The Ten Best Gangster Movies Ever
The success of Martin Scorsese's The Departed has reminded Hollywood that there's still a market for a well-crafted gangster films, even after The Sopranos starting f__ing the genre for the last eight years. The good news is that I found room on this list for a few newer flicks that really earned my loyalty. That means goodbye overrated "classics" like Road To Perdition (starring Tom Hanks as the hitman--enough said) and Casino. (Too little, too late) I also had to leave off some disorganized gangster flicks like Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs, and some wise guy material like Get Shorty and The Freshman, opposed to true blue tales of organized crime. As for the other great films I left off this mobster list? Don't ask me about my personal business, 'kay?
A B movie when compared with the greats, but how can you whack a truly riveting performance by Johnny Depp and a graceful goodbye performance by Al Pacino? Donnie Brasco wasn't just a well-acted, riveting drama--it was in many ways a passing of the torch from arguably the two best actors of the 70s and 90s.
I was pleasantly surprised how watchable Martin Scorsese's new Irish mafia drama The Departed really was after so many years of desensitizing--in both the genre and Scorsese as a director. But everyone in the film gives it their all, including Matt Damon in his best performance so far, and Leonardo DiCaprio who proves that he can be more amazing than even Howard Hughes.
The most unpredictable mob film you've ever seen, and not surprising if you know it's directed by David Cronenberg the most fearless director in Hollywood, now that the late great Stanley has passed. The comic book narrative gives it a suspenseful edge that no other mobster film has touched. The film managed to sneak into to the Oscar party with a screenplay nomination and a Supporting Actor nomination for William Hurt. Be surprised, the Academy took that much of a risk.
One of the first and great mobster films of all time, starring the greatest actor of the 1950s, Marlon Brando. The film was directed by the notorious Elia Kazan, who earned Hollywood's wrath after testifying about some showbiz commies to the House of Un-American Activities Committee. What was the big deal? It was a movie about a rat, directed by a rat and for an audience who wanted to see a rat. Fugedaboutit!
Sergio Leone's Jewish mob movie starring Robert Deniro and James Woods, in Orson Welles-like fashion, was critically acclaimed in its uncut three hour version--but bombed with its America-friendly, heavily edited edition for major release which was called a Godfather rip off. The original audience in Cannes loved it, and if you see the original version you will know why.
Then you have the Cuban mafia, and a wild Al Pacino performance as the Al Capone-inspired gangster who only wanted what was coming to him--oh and who had a little friend to show you. Amazingly, now regarded as a classic, this ultra-violent archetype for modern gangster movies was reviled by critics and most of the movie industry in 1983. Only Roger Ebert immediately recognized the violent, amoral human character study to be a classic. Proof that it has a cult following? Rent Scarface: the videogame for the Playstation and Xbox!
Martin Scorsese's first effort at making movies he cared about was a tremendous artistic success and a prototype for many great working class mafia films to come. Scorsese was told John Cassavetes--after being dissed by Roger Corman who thought the film would work better with an all black cast--to make movies he wanted to make, and that were about things he knew. The rest is history and Scorsese thankfully still won't shut up about what he knows.
While Pulp Fiction may seem more like a crime film than a true mobster movie, I've always seen it as an ultra-hip, black mafia film. Oddly enough, Tarantino, a geeky white director (or at least, a nervous mix of Italian, Irish and Cherokee) produced two of the most memorable performances by black actors I can remember in the 90s--and to this day. Samuel L. Jackson as Jules Winnfield and Ving Rhames as crime boss Marcellus Wallace. A mobster film that that's as funny as it is intense, and one that never loses its (corrupted) soul even in the midst of the outrageous and macabre.
What is The Godfather trilogy doing at number two? And how dare I include Part III with the much better films from the 70s! Actually, I didn't mind The Godfather III. While slightly disappointing, it was still more interesting than most of the films that year--save one obvious exception, and that wasn't Dances With Wolves. As for the first two Francis Ford Coppola classics? Like fine wine, they age very well, and get better as every year passes and more imitators are spawned.
But a second watching of Goodfellas has reminded me how much more intense and skilled as a director Scorsese is in comparison to Coppola. Every scene in this movie is brutal, true-to-life and even at times inappropriately fun. It's hard to choose just one great performance out of this all star cast though Joe Pesci wouldn't f___ing forgive you if you refused to acknowledge his Oscar winning villain performance--a rare feat in history. Whether or not Scorsese ever wins his honorary achievement Oscar, or even a Best Director bone for The Departed, this is the film he should have won for. Goodfellas was ahead of its time, and will never be truly duplicated in terms of breaking new ground. Pulp Fiction, The Sopranos and practically every mob movie save Coppola's, owe their vision to Scorsese. The only thing I find more amazing than the film itself, is the fact that in 1993, a mere three years after the fact, some audacious cartoon writers found a way to pay homage to this ultra-bloody flick in cooing mischief; Animaniacs' "Goodfeather" pigeons were a direct parody of this Scorsese masterpiece. Somehow I think Tommy DeVito would have been perversely proud of that fact.
