Analysis Of The Film ' Goodfellas ' And ' The Eyes Of Henry Hill '

At the beginning of the 1970s, two men, by the names of Martin Scorcese and Robert De Niro, met and started an extremely successful and world renowned string of movie director/actor collaborations. Over the course of 22 years,spawning from 1973, with their first film Mean Streets, to 1995, with their most recent work Casino, the duo paired up for 8 movies, most of which are considered some of the greatest films of all time. The most notable, however, would have to be their 1990 movie Goodfellas, a classic film which was nominated for 6 oscars, winning one, and named the greatest film of all time by British film magazine Total Film, an organized crime movie which is one of my favorite movies.

Director Francis Ford Coppola, in the film Godfather portrays the inner workings of a Mafia family. Coppola employed various filming techniques to make the film. These techniques serve to show the audience what is important to the Godfather and the reasoning behind actions that they do. Some techniques include lighting, music, and camera angles. The way that he styled the film was a lot different than the style that existed in the 1970s.

For more than fifty years, Clint Eastwood has been actively defining and redefining cinema as an art form. His experiences as an actor on television and in film have greatly influenced his directing style. Across his films, Eastwood incorporates several issues and techniques that help the audience to identify said films with Eastwood's directorial style. Eastwood's aim in his films is to tell stories of the human experience. Francois Truffaut and Andrew Sarris have aimed to define the qualities that make a director an auteur whose works stand out above the rest. The qualities defined by Truffaut and Sarris can be seen in Eastwood films including Unforgiven (1992), Million Dollar Baby (2004), and Changeling (2008) and help to establish Eastwood as an auteur.

Francis Ford Coppola directed the gangster crime drama film, The Godfather (1972), inspired by the novel of the same name, written by Author Mario Puzo. The film plays out in the beginning how Don Corleone declined to join the narcotics business with notorious drug lord Sollozzo. With this in mind, one of the greatest gangster films created by a man who decided to lead, and not follows. Moreover, explaining the formalist approach for this film which covers an array of elements that include plot structure, camera techniques, editing, mise en scene, and sound. The following film critique will analyze “The Godfather,” beginning by utilizing the formalist approach theory, camera technique and sound gradually introducing additional theories

The film The Green Mile was originally written by Stephen King and later directed by Frank Darabont. It is based on the guards and inmates of a penitentiary’s Death Row during the great depression. There is a certain monotony that comes with working on Death Row and Paul Edgecomb, played by Tom Hanks, has become numb to the fact that he is paid to take lives; that is until John Coffey gets sentenced to death and is sent to Paul’s “green mile”. John Coffey is a very large black man that was accused of rape and murder of two little girls, and in the 1930’s having charges like that brought upon you was grounds for the death penalty, especially for a black man in the south.

With regards to Goodfellas, the film starts off by stating that the main character Henry Hill from as far back as he could remember always wanted to be a gangster, which is another term for mobster. Particularly, he started off working at the cab stand across the street at just about ten or eleven years old, and the cab stand was a place where mobsters worked. His parents who were working class citizens, and made lousy money were happy that he had found a job because his father had always believed that American kids were spoiled rotten. Furthermore, as he progressed into the field of a mobster living he was

The critically acclaimed film, Goodfellas, is a gangster crime drama that features an incredible amount of talent. Household names such as: Robert De Niro (Jimmy Conway), Joe Pesci (Tommy DeVito), Paul Sorvino (Paul Cicero), and promising stars like Ray Liotta (Henry Hill) and Lorraine Bracco (Karen Hill), attracted numerous Oscar and Golden Globe nominations. That type of cast power, linked with the signature talent of Martin Scorsese as a director, made for cinematic gold. Unquestionably, the actors and actresses did an excellent job augmenting the verisimilitude of this film and compelling audiences to empathize with their characters. But the cinematography in this film plays just as large a role in having audiences feel what the characters are feeling at a specific moment. Through the use of freeze frames, we learn of significant moments that shape Henry into the man that he is. By means of first-person narration we are able to know exactly what is going through a particular character’s mind. Finally, wonderful editing made great use of point of view and multiple jump cuts, which added to the sensation that we are undergoing the same experiences as the characters on screen. I will go into further detail and specify scenes that convey these elements as the essay progresses. Altogether, Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas effectively depicts paramount scenes and allows the audience to empathize with the characters by virtue of stylistic editing and cinematography.

The critically acclaimed film, Goodfellas, is a gangster crime drama that features a great deal of talent. Household names such as Robert De Niro (Jimmy Conway), Joe Pesci (Tommy DeVito), Paul Sorvino (Paul Cicero), and promising stars like Ray Liotta (Henry Hill) and Lorraine Bracco (Karen Hill), attracted numerous Golden Globes and Academy Awards nominations. That type of cast power, linked with the signature talent of Martin Scorsese as a director, made for cinematic gold. Unquestionably, the actors and actresses did an excellent job augmenting the verisimilitude of this film and compelling audiences to empathize with their characters. But the cinematography in this film plays just as large a role in having audiences feel what the characters are feeling at a specific moment. Through the use of freeze frames, we learn of significant moments that shape Henry into the man that he is. By means of first-person narration, we are able to know exactly what is going through a particular character’s mind. Finally, strong editing made efficient use of multiple jump cuts, which add to the sensation that we are undergoing the same experiences as the characters on screen. Altogether, Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas effectively depicts paramount scenes and allows the audience to empathize with the characters by virtue of stylistic editing and cinematography.

