitious gangster. Tommy Devito (Joe Pesci) demonstrates what happens when a fragile ego is housed in the violent ecosystem of New York City’s criminal underworld.
The editing and pacing are another great aspect of this film. The film feels as if it accelerates with the more paranoia, cocaine, and trouble Henry Hill finds himself in. The film starts off with smooth cinematography as it explores the luxury and privilege that the characters possess, however by the end as paranoia and death eat the crew from the inside out, the cinematography becomes jittery, unsteady, and chaotic.
To conclude, GoodFellas is a great film because it tells you the gritty life of wiseguys like Henry Hill, but not just the power that comes with it but as well as the loyalty only if you’re useful, friendships until profit, and family until someone needs to be dealt with.