The Irishman | Film Review

Hey Guys x

I have to admit, if I wasn't so obsessed with the Oscars every year, I don't know if I would have seen this film as soon as I did. But last year, I ended up having to play catch-up with a lot of the nominated movies because I didn't bother seeing them when they came out, so this year I'm trying to make some guesses - and this film definitely feels like an Oscar contender.

Frank 'The Irishman' Sheeran (Robert De Niro) is a truck driver who gets willingly involved with the Bufalino crime family. But as we watch his rise to the top of the food chain, we also see his downfall.

I'm in two minds about this movie. One the one hand, I think it's a great movie, for so many reasons that I'll go on to write about for almost the entirety of this review. But on the other hand, I didn't love it, for only one or two reasons.

I knew that I didn't love this movie all the way through, but I couldn't work out what it was. Because I know that it's good, and I really like it, but I felt like there was something disconnecting me from the story, and I didn't really understand that until I read some other (positive and negative) reviews to see if anybody had put their finger on what I couldn't.
My disconnect from this movie stems from the main character, Frank Sheeran. For me personally, I felt like he was quite passive. He was going around doing what he was told, and nothing in the movie seemed to have any effect on him. I guess I felt disconnected from him because he didn't feel real to me.
And I don't mean that I was looking for remorse - I completely understand the point of the character. But I felt like the only time we saw emotion from him is when he tried to connect with his daughter at the end of the movie, and I would have connected to him a bit more if he felt human.

However, despite this one thing that I didn't quite understand until after the movie, there are so many great things about this movie!

The first thing I noticed, which was also the first thing I noticed when watching another Scorsese movie, 'Taxi Driver' is that the use of voiceover is really effective, and done so well. Not only does it make you feel like the character is speaking directly to you (which in turn fuels your feelings about and towards him), anything that could have been confusing or misconstrued is quickly and easily made clear.

Another thing I noticed right off the bat is the amazing use of sound. I feel like it would have been really great to see the film in cinema (I watched it on Netflix), but even on the small screen, the power of these sounds doesn't get lost. Throughout the film, the sound, music and silence all have a lot to say. Each noise (or lack thereof) is extremely meaningful.

The film transitions seamlessly between different time periods, which is another thing that could have been confusing because some of the most prominent parts of the story happen between the same characters at different points in their lives. But the film is handled in such a way that you always know where you are.

Situations that most people would never find themselves in become extremely relatable, again because of the way that the story is being told. You may never have been contracted to kill someone, but you may have felt loyalty for someone who doesn't deserve it. The inner workings of these characters, rather than their actions, are what the audience clings to in order to relate to the story.

One of my personal favourite things about the movie is something that I've found with Scorsese movies in general - Scorsese isn't and has never been afraid to make a mess. I find the approach to violence in this film extremely refreshing - it's not watered down or used for shock value. The violence moves the story forward in a really effective way.

Now I have to talk about the characters, and the actors that portray them. Because while this story certainly has a great plot, it is entirely driven by the characters that make up this world.

All the characters are so colourful, animated and distinct. They're extremely well-written and fleshed out. Even though they're all undoubtedly 'bad' people, the audience can't help but find at least one that they really warm to and relate to.
In a film where there's so many characters that it's really hard to keep track of them (including how they relate to each other, and what each one has already done), it's great that none of the characters lag or bring the story down. They all have their own backstories that lead to the story of Frank Sheeran, and you can really feel the strengths of the relationships that they have with each other.

And that leads us on to the actors, all of whom where incredible, though this isn't unexpected in the least. Of course Robert De Niro was incredible, as was Al Pacino (Jimmy Hoffa). But for me, the standout performance came from Joe Pesci (Russell Bufalino) who was amazing and, dare I say it, gave the best performance in the film. But the entire cast (which includes Ray Romano, Bobby Cannavale and Anna Paquin) were all fantastic. In an ensemble like this, it's common to have at least one weak link, but there really wasn't one weak performance.

Overall, this is a story about friendship, family, loyalty, death and betrayal, wrapped in the package of a mob film, brought to screens by a true master. What more is there to say? Watch this movie!

8/10

Lou