Making House Painting Interesting

Rating: 8/10 (18 April 2020)

The Irishman is much, much more than a "mafia movie". It is a lens into the US culture in the second half of the twentieth century and, probably, one of the most definitive lenses.
Reuniting De Niro, Pacino and Pesci was certainly an amazing feat but if you're expecting another Godfather or Goodfellas, forget it. This movie is not an insight into the mafia and its various manifestations but juxtaposes three different elements, each of which in its own right could easily justify (and in some cases has) a one or two part series.
Scorsese and his team very effectively intertwine the mafia, the Teamsters and the Kennedy clan into a bubbling cauldron that spits out some interesting overspill, such as the line "if they can do that to Kennedy, then.......".
At 3.5 hours long you might think this is a long movie but it really does not feel like that, it is so well made. Granted some of the earlier scenes can get a little confusing as we move from very old Frank, to old (middle-aged?) Frank to "young" Frank (still old De Niro) but get that past that and you have a fascinating movie that steers you towards answers to some of the fascinating mysteries that define the Kennedy/Nixon era.