The best Mob movie ever made.

Rating: 10/10 (5 June 2017)

GoodFellas gets a 5/5 which does this film justice due to the amount of unique film techniques utilized by Martin Scorsese and the length of the movie that never seems to stagnant. The film manages to cover a two and a half decade timeline with the additions of narratives from two of the films main characters to pace the film correctly and fill in details that would've been impossible to inform us in 146 minutes or cover a 25 year timeline, which is integral when documenting a story of a character from childhood to manhood while including other aspects of his life.
Narration/Voiceovers played an integral part in GoodFellas because this enables Scorsese to give us ample information in a short period of time, which is essential to keep up with the films 25 year span or else the movie would have to be much longer or we'd miss out on crucial details that drive the film. Continuing, the film revolves around Henry but it is crucial to know and understand what he's into and who his friends or the people he hangs around really are which would've been impossible without the narrative. Fortunately for the audience Henry is a reliable narrator so we don't have to question what he is saying because no one can tell one's story better them they can, this also adds the ability to add opinion without them being wrong because they're his own opinions.Next the narrative makes the audience gravitate towards Henry and helps the audience to understand his ways and see him in a better light and not have to make our own assumptions about Henry whereas we see him as a hero rather than an anti hero, With Henry explaining his ways it helps us look past his greed, drug abuse, and cheating because him explaining himself is almost like an apology or friend telling you why they do the things they do. Lastly The dual perspective also adds a flavor not many narratives add which is a female perspective in parallel to the main character.
Furthermore the camera techniques used in this film are very different than an average cinematographers go to techniques. With the use of long cuts, freehand shots, and following movement during scenes this creates a genuine feeling and makes the film unbelievable realistic and intense. For example one of the most important scenes in the film from a cinematographic aspect is the restaurant scene when Henry and Karen walk from the street outside through a tunnel and walk through a kitchen into the restaurant and sit down all in one take and no cuts. Everything in the scene seems to flow fluidly and perfectly in cohesion with the two stars. The following of the character(s) by the camera adds a 3rd person spectating perspective that indulges you into the film and makes some seemingly pointless scenes interesting.
In conclusion GoodFellas is a tremendous film directed by Martin Scorsese that utilizes many film techniques not used together often and creates a seemingly effortless environment while also being realistic to the audience. The theme of the film is surrounded in tragedy and misfortune. While we see Henry's rise in power within the mob, we inevitably see his fall towards the second half of the movie. With money,power, and greed even the mightiest may fall which is what we see scattered throughout the later half of the film.