I'm going to talk about Goodfellas a bit. My nephew had never seen it and asked about it because he knows it's an all time favorite of mine, so we watched it together recently.
To start, he loved it - it grabbed him right away, and never let up. He was super invested in it, and when Pesci's time was up, he gasped. It's fun to see a movie you know well still "work" on someone. For me, this was probably my 20th time seeing it, so I kind of focused on a few things for this thread - the voiceover since we kind of discussed it a bit, the camera, and the music.
I know
@KarmaPolice doesn't like the voiceover, and in many movies I agree with that (including Casino, where it annoyed me.) But it works superbly in Goodfellas. Maybe it's because Henry (and Karen) are good storytellers, or maybe it's how the voiceover truly fills in the story and keeps it moving. Whatever it is, it works here, and never gets in the way - it feels like a natural part of the story (unlike Casino, where it feels shoehorned in). Maybe it's because of the way Goodfellas starts, with the longer shots and the dreamy / flashback-like look at mob life. For example, the scene were he's introducing people in the bar is great, with the voiceover being a crucial part of it (Jimmy Two Times!) Those long, swooping camera shots are great, and of course you have the famous Copa scene included there.
I paid more attention with this viewing on just how sharply the pace changes and how Scorsese uses the short takes to show Henry's agitation in the third act, sometimes doubling up a scene (him making meatballs and glancing over). This is pretty well known about this movie, but my nephew didn't notice this until we talked about it, as he was caught up in Henry's frantic day (which of course is exactly what Marty wanted). He wants to watch it again with a more critical eye.
The music... does anybody do music quite like Scorsese? Especially in this film? The happy pop songs of the early period, Gimme Shelter and mixing coke,
DeNiro smoking with Cream playing (such a great scene), the body montage with the ending of Layla, Monkey Man and What is Life during the helicopter. Just fantastic stuff.
Top 5 all time film for me. I'll watch it anytime. For the actors, it's the high water mark for Liotta and Bracco for sure. Good argument for Pesci too. Maybe for DeNiro as well, although for him there are a few contenders.
