Review: The Irishman (2019)

The Irishman (2019)

Without a doubt, The Irishman is one of the most anticipated films of this year, if not the past number of years. Not only is it the return of Martin Scorsese to the genre that, in a large way, he built his career upon, but it also reunites him with some of the most prestigious actors of this generation (a number of whom starred in those early films of his). It is not hyperbolic to state that crime/mob cinema would not be the same without Martin Scorsese. No, he did not invent the genre by any means, however, he definitely redefined it. In many ways, The Irishman is the culmination of Scorsese's career and it is him coming full circle around to where he first began.

Scorsese's first acclaimed hit, way back in 1973, was Mean Streets (his third directorial feature and second crime film) starring a young Robert De Niro and Harvey Keitel, both of whom return in The Irishman. Mean Streets was a new, gritty take on urban organized crime that he would continue to expand upon in future films. Goodfellas (1990), Casino (1995) and The Departed (2006) are each considered to be some of the greatest films of all-time and all similarly centre upon contemporary organized crime (as well, Gangs of New York (2002), Boardwalk Empire (2010) and The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) are also about crime albeit not of the same classic 'mob generation'.)

Like a number of Scorsese's previous crime films, The Irishman is based upon a true story - the life of labour union leader, Jimmy Hoffa, and his involvement with organized crime that led to his shocking disappearance/death. The cast is an absolute powerhouse that only someone of Scorsese's calibre could likely rope together. The titular 'Irishman', Frank Sheeran, is played by De Niro, crime bosses, Russell Bufalino and Angelo Bruno, Joe Pesci and Harvey Keitel, respectively, and Al Pacino as Jimmy Hoffa lead the film. Impressive in supporting roles are Ray Romano, Bobby Cannavale, Anna Paquin and a number of recognizable others. Unsurprisingly, everyone here is impressive. Interesting to note is how the three main leads, De Niro, Pesci and Pacino, each take the limelight through different acts of the long film.

Now, one thing that many people may do upon watching The Irishman is to compare it to Scorsese's aforementioned previous crime films. And, with that, at least to me, one can say that The Irishman does not reach the heights of any of his three previous classics. I can see why The Irishman was given such a long runtime: in a number of ways it is Scorsese's swan song, as well, that he is giving these thespian icons (arguably also their swan songs, in different fashions) their much-deserved time onscreen. However, I do think that the film could have been tightened up at certain instances to cut down on its mammoth duration slightly. The film does lose some of its focus and momentum during the first two acts. The much-talked-about de-aging vfx I thought was done remarkably well though and I did not find it distracting after the first few minutes of seeing it. This is a great example of technology being used to subtly further a story and not distract an audience with unnecessary flairs.

My next point goes into SPOILER territory, but it happens to be what I loved most about the film and why this crime story sets itself apart in important ways from Scorsese's former outings. Like I said earlier, The Irishman is very much Scorsese's career coming around full-circle. Although previous films like Goodfellas and Casino ultimately show the protagonist's downfalls within organized crime, they are also very flashy films arguably also showing the possible appeal and rush that success in crime presents. The Irishman, on the other hand, is a much more contemplative film. Its final pensive moments are appropriate as coming from someone who has lived a full life with much time to reflect on their past. The ending of The Irishman is absolutely what makes the film; it is equally compelling and heartbreaking, and, in a meta kind of way, it actually makes you reflect on the messages and stories of Scorsese's other crime-centric films and the genre in totality.

For those who are fans of the crime film genre or those that have followed Scorsese through the years (I imagine a large percentage of you), The Irishman is a resounding epilogue to the genre by someone who helped create and define it. The film is bittersweet for both its story and in its significance to a soon-ending golden era of Hollywood. And, for that I must say, thank you to Mr. Scorsese, De Niro, Pesci and Keitel, as well as all of those others who helped in the creation of such phenomenal films, which now includes The Irishman.