Expected from the protagonists, but still pretty good overall

Rating: 6/10 (22 December 2019)

"The Irishman" is a new 2019 American full feature film that is mostly in the English language and it is a really long movie at pretty much exactly 3.5 hours, so duration-wise basically two films together with each of them running 1 hour 45 minutes. But of course, it is just one film. Still I think it could have worked as a miniseries too. This film is based on a book and the adaptation is by Oscar winner Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List). The big star behind the camera, however, is the incomparable Martin Scorsese. I read people say this could be his final movie, but I really hope it is not. Not that he would not deserve retirement with all the greatness he has come up with in his career. This film here adds a new chapter to that. I am actually surprised to read that before teaming up with Netflix they struggled to find a production company here. I mean come on Scorsese and De Niro working on a mobster movie? Could it ever have gone wrong? Admittedly Pacino and Pesci (who celebrated some of his biggest successes, including his Oscar win, in Scorsese / De Niro films) probably weren't confirmed yet back then. So I would say it went right and looking at how this made it to the imdb top250 already immediately, others seem to agree. I must still say this is too much and I would not call it a great film really, even if there are occasional great moments. I will get to these later. But then again, my opinion is probably not too representative when it comes to Scorsese because the films that are considered his very best are not among my favorites from him and instead I prefer for example Hugo, Shutter Island or also the film about old Japan he made not too long ago (with Driver, Garfield and Neeson).
Now as for this one here, I already mentioned the three key actors with De Niro being at the center of it all from beginning to end at different stages of his character's life. Pay attention to his bright blue eyes here. The two big supporting players do not have that much time together on the screen. Basically early on, it is Pesci mostly. Then Pacino steps into the picture and really takes over and Pesci is gone for a long time until he reappears in the film's final third. And at the end, Pacino is gone and it is again only Pesci until the very end, when it's all about De Niro. I must say these very final scenes in the last half hour were also when De Niro mostly shines. He was not that great or memorable before that really. I would even go so far to say that Pacino stole the spotlight from him a bit. And he was a real scene stealer. This of course also has to do with the material. Frequently he just has much more to work with. The scene when they meet the guy who is late and not properly dressed is the best example. Pure Oscar bait for Pacino. Admittedly, he really also makes the most of this. But I am not surprised that the way it seems now De Niro is not getting the Oscar nomination this year, but Pacino and Pesci are. Actually, from what I saw here I would really love to see Pacino win a second, but at this point it seems highly unlikely because Pesci seems to be getting more momentum and both will have a hard time beating Brad Pitt, also because they will probably steal some votes from each other. Not that I'd mind Pitt winning at all. As for Pesci, the nomination is enough. But not undeserving. I think he pretty much showed a flawless performance here and also nailed all the more subtle moments, but as good as Pacino he is not or I would say his character did not offer as much. Speaking of awards, of course Scorsese must be mentioned too. Can he win Best Director this year? With his actors going against Pitt, he could be going mostly against Tarantino who directed Pitt. I am not sure, a nomination seems safe and he is among the top3 contenders right now. I don't think this is among his best directorial efforts though, so even if I love the man it would be too much and it would be nicer if he finally gets his second directing Oscar for another film in the future. We will see.
Also I want to say a few words on specific scenes and characters here. First of all, it must be said of course that this is based on actual events and characters. The best example is how the protagonists perceive the Kennedy assassination, especially Pacino's with the American flag scene. And as almost always with Scorsese there is a great deal of bloodshed in here. It all leeds to the killing of Hoffa. Maybe you knew it would happen, maybe you didn't. But still seeing it happen at the hands of Sheeran was rough, even if it was just one quick glimpse, two bullets and he was dead. But consequences were grave. Media posted hourly updates about the search for Hoffa and for Sheeran himself, this also had very personal consequences, namely his daughter seeing what happened. I am not too sure if I liked it and it felt realistic that she realized it, but the "why?" "why what?" moment was really tense. Oscar winner Anna Paquin plays the dauughter by the way. And with this scene alone, her character was probably more relevant or played a bigger role in this film than all the protagonists' wives who admittedly added very little except cigarette smoke. Also the scene very early on with the daughter and what happens after her dad finds out a guy pushed her in a store. She realizes how violent he can be and it is not only when he needs to protect his beloved ones. Another daughter makes a similar statement at the very end because when something happened they could not talk about it to their father because his reaction would be so over-the-top. But despite all the violence, bullets to the head etc. there are also scenes and moments that will make you laugh a little but, such as the lengthy fish scene at the end, or the gun graveyard earlier, Hoffa's sweet tooth when it comes to ice cream. And there is more really. In general, it is a film about many subjects, not just about crime, father-daughter relationships etc. but also for example about real honest friendship because Bobby's and Pesci's characters are friends for life really in here, even if they are also business associates. That's surely what you can call them. In addition, the music is always nice in Scorsese films and this is no exception. I personally found it pretty nice to see Breaking Bad's Jesse Plemons in here, even if he did not have too much to work with this time. But it's kinda interesting how he is having a far better career than Aaron Paul and without the Oscar nomination maybe he'd even be vlose to Bryan Cranston. And for me personally, it was really amazing to see J.C. MacKenzie here, even if it is just one or two scenes, because I loved him since Dark Angel. These likes are personal taste for me. Maybe others will appreciate Huston, Lombardozzi or Cannavale, it's up to you. Overall I believe if you consider watching this one, you most likely have seen older Scorsese crime films, or mobster movies in general, so you don't really need me to give you a recommendation here. But if you do, it would not be a negative one, although I cannot be as enthusiastic about this film as I would like to be. Still, thumbs-up. go watch and you will find many interesting details that maybe I have not mentioned already like the very last camera last shot with the door open, just like Hoffa's was the first time the two met.