Goodfellas

A Martin Scorsese film in 2 hours and 20 mins charting the 1950’s through to 1980. Goodfellas is based on a true story with Ray Liotta as lead role, Henry Hill. Henry is brought into the Mafia from a young age skipping school to run errand, and he immediately starts to enjoy the life of a gangster with nice suits, women and – and lots of money. He meets Jimmy Conway and Tommy DeVito, played by Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci.  They become his two closest friends whose mentality instability starts to cause trouble within the Mafia. The gang carry out many felonies, such as the infamous Lufthansa heist at JFK airport.

Through Henry Hill, the film shows the grim reality of gangster life behind the fast cars and banknotes. Its a story about loyalty and keeping your hands clean – but the question is who would rat out their friend to keep their reputation from picking up dirt? Excellent characterisation with a cameo role by Scorsece’s mum, which we loved. Wife Karen, Lorraine Bracco did an excellent job and Liota made a goodfella seem easy. However there’s a long build up and I’m not sure that this film should be at the top of the IMDB website. Have your say…..

Trailer

Ratings:  7.7/10

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The Aviator

Leonardo DiCaprio stars as the famous millionaire, film producer, playboy, recluse Howard Hughes.  This biopic of his life shows his obsession with airplanes and his decay into the neurotic OCD obsessive weirdo that we read about in the newspapers and wondered how anyone could keep bottles of their own piss and grow their nails until they were so long their fingers can’t function.  Leonardo plays Hughes so well in fact that after the neuroses creep in you have bought into it and don’t think of him as leo anymore.  You can watch the transformation into the germaholic from the very beginning.  Cate Blanchett does the Katherine Hepburn larger than life droll voice and manly mannerisms very well for someone who does not resemble Hepburn. Kate Beckinsale simply looks like Ava Gardner. It is not the usual Scorcese film set.  We are shown Hollywood elitism and time is spent in the air rather than on the ground and, these scenes are rather good, notably a crash landing just short of the Beverly Hills Wiltshire Hotel as was back then.  We are in technicolour it seems with strange colours being brought out reminiscent of the Wizzard of Oz.  Well over 2 hours this movie does not feel as long as it really is and I would probably watch it again just to see DiCaprio carrying yet another film to victory.  Other famous faces, Jude law, Alec Baldwin and Gwen Steffani also star.  Scorsese never relies on fresh blood. In summary, a detailed and authentic biopic of Hughes’extraordinary life.
IMDB The Aviator

Trailer

Rating:  8.2/10

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Casino

Mobsters set up gambling casinos in Los Vegas in the 1980’s so they could cream of the money.  Very closely based on truth, a 1983 newspaper headline story.  The Tangiers Hotel is one of these  greedy scams run by Robert De Niro (Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein) for the mob.  The fab opening scene sees a car bomb go off and you know this is going to be a violent film from the start.  Mobster friend and ally Joe Pesci (Nicky Santoro) is a hitman who loses his temper easily and tries to make a killing on the casinos by cheating until he is banned from every casino.    Sam does not have a license for his casino, to avoid detection he changes his job title regularly and sooner or later the trail of felony leads to his door curtesy of Nicky.   Sharon Stone (Ginger McKenna plays the girlfriend who becomes Mrs Rothstein.   Robert De Niro wears incredible pink suits.  The film does not have tension running through it and the narrative is long and laboured and it could easily have been cut down to 2 hours from a whopping 3!.  However, Sharon Stone puts in a good performance as the girlfriend and their relationship is believable.

IMDB Casino

Trailer

Rating: 7.5/10

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