Goodfellas: The Greatest of All Time

[CH David]

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That's right. The film that's central focus is around the rise and fall of three gangsters. The film was based off of the book Wiseguy which was based off of the real life events surrounding Henry Hill, Jimmy Burke, and Thomas DeSimone.

The Facts

When you are making a movie based on true life events, you can't simply deviate from what happened too much. There were a few switches to what happened, such as Frank Carbone (based on Angelo Sepe) being switched with Richard Eaton in the movie, and the fact that Tommy DeSimone was around 6’2 200lbs and Joe Pesci is his short self. They stuck with the major facts, mostly regarding Jimmy and Tommy being cold heartless bastards and killing whoever they wanted whenever they wanted. Henry goes down the rabbit hole of the drug trade, which gets him caught and put into Witness Protection for testifying against Jimmy and Paul Cicero (Vario in real life).

Cast

To have a great movie, you need a great cast. Look at the top three billed in this movie. Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Ray Liotta. What is there to say about Robert De Niro for his career? For his role in this movie, he was nominated for a BAFTA for Best Actor. Joe Pesci stole the show for me as Tommy DeVito, and he also won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Ray Liotta didn't get anything for this excellent performance, which may be a shame, but he was competing with Pesci and De Niro, so you can't say he didn't do a great job.

Recognition

Spoiler

GoodFellas is #94 on the American Film Institute's list of 100 Years, 100 Movies and #92 on its updated version from 2007. In June 2008, the AFI revealed its "Ten top Ten"—the best ten films in ten "classic" American film genres—after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. Goodfellas was acknowledged as the second best in the gangster film genre (after The Godfather).[35] In 2000, the United States Library of Congress deemed the film "culturally significant" and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry.

Roger Ebert, a friend and supporter of Scorsese, named Goodfellas the "best mob movie ever" and placed it among the best films of the nineties.[36] Premiere magazine listed Joe Pesci's Tommy DeVito as #96 on its list of The 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time, calling him "perhaps the single most irredeemable character ever put on film".[37] Channel 4 placed Goodfellas at #10 in their 2002 poll The 100 Greatest Films. In 2005, Total Film, named Goodfellas as the greatest film of all time. In December 2002, a UK film critics poll in Sight and Sound ranked the film #4 on their list of the 10 Best Films of the Last 25 Years.[38] Empire magazine ranked Tommy DeVito #59 in their "The 100 Greatest Movie Characters" poll.[39] Time included Goodfellas in their list of 100 all-time best films.[40]

You want some quotes or good scenes? Here's a memorable scene for you.

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That was a very popular scene in theaters, and still is for anyone who watches the movie.

Not A Regular Gangster Movie

Goodfellas isn't just a regular mafia movie about someone becoming a made man and taking over for the family. With the focus on Henry Hill, it is about how he wanted to become a gangster at a young age. It was an idolization. It was a very real situation back in the '50s, '60s, and '70s that any time you mess with a gangster in New York, you could get whacked. You see what happened in life after Tommy DeVito killed the made man, and the consequences of it. You see just exactly how far Henry had fallen by the end of his days in the gangster life.

The events in this movie actually started to take place before The Godfather even came out, so Tenta's assertion that Goodfellas is just a take off of that is complete bullshit. Goodfellas is one of those true life movies that is hard hitting and real. Like I said above, you can't really deviate from what has happened, and Martin Scorsese didn't. He brought back his genius that was last seen 14 years prior to Goodfellas.

Goodfellas is one of those movies that you can't go with the money it makes. Hannah Montana, blah, etc. You feel the cold hearts of Jimmy Conway and Tommy DeVito. You see what it was like for a young man like Henry growing up in that kind of environment and wanting to be a part of it. You watch the growth and demise of three men who were living life the only way they knew how. You watch greatness.

