Analysis Of The Film ' Goodfellas '

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.

Fruitvale Station depicts the real-life case of Oscar Grant III, a young unarmed black man shot in the back by a white police officer on January 1, 2009 in Oakland. The movie begins with cell phone footage of Oscar Grant’s death recorded by bystanders. Grant’s life was tragically cut short due to a white man’s racism and stereotypical perception of a young black man. The BART police officer Johannes Mehserle abused his authority and shot Grant for no other reason but hatred and racism. At the time of the shooting, Grant was unarmed and pinned on the ground in handcuffs. The movie then walks you through the last twenty-four hours of Grant’s life. As you watch the movie and research the aftermath of Grant’s death you a forced to ask yourself a few questions; why does the media have the right to take away Oscar Grant’s humanity? Where do we draw the line between racism and holding others responsible and will the public’s perception of black men and women ever change? Lastly, we must focus on how this case and others impacts African American society and culture. We also must focus on the necessary changes African Americans must make in order to survive in a world that does not value black lives.

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

There are quite a lot of widespread stereotypes of Italian Americans in “The Godfather” movies which involve characters, Italian foods, family, and violence. Food plays a huge role in The Godfather movies. Characters in the movies are always seen eating Italian food such as pasta. If the directors were not referring to any specific ethnic group than why were all the movies showing characters with Italian names eating foods that were known to be “Italian” foods. Also, violence is a major key in the movie which is also stereotyped to Italian Americans by them being associated with crime and the mafia. “ Thus, rather than helping to overcome the negative image of Italian-Americans fostered by entertainment programming, the media reinforces

The film, Good will hunting (Bender et al., 1997), is an American classic flick which is lauded for its fresh and ordinary approach towards depicting situations that is realistic and relatable. In the film, Good Will Hunting (Bender et al., 1997), this is clearly show up that, savagery Will Hunting experienced as a youngster and after that shows as a grown-up; along with flashes of a sweet attitude towards his companions and mental virtuoso. It is about a young man struggle to find himself. He is unwillingly treated to a psychologist just to keep him out of trouble. In this journey, he finds out what he is and what matters to him the most. This movie uses strong and effective technique on evoking emotions and empathy to the audience through exposing them to various technicities of filmmaking such as color, camera technique and many more. After reading the book (OpenStax 2016), we can have adopted different kinds of psychological theory to explain this movie. Good will hunting is related with Erikson’s psychosocial theory of personal development (Neu-Freudian theory),Freud’s psychoanalytical theory and the five-factor model of personality (Big-five: OCEAN).

The Gangster film ‘Scarface’ (DePalma) is about the rise and eventual fall of Cuban immigrant, Tony Montana. Throughout the film the viewer witnesses how Tony Montana goes from a criminal in Cuba to a drug overlord in America. The average viewer cannot connect to the arc of Tony Montana. But, the average viewer can connect to what Tony Montana is working for, the American dream. Brain DePalma chooses purposefully to have a hyper-masculine, narcissistic, megalomaniac immigrant as the main character of a story of American dream. In ‘Scarface’, DePalma show the universality of the American dream. By utilizing various filming techniques, DePalma shows how the American dream is available for everyone.

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

New Year’s Day, 2009, a man is brutally shot by the BART Police of Oakland, California. Fruitvale Station, written and directed by Ryan Coogler, took audiences by surprise as it resonated with twenty-two year old Oscar Grant, a man who was shot down by the BART Police. This movie takes viewers on an emotional expedition as it takes a peek into the life and death of Oscar Grant and his family. The struggles of originating from an African-American background become apparent as Oscar Grant struggles with steering away from racial stereotypes and the misunderstandings of racial profiling.

Fruitvale station, is a story about the real life Oscar Grant, a black man who was shot and killed by a Bay Area Rapid Transit police officer in Oakland. This film follows Grant and his last days before the shooting on New Year’s Day. Written and directed by Ryan Coogler, Fruitvale station was his first feature film. Coogler expressed that he was interested in making this film because he wanted people to get to know Grant, get attached, so that when a situation like this occurs again, people will care more about that human life (Wikipedia). In addition, the cast includes Michael B. Jordan (Grant), Octavia Spencer (Wanda Johnson), and Melonie Diaz (Sophina Mesa), amongst a few others. However, there is an underlying concept in this film. This film relates back to Double Consciousness and the internal conflict and struggles within African American men.

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.

In the movie, “The Road from Crime”, Greg was a great example of how Merton 's Anomie and Agnew 's General Strain theory led them through a criminal lifestyle. The environment that Greg lived as a child was a prime example of the Agnew’s General Strain theory. He came from a society where crimes are viewed as a norm in his community. There are different types of circumstance that lead people and groups inside a community to participate in deviant behavior, such as harsh disciplines, child abuse, negative school experience, residence in economically deprived neighborhoods and more. However, Greg was a resident of an economically deprived neighborhood, which had an influence on his criminal background. According to Merton’s Anomie theory, offenders lead a criminal lifestyle because they are not able to accomplish their desire goal. Everyone does not have the same opportunities to become successful. Greg came from a society where people were looked down upon and did not have the opportunity to become successful in life due to their race. Greg was from a community where everyone in his society had an impact on one and other. For instance, he had a friend name Terry who inspired him to be the man he is today. As a kid, Greg looked up to Terry and tried to follow his footsteps. Terry and Greg were neighbors and that is one reason Terry was a role model to Greg. Greg admired Terry because he played basketball and was a “ladies man”. During, Terry and Greg childhood drugs were

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)

Mario Puzo’s "The Godfather" was the first and most influential gangster movie that paved the way for gangster movies of the future. The movie was directed by Frances Ford Copolla, who made many different ingenious ways to portray this gangster classic. The movie was a very subversive movie, and one of the first of all time.The Godfather has a many different uses of light settings through the whole movie, in which the movie can be interpreted on.