Goodfellas

My wife is Italian, from Sicily. Syracuse to be exact. Apparently she has extended family that are "in the life" but she doesn't know any of them, and has never met them. But that hasn't stopped me asking her loads of questions about it.

I am fascinated by organized crime. Ever since I saw the film Casino, I've been on the rampage to watch as many gangster films from the old life as I possibly can. I must have seen Goodfellas about a bazillion times. I used to watch it a lot when I was recovering and had nothing to do -- this was one of my favourite go to's.

It's not the first Gangster film I've ever watched, but it's one of the best. I still can't get the scene where Joe Pesci kills spider (a kid) for giving him cheek back. I mean this film was hard hitting to say the least, and perhaps as gritty as they come.

Of course nothing that comes from Hollywood is an accurate portrayal of real life, but Goodfellas seems at the very least one of the best attempts of showcasing the life of crime.

They just don't make them like this anymore. Martin Scorsese was probably the best of his time, and the best for many years to come. The film these days are too glossed over with finesse and shine, and well that's not exactly what life is like on the outside. It's dark and gritty and full of mud, and Scorsese portrays that very well.

Henry Hill is the star of this 3 hour blockbuster. It's a long watch. Henry Hill is actually a real person too that had to go into hiding when the mob families turned on him for ratting out on his old bosses. I think he does tours now.

We start off with young Henry, young child to an Italian family who's gotten a bit mixed up with the crime families. His father a hard working man, his mother a housewife, and well, they are like every working class family in the inner-cities, they are dirt poor.

So young Henry gets a job for the mob waiting tables, parking cars, and doing general run arounds for them. He's just a young boy and he earns the respect of the men around them who he views as his idol. His dad when he finds out he's been hanging with gangsters slaps him around a bit, and as henry puts it he has to take a beating every now and again for the greater good.

As Henry works his way through his respect in the mob he lands himself giving out cigarettes to the public duty free, which of course is illegal and at the back of a trolley. Sadly, he gets arrested and is taken to court. Luckily, he keeps his mouth shut and the mob reward him for it.

By then Henry is getting respect in his neighbourhood. Everyone knows. His neighbours don't give him hassle, his mum doesn't need to wait in line for everything, and everyone around him give his family the respect someone in organised crime gets.

And that's one of the film's main themes. The respect that's given to those in organized crime. Obviously after that we switch to when he's older and we get told a different story with his dealings and such, but it's a great film, a must watch, especially if you're into crime dramas.

It's also built on a true story. So there's that too.

A must watch if you like this sort of thing.