Martin Scorcese has been telling
stories about organized-crime his entire career, and his latest film,
“The Irishman,” may be the apotheosis of that career. It isn't
necessarily the best or most enjoyable of his films, but in its scope
and ambition it is truly a celebration of the Mafia Movie. The story
comes from the book I Heard You Paint Houses,
which purports to be the memoir and death-bed confession of Frank
(The Irishman) Sheeran, who claimed, among other things, to have
killed Jimmy Hoffa. Sheeran's story has a lot of holes in it,
however, and “The Irishman” is best viewed as historical fiction.
The film revolves around Frank Sheeran
(Robert De Niro) and his rise through the ranks as a mafia enforcer.
Frank is a truck driver and member of the Teamster's union. When he
gets caught selling beef off his truck to some Mafia-connected
restauranteurs, he keeps his mouth shut, refusing to name names.
That earns him respect and an intro to Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci),
a major Mafia player. Frank impresses Russell with his Italian,
picked up in Italy in WWII, and he tells stories of following orders
to execute POWs there. Frank is just the kind of guy Russell needs,
and soon he is carrying out killings on Russell's orders.
Then we meet Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino),
big-time union leader. Jimmy has a lot of power and a lot of
enemies. He also has friends in the Mafia, who value him because he
does them shady favors like lending them money out of the Teamsters
Pension Fund. Russell returns the favor by lending Frank to Jimmy as
a bodyguard and catspaw? Russell and Jimmy become close, but when
Jimmy starts to resist the Mob's demands, Russell is caught between
his divided loyalties.
We glean this tale in flashbacks from
an aged Frank, wheelchair-bound and in a nursing home. All of his
Mob friends have died over the years, mostly from un-natural causes,
and his kids don't visit him. He's left alone to ponder the life he
led and the things he did.
It's a big story, and well-told, with
great performances from an all-star cast. Joe Pesci, in particular,
delivers the goods, underplaying his character in a way we haven't
seen from him before. He gives a performance that shows he could
have been doing dramatic roles all along, if he didn't happen to be
so good at comedy. Al Pacino chews the scenery like he always does,
but it's perfect for the outsized Jimmy Hoffa character. So what's
not to like? The 3.5-hour run-time. “The Irishman” is long, and
it feels long. I never
exactly got bored, but I was definitely aware of time passing.
Fortunately, it's on Netflix, so you can watch it over 2 nights,
which is what I did. However you do it, if you are a fan of
Scorcese, De Niro, Pacino, and Pesci, you should make the investment.
3.5
stars out of 5
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