Just Okay, Fans of the Gangster Genre Probably Won't Like It

Rating: 5/10 (16 November 2019)

I watched the theatrical cut many years ago on TV. I think I enjoyed it, but I don't recall it being so memorable to the point that I needed to get an updated version on DVD or Blu Ray.
So I recently watched this almost 4 hour original director's cut version, and I must say that it was kind of dull.
There were some parts that were good. Seeing how things started off as kids was interesting enough. Then there was the second era when Noodles gets out of jail and they really start amping up their activities. But then the movie just seems to go nowhere. Also, we get this mafia character played by Joe Pesci who seems like he's going to be a big part of this film, but then he just disappears. Okay, we seem him once more later. I was under the impression these friends were working for some big mob types, hence their connections and money. But as the movie goes on, it just seems like they're still a bunch of hooligans trying to figure out what they want to do.
And then there were the random or overly long scenes, like the whole Danny Aiello sequence, or those long moments between the adult Noodles and Deborah where we see absolutely no chemistry between them. Just dragged on and on.
The final act, to me, just didn't make any sense either. How did Noodles not even know Max was still alive?!!! Come on, the guy was a Senator for crying out loud. He didn't even try to change his appearance by wearing a mustache. Noodles would have known about him from seeing him in the paper or TV, especially with such a scandal brewing. Was Noodles living on a desert island all these years? They never explain that either. I just thought he was in Buffalo, which is where he bought his bus ticket to.
Ultimately, it feels like this movie was one long setup for a twist that didn't even feel believable. It has a lot of good moments, but overall, could definitely use some serious trimming. I'll have to search for the studio edit version to see if that actually helped it out. Just an okay film, and too slow moving to really be part of the same genre as films like The Godfather, Goodfellas, Casino etc...Maybe a bit more like A Bronx Tale? Just not as well told.