Masters Dissertation Research: Goodfellas (1990)

This weeks BioPic of interest is the 1990 film Goodfellas, which focuses on the criminal life of Henry Hill between the years of 1955 and 1980. It is based on the non-fiction book Wiseguys by Nicholas Pileggi, and was directed by Martin Scorsese.

From the very first moment, the entirety of the movie is narrated by Hill's voice over. This was somewhat annoying at first, as it seems like a bit of an information dumping tool, however, as the story goes on it becomes very useful, giving you information that would sound unrealistic coming from any of the characters as diologue.

It is clear that the cinematography is brilliant. The way in which the camera follows the action in certain scenes allows the audience to feel as though they are included in what is happening in the story. This also allows for us to feel some compassion for the characters, in spite of their less-than-savory behaviour.

Personally, this film was a little too long for me. I found myself getting a little bored in parts, but as a whole the story was entertaining and easy to watch.

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