 

[TwistofRKO]

Definitely a great movie, but its not even the best movie that Scorsese made (that we be The Departed) yet alone the greatest of all time. It may not even be the best gangster movie with The Godfather's large shadow casting over it. Good movie to be tossed into the discussion of G.O.A.T., but it doesn't end up taking the crown.

 

[D-Man]

Easily one of my favorite movies ever.

I'm from New Jersey, so the gangster mentality spread around here like wildfire when this movie came out in the 90's. The movie is star-studded, the acting is out of this world, and it has a very complex story with very distinct characters. But the best part about this movie is that it's based on real life events. In other words, it's a true story. It's one of those movies that you watch and say to yourself, "Wow... this REALLY happened?"

It just goes to show; amazing events happen all the time all over the world and should be documented on the big screen.

 

[Lee]

Best movie ever? You yourself said it was listed #94 so surely there are 93 better.

Best Scorsese movie? I think you need to see Deexter's thread for that.

Best gangster movie? You yourself say it was voted #2 gangster movie of all time, I think Tenta's thread will show you the number one gangster movie.

You use the channel 4 poll, where it was given a #10. The thing is you're using accolades that don't pit it at #1 to justify why it is number one, that's a bit silly don't you think?

 

[CH David]

Definitely a great movie, but its not even the best movie that Scorsese made (that we be The Departed) yet alone the greatest of all time. It may not even be the best gangster movie with The Godfather's large shadow casting over it. Good movie to be tossed into the discussion of G.O.A.T., but it doesn't end up taking the crown.

Well that is your opinion that The Departed is Scorsese's best. Others, myself included, don't agree with that sentiment. Glad we cleared that up.

The Godfather isn't even the greatest movie of all time. Tenta will try and make it such, but the sequel was better, and still I didn't feel the realism in The Godfather as I keep feeling after I watch Goodfellas. Goodfellas is a great portrayal of real life, and the scene where Henry is walking through the Copacabana with Karen is a great symbolic shot for the movie.

 

[CH David]

Best movie ever? You yourself said it was listed #94 so surely there are 93 better.

Best Scorsese movie? I think you need to see Deexter's thread for that.

Best gangster movie? You yourself say it was voted #2 gangster movie of all time, I think Tenta's thread will show you the number one gangster movie.

You use the channel 4 poll, where it was given a #10. The thing is you're using accolades that don't pit it at #1 to justify why it is number one, that's a bit silly don't you think?

Yet you don't include Roger Ebert calling it the best mob film of all time, or Total Film calling it the greatest movie of all time. See we can both pick and choose what we want to use for an argument, Lee.

You just want to try and shit on this for the hell of it. I'm just going to guess that you have indeed seen the movie, but can't come up with your own argument as to what about the movie doesn't make it great. You just want to use what other people said and make it seem like you agree with it.

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This is a great showing of symbolism. Going the long way through the Copacabana helps show that Henry Hill has his whole life ahead of him. Scorsese says that "It's his seduction of her [Karen] and it's also the lifestyle seducing him".

I'd like to see a legitimate gripe about the movie, perhaps the lighting doesn't work for you, or maybe there is too much of the word "fuck". Let's see you make your own argument, Lee.

 

[Dave]

Yet you don't include Roger Ebert calling it the best mob film of all time, or Total Film calling it the greatest movie of all time. See we can both pick and choose what we want to use for an argument, Lee.

You just want to try and shit on this for the hell of it. I'm just going to guess that you have indeed seen the movie, but can't come up with your own argument as to what about the movie doesn't make it great. You just want to use what other people said and make it seem like you agree with it.

[YOUTUBE]yCYwcObxl78[/YOUTUBE]

This is a great showing of symbolism. Going the long way through the Copacabana helps show that Henry Hill has his whole life ahead of him. Scorsese says that "It's his seduction of her [Karen] and it's also the lifestyle seducing him".

I'd like to see a legitimate gripe about the movie, perhaps the lighting doesn't work for you, or maybe there is too much of the word "fuck". Let's see you make your own argument, Lee.

