Movie Review: The Irishman (2019)

A mob film, starring genre legendary actors Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci, and directed by none other than Martin Scorsese. For me, this was close to a dream come true, given that classic mafia flicks such as The Godfather, Goodfellas, Casino and The