Review of GoodFellas (1990) by Theirishman — 29 Jan 2022

Martin Scorsese, like many of his compositions, is very shrewd in his good comrades, and in a narrative that is carefully constructed and avoids us as an audience.

Goodfellas is a better and more thoughtful version of his previous film Mean Streets, especially since Goodfellas takes us on a journey to find out who is telling us the story in the film. Reflect on whose words we listen to and tend to accept. This is an important question in the context of a film that asks us to consider gangsters as notable human beings. Henry Hill, the narrator and the main character of the film, seems to be in the role of our guide.

He talks to us throughout the film (using Voice Over) and what we see as the viewer is actually what he sees and the story seems to be controlled by him as the main character. As Scorsese constantly questions the fact whether humans have control over things or it is the circumstances and the story that happen to humans. This is one of the recurring themes and an important part of the main structure in this good director's films. The use of a omniscient (narrator) who is also the main character of the film in each of the films has made the viewer feel inside the story.