As far as I am concerned, Lee is absolutely correct.

Now, I have only seen some of Goodfellas but the fact that in your opening post, you have listed it as the SECOND BEST mafia movie ever has jaded my opinion somewhat. Now, as I have said, I have not seen all of the movie but it was not due to boredom that I switched off. Rather, it is the opinions that I have gathered from others when they talk about this movie.

Like you have stated in your OP, people talk about Goodfellas as the best mafia movie outside of The Godfather and from what I have seen of Goodfellas, there is a huge gulf in class. Scorcese is a great director, I think. However, I absolutely adore The Godfather and watching Goodfellas didn’t seem to have the same magic as The Godfather did. The Godfather was absolutely perfect and every moment engrossed me endlessly. Goodfellas, for all that I watched of it, didn’t hold the same allure and I eventually switched it off.

People look at me as if I am crazy when I say that I haven’t watched it but it just doesn’t seem to draw me in for some reason. Personally, if it can’t beat The Godfather, I don’t see how it could be called the greatest cinematic piece ever created.

 

[D-Man]

I think we need to view things like this: While Goodfellas was a very modernized version of real-life mobster events, The Godfather was a more pure, classic version of a nonfictional story. Because of the true-to-life and real nature of Goodfellas, it was more difficult for the director to capture the magic that Scorcese filmed in The Godfather.

Therefore, out of the true-to-life mobster movies (i.e. Donnie Brasco), Goodfellas is probably the best. But rating the movie as the best of all-time? That's a bit far-fetched.

 

[Lee]

Yet you don't include Roger Ebert calling it the best mob film of all time, or Total Film calling it the greatest movie of all time. See we can both pick and choose what we want to use for an argument, Lee.

You just want to try and shit on this for the hell of it. I'm just going to guess that you have indeed seen the movie, but can't come up with your own argument as to what about the movie doesn't make it great. You just want to use what other people said and make it seem like you agree with it.

[YOUTUBE]yCYwcObxl78[/YOUTUBE]

This is a great showing of symbolism. Going the long way through the Copacabana helps show that Henry Hill has his whole life ahead of him. Scorsese says that "It's his seduction of her [Karen] and it's also the lifestyle seducing him".

I'd like to see a legitimate gripe about the movie, perhaps the lighting doesn't work for you, or maybe there is too much of the word "fuck". Let's see you make your own argument, Lee.

Are you honestly taking the piss, I've seen Goodfella's it's a great movie in my opinion it's just not GOAT, no need to shit over me because I disagree with you.

The point I was getting at is if you are going to use reasons for it being number one (in your own OP) listing it being the 94th best movie and #2 gangster movie is not the way to go about it. If you yourself use a list which doesn't show it as GOAT to make it seem GOAT automatically puts us off agreeing with you whether it's true or not.

 

[TwistofRKO]

The Godfather isn't even the greatest movie of all time. Tenta will try and make it such, but the sequel was better, and still I didn't feel the realism in The Godfather as I keep feeling after I watch Goodfellas. Goodfellas is a great portrayal of real life, and the scene where Henry is walking through the Copacabana with Karen is a great symbolic shot for the movie.

Didn't say it was. I said it is the better film out of the two in the genre.

Being better having been based upon a true story is your taste, a taste that myself and others don't agree with. Glad I can clear that up for you.

True stories limit what you can do with the movie, and its a lot easier to make a movie based upon real events since the framework is already in place than it is to bring another story to life, which makes movies like The Departed and The Godfather even more impressive. I fail to see why being based upon a true story is your go-to argument.

We're talking about an all-time great movie, I'd be shocked if anyone knocked it being a great film, but its simply NOT the best. All the pro's going for it, cast and recognition, are topped in like films.

