Wiseguy mayhem, an artistic triumph but occasionally off-putting

Rating: 6/10 (19 May 2006)

Martin Scorsese-directed modern-day mobster drama adapted from Nicholas Pileggi's book "Wiseguy" by Scorsese and Pileggi involves Brooklyn youth in 1955 who gets drawn into the gangster lifestyle, first as their gopher, later as a major player. Joe Pesci is frightening as a psychotic ball-buster and won a Supporting Actor Oscar, yet Ray Liotta is even better in the central role, and Lorraine Bracco is excellent as Liotta's wife. Exceptionally well-made film is gratuitous in its usage of a certain expletive and cannot overcome one major obstacle: despite its attempts to show the ugliness of Mafia life, the movie is constantly undermined by a distinct romanticism of its own violence. The infrequent narration by both Liotta and Bracco is a distraction, as we are often being told exactly what we're seeing on the screen, but the creeping paranoia is palpable and the drama played out is disturbing and gripping. **1/2 from ****