Direction: Martin Scorsese
Country: USA
Who, other than Martin Scorsese, would be able to direct a grandiose epic movie about the mob with such authenticity? The Irishman, his new engrossing gangster classic, is crammed with virtuosic actors with a vast experience in portraying roles connected to the organized crime. Robert De Niro and an unusually quiet Joe Pesci team up again under Scorsese’s guidance, 24 years after Casino and 29 after Goodfellas. Al Pacino joins them here to play a key role, and together, even functioning in a more restrained mode, they show they still have it. The film, hoisted by a sharp perspective of the Mafia statutes back in the 50’s, was penned by the awarded screenwriter Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List; Gangs of New York), in a compelling adaptation of Charles Brandt’s 2004 book I Heard You Paint Houses.
The narrative scuttles back and forth in time, telling how the Philadelphian truck driver and meat delivery guy Frank Sheeran (De Niro) gradually becomes an important figure in the Cosa Nostra criminal society after establishing solid friendships with the high-ranked mafioso Russell Bufalino (Pesci) and the powerful union labor leader Jimmy Hoffa (Pacino). Frank’s loyalty to the organization is put to a test when he is ordered to kill the ambitious, stubborn and difficult Hoffa, to whom he became very close.
Scenes of violent killings, tense meetings, and complicated negotiations take turns, oftentimes with a sardonic humor hooked up. Aging alone, Frank realizes that his old pals and family are gone and nothing good has left from his criminal life to be remembered. And that’s where the guilt bites hard. Deep down, he would like to be a better man than he actually is.
Clocking in at three and a half hours, The Irishman feels painfully real, adding new stimulus to a crowded genre where only true experts can succeed. Scorsese and this mind-blowing cast are all about perfection.