When talking about a true American crime story, one can start and end the discussion with one of the most powerful and influential true stories ever told: GoodFellas. Based on the incredible true story, the film follows the rise and fall of Lucchese crime family associates Henry Hill and his friends throughout the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 1980s. Originally written as the non-fiction novel “Wise Guys” by Nicholas Pileggi, the story takes you deep into the world of arguably the most notorious crime posse America has ever known: the Italian Mafia. It is viewed by scores of critics and moviegoers alike as one of the greatest crime/drama movies ever filmed – so needless to say, with such a

Throughout Martin Scorsese’s nearly 50-year long career, he has come to be known as a master of his craft, having directed countless films hailed as modern-day masterpieces. As with any cinematic auteur, his films are often grouped together and boiled down to a group of recurring elements, both narrative and technological, featured across his oeuvre. Scorsese’s body of work continually addresses issues of Sicilian-American identity, guilt and redemption, masculinity, crime,

Martin Charles Scorsese was born November 17, 1942. Suffering from asthma, he spent most of his time watching movies and by the time he was eight, he was already drawing his own storyboards that were directed/produced by himself. Although he considered going into priesthood, making movies was Scorsese’s true calling and he went on to make some of Hollywood’s most memorable films. Incorporating themes from his Italian American roots into his visceral, cinematic storytelling that has influenced generations of filmmakers. He is an American director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and film historian, whose career spans more than 53 years. Scorsese 's body of work addresses such themes as Sicilian-American identity, Roman Catholic concepts of guilt and redemption, machismo, modern crime, and gang conflict. Many of his films are also notable for their depiction of violence and liberal use of profanity. Part of the New Hollywood wave of filmmaking, he is widely regarded as one of the most significant and influential filmmakers in cinema history. For three decades Scorsese has been at the forefront of American cinema. Its most avid champion and often its most electrifying practioner. The most cinematic of directors, he has also been among the most formally restless and exploratory, evolving an obsessive-compulsive mise-en-scene based on dynamic, agile camerawork and radical editing rhythms.

While many movies have depicted various areas of the criminal justice system, the Shawshank Redemption is like no other. I first watched the film many years ago on television and since have seen it numerous times on platforms such as DVD and Netflix. The key stars in the production, are actors Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. Other standouts that who are featured in supporting roles included actors Bob Gunton and Clancy Brown. The film was directed by Frank Darabont who is known for criminal justice films such as the Green Mile. The Shawshank Redemption was first released in theaters September of 1994.

The untouchables is a movie based on the true events that occurred when the eighteenth amendment was passed. The eighteenth amendment established the prohibition of production, transport, and sale of alcohol. The Federal Agent Eliot Ness wants to stop Al Capone, who is the top of organized crime. It was a hard job for Eliot Ness because Al Capone with his money bought many policemen, politicians, and other important people, therefore Eliot Ness could trust anyone. Eliot Ness had to choose no more than twelve men to form his squad. The Untouchables were formed by Eliot Ness, and another nine men he picked, they were called the Untouchables because they never accepted any bribes. Al Capone One of Al Capone’s men offered Eliot Ness $2,000 to stop interfering with the organization and an additional $2,000 if he continued to cooperate. Eliot Ness’s plan was to make an impact in the income of the gangsters, so they couldn’t pay for protection. (Biography.com)

Throughout the film, Michael Corleone played brilliantly by Al Pacino, experiences a major change in his way of thinking. Michael changes from believing that what his family does is wrong, to believing that his family's crimes are a necessary evil. He begins by insisting to his girlfriend that his family's crimes belong to his family, not to him. He was not involved in the business and did not want anything to do with it.

The film, American Gangster, directed and produced by Ridley Scott is a drama based on the biography of Frank Lucas. In the movie, Frank Lucas constructs his own business of illegal work after his boss, Bumpy Johnson, passes away. Frank builds a heroin business, following in the footsteps of Bumpy, and becomes the most powerful crime boss in Manhattan. Furthermore, because of Frank’s immoral ways, he gets caught by the police and is sentenced to 15 years in prison. As the movie progresses I form a couple assumptions of what could happen in the short term and long term. First off, when Frank Lucas attains his heroin I believe that in the short term he will succeed. Frank has established a vast amount of insights into the drug business from Bumpy, and from what he has learned he will take in and apply it to his situation. However, all immoral acts will have to be put to an end, so in the long term, Frank’s heroin business will be caught. If Frank’s business is the biggest thing in Manhattan then the police are bound to question where are all the illegal drugs coming from, how, why, and who. The police were already hunting him down so it was inevitable for him to get out of his illegal mess.