10.Donnie Brasco
A B movie when compared with the greats, but how can you whack a truly riveting performance by Johnny Depp and a graceful goodbye performance by Al Pacino? Donnie Brasco wasn't just a well-acted, riveting drama--it was in many ways a passing of the torch from arguably the two best actors of the 70s and 90s.
9.The Departed
I was pleasantly surprised how watchable Martin Scorsese's new Irish mafia drama The Departed really was after so many years of desensitizing--in both the genre and Scorsese as a director. But everyone in the film gives it their all, including Matt Damon in his best performance so far, and Leonardo DiCaprio who proves that he can be more amazing than even Howard Hughes.
8.A History Of Violence
The most unpredictable mob film you've ever seen, and not surprising if you know it's directed by David Cronenberg the most fearless director in Hollywood, now that the late great Stanley has passed. The comic book narrative gives it a suspenseful edge that no other mobster film has touched. The film managed to sneak into to the Oscar party with a screenplay nomination and a Supporting Actor nomination for William Hurt. Be surprised, the Academy took that much of a risk.
7.On the Waterfront
One of the first and great mobster films of all time, starring the greatest actor of the 1950s, Marlon Brando. The film was directed by the notorious Elia Kazan, who earned Hollywood's wrath after testifying about some showbiz commies to the House of Un-American Activities Committee. What was the big deal? It was a movie about a rat, directed by a rat and for an audience who wanted to see a rat. Fugedaboutit!
6.Once Upon A Time In America
Sergio Leone's Jewish mob movie starring Robert Deniro and James Woods, in Orson Welles-like fashion, was critically acclaimed in its uncut three hour version--but bombed with its America-friendly, heavily edited edition for major release which was called a Godfather rip off. The original audience in Cannes loved it, and if you see the original version you will know why.
5.Scarface
Then you have the Cuban mafia, and a wild Al Pacino performance as the Al Capone-inspired gangster who only wanted what was coming to him--oh and who had a little friend to show you. Amazingly, now regarded as a classic, this ultra-violent archetype for modern gangster movies was reviled by critics and most of the movie industry in 1983. Only Roger Ebert immediately recognized the violent, amoral human character study to be a classic. Proof that it has a cult following? Rent Scarface: the videogame for the Playstation and Xbox!
4.Mean Streets
Martin Scorsese's first effort at making movies he cared about was a tremendous artistic success and a prototype for many great working class mafia films to come. Scorsese was told John Cassavetes--after being dissed by Roger Corman who thought the film would work better with an all black cast--to make movies he wanted to make, and that were about things he knew. The rest is history and Scorsese thankfully still won't shut up about what he knows.
3.Pulp Fiction
While Pulp Fiction may seem more like a crime film than a true mobster movie, I've always seen it as an ultra-hip, black mafia film. Oddly enough, Tarantino, a geeky white director (or at least, a nervous mix of Italian, Irish and Cherokee) produced two of the most memorable performances by black actors I can remember in the 90s--and to this day. Samuel L. Jackson as Jules Winnfield and Ving Rhames as crime boss Marcellus Wallace. A mobster film that that's as funny as it is intense, and one that never loses its (corrupted) soul even in the midst of the outrageous and macabre.
2.The Godfather Trilogy
What is The Godfather trilogy doing at number two? And how dare I include Part III with the much better films from the 70s! Actually, I didn't mind The Godfather III. While slightly disappointing, it was still more interesting than most of the films that year--save one obvious exception, and that wasn't Dances With Wolves. As for the first two Francis Ford Coppola classics? Like fine wine, they age very well, and get better as every year passes and more imitators are spawned.
1.Goodfellas
But a second watching of Goodfellas has reminded me how much more intense and skilled as a director Scorsese is in comparison to Coppola. Every scene in this movie is brutal, true-to-life and even at times inappropriately fun. It's hard to choose just one great performance out of this all star cast though Joe Pesci wouldn't f___ing forgive you if you refused to acknowledge his Oscar winning villain performance--a rare feat in history. Whether or not Scorsese ever wins his honorary achievement Oscar, or even a Best Director bone for The Departed, this is the film he should have won for. Goodfellas was ahead of its time, and will never be truly duplicated in terms of breaking new ground. Pulp Fiction, The Sopranos and practically every mob movie save Coppola's, owe their vision to Scorsese. The only thing I find more amazing than the film itself, is the fact that in 1993, a mere three years after the fact, some audacious cartoon writers found a way to pay homage to this ultra-bloody flick in cooing mischief; Animaniacs' "Goodfeather" pigeons were a direct parody of this Scorsese masterpiece. Somehow I think Tommy DeVito would have been perversely proud of that fact.
posted by Casino at 10:34 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Rise Against Home