a perfect match of director and subject

Rating: 9/10 (23 November 2010)

Martin Scorsese's black comic Mafia case history claims to be a true story, but the facts are less important than the exaggerated, hyper-kinetic style in which they're presented. In just over two hours the film covers more than thirty years in the career of model criminal Henry Hill (Ray Liotta), from his childhood rise to privilege to his inevitable downfall through drugs, and finally to the ultimate treachery of his testimony under the FBI witness protection program. With so little time to cover so much ground the film, by necessity, moves like greased lightning (Liotta's constant voice-over narration is almost like having the entire source book, 'Wiseguys', read aloud), and although a certain depth is lost in the process the density of detail is amazing.
Scorsese admitted he wanted to structure his Mafia epic like a two-hour coming attractions trailer, and that's a fair description of the finished film: there's no actual dialogue in the first thirty minutes, no real conflict for a least an hour, and no suggestion of a plot until the film is two-thirds over. What emerges instead is a visually dense and hyperactive stew of details, incidents, and non-stop music references, often suggesting an insider's guide to New York City Italian-American culture. The technique is often as violent as the subject (even with the gallows humor provided by comic psychopath Joe Pesci) and, while the director certainly deserves all the acclaim the film has earned him, equal credit for helping build such incredible kinetic energy belongs to his longtime collaborators Michael Ballhaus (cinematography) and Thelma Schoonmaker (editing), especially in the latter half of the film, when Liotta's cocaine habit starts getting out of hand.
Scorsese might be criticized for elevating style over substance; his film doesn't really say anything except "crime doesn't pay" (not exactly a revelation), but says it with a thrilling, kick-in-the-pants vitality, succeeding in putting a unique spin on a genre many people might be excused for thinking had long been exhausted.