Review of Gotti (1996) by Graham L — 12 Apr 2008

I remember a film called "Getting Gotti" with the extremely bad Lorraine Bracco which I'm sure was dire. However, "Gotti" is a lot better. It tells the true story of Mob kingin, John Gotti (Assante) and follows his rise and fall from the mid 1970s to his imprisonment in the 1990s. As a gangster movie, the familiarity with the storyline is instantaenous; plenty of double crosses, assasinations and organised pillaging - there are also many familiar faces from previous gangster flicks too. Assante is accompanied by his father-figure, Neil (the ancient Anthony Quinn), the respected DB (Frank Vincent) and his partner-in-crime, Sammy (Forsythe).

The cast are terrific and infact it is the strength of the characters which make this film stand out from the many gangster movies that sit on the video store shelves with Forsythe and Assante delivering powerful, commanding performances. For a change it is all accompanied by a decent script and is well directed with its 2 hour duration flowing steadily and without let-up.

"Gotti" is one of the better action dramas for some time.