"Never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut"
Goodfellas and Irishman are two of Scorsese’s most popular movies and for good reason, I think they’re both two of his masterpieces, and they’re both shining examples of the absolute best in the crime/gangster genre. Now this isn’t a comparison post like the ones I’ve done in the past because I think Goodfellas and The Irishman bring different ideas to the table, but when analyzed together, they make for the most important story told in this genre. I’m gonna do my best to explain why I think they go perfectly together, and why both of these movies improve on each other.
"Three people can keep a secret only when two of them are dead"
Goodfellas and Irishman are two sides of the same coin, one could say, they both evoke very different feelings but in the end accomplish a common goal. Goodfellas is a glorious and celebratory representation of its time, and the gangster life, it brings out the period from the 50s to 80s vibrantly, and enthusiastically, almost as if you’re living there, and life could never get better. It’s epic and energetic. On the other hand, The Irishman is cold. It does not invite you into the time period but instead is a representation of our time, as it reflects back on history, reminiscing about the times and trying to understand what went wrong. It’s a contemplative film that feels empty as if it’s breaking down the gangster life. Goodfellas breaks down the gangster life as well, but not in the depressing manner that The Irishman does. Goodfellas is frantic, chaotic and has shock value but The Irishman is moody and calm, like an old man narrating the story of a falsely glorified life.
The Irishman provides a context to Goodfellas, where Goodfellas shows us gangsters in their prime in a highly stylized and elegant manner that does have a subtle undertone on the obvious dangers of the gangster lifestyle, it’s fun. Albeit a powerful deconstruction of the mob-life by the end, it’s still a fun watch that could be a genre film. The Irishman however lifts the veil, so to say, the violence is not exciting, instead it is patient and factful. The Irishman has been called a culmination of Scorsese’s previous gangster films because it’s the last one, and because it’s probably the last gangster film that will star the likes of Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci. But moreover, The Irishman is the film that reflects and provides context to films like Goodfellas and Casino which back then, were the product of their time periods, they were the peak of the gangster genre. Now it’s practically dead so the Irishman feels like one final, bittersweet farewell to it and it couldn't have been this farewell without the existence of the masterpiece that is Goodfellas, which 100% makes The Irishman a better viewing experience
The contrast that The Irishman provides to Goodfellas is striking, they have similar structures, both told in a non-linear fashion depicting the life of a single man, with a grander overarching narrative that ends up dictating the story of a single day. The characters are similar, the cast is also very similar and so is the visual style. But the tonal disparity is really interesting. The third act of Goodfellas is frantic and chaotic, ending in an overwhelming sense of wildness, but The Irishman is calm and deliberate. Even the narrations and freeze frames are not as fierce as Goodfellas. It truly reflects on the entire genre and life that these people had. The third act of the Irishman even starts off just about the same time Goodfellas ends, and it’s like a swan song. A final goodbye, and essential piece of context to Goodfellas. I think both of these movies are profound and hit hard and it’s impossible to miss how well they complement each other to form one large story of crime, power but also the loneliness and isolation that comes with a life like this.
By @starwards1
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