 

[Tenta]

I think we need to view things like this: While Goodfellas was a very modernized version of real-life mobster events, The Godfather was a more pure, classic version of a nonfictional story. Because of the true-to-life and real nature of Goodfellas, it was more difficult for the director to capture the magic that Scorcese filmed in The Godfather.

Therefore, out of the true-to-life mobster movies (i.e. Donnie Brasco), Goodfellas is probably the best. But rating the movie as the best of all-time? That's a bit far-fetched.

Except Scorcese didn't film Godfather. That was Coppola.

Anyway, on to inmportant matters. Chi, I love Goodfellas, I really do. What.... We're not talking about the cartoon from Anamaniacs? Well, that changes everything. It's been said before, but without The Godfather there is no Goodfellas. You say that being a real life story is something that gives it creedence over The Godfather. Well, let's go find out what the head of the Gambino crime ring, Salvatore Gravano had to say immediately after watching The Godfather:

"I left the movie stunned... I mean I floated out of the theater. Maybe it was fiction, but for me, then, that was our life. It was incredible. I remember talking to a multitude of guys, made guys, who felt exactly the same way."

You know what that tells me, Chi? It tells me that one of the biggest crime bosses of all time believes that The Godfather was almost real, that it pulled him into it's universe, to the point that it made it seem real to him. Making your point that because Goodfellas was a real life story, it was better absolutely insignificant.

When picking a movie, Chi, it's best to not pick one who's working in the shadows of another movie. And that perfectly describes Goodfellas

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[IrishCanadian25]

I loved Goodfellas.

It's my fourth favorite mob flick of all time.

I say it's fourth because I rate it behind The Godfather parts 1 and 2, as well as Casino, which is also based on real events. I couldn't stand Lorainne Bracco in Goodfellas (Sharon Stone decimated her in Casino) and I felt that Joe Pesci's redux in Casino was a step up from Goodfellas.

At the 63th Academy Awards, Goodfellas was beaten soundly by, in my opinion, one of the most overrated films of all time in Dances with Wolves. Here are some of the nominations, and why I think there may be a better choice in this contest in terms of what the greatest film ever actually is:

• Nominated for Best Picture, 1990 (an award won by Silence of the Lambs the following year)
• Nominated for Best Director, 1990 (an award won by Silence of the Lambs the following year)
• NOT nominated for Best Actor in 1990, though DiNiro nearly won it for Awakenings. (incidentally, Anthony Hopkins won it the following year for Silence of the Lambs)
• Won Best Supporting Actor by Joe Pesci in 1990
• Nominated for Best Supporting Actress in 1990 (Silence of the Lambs wasn't nominated for best supporting actress the following year...it won for best actress, though...)
• Nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay in 1990 (Silence of the Lambs won that award the following year)

Yep, Goodfellas was a fun, stylish film. It told a great story. It stands out in the mob drama genre.

It isn't the greatest mob flick ever.

And it's far from the greatest flick ever.

 

[a0161613]

Good choice of film, but I’d suggest the previous posts are spot on. When the movie isn’t even the top two in its genre, how can it rightly be entered in this type of discussion. When both Pesci and De Niro have made better efforts in other films, can you rightly claim that the cast is so great?

And when the director has made so many superior films, not least The Departed which is a better gangster film with a deeper cast, does it truly deserve to be mentioned in this conversation?

 

[jmt225]

Listen, I love Goodfellas, but let me tell you why in no way, shape or form is it the greatest movie ever made:

Narration is a weak form of storytelling.

That's it. That's the bottom line. I haven't studied much on film, but what little I have I know that it's a universal opinion that narration is the weakest/cheapest form of telling a story in cinema. Sometimes it works, sure, as it did in Goodfellas, no doubt, but there's just no possible way could a movie that is narrated to the extent that Goodfellas is be considered the greatest movie of all time. No way, man. Narration = Huge flaw.

Goodfellas is a perfectly enjoyable mob flick, but that's all it is. It's entertaining, and I do love it, but it barely makes the top 50 greatest movie of all time list, if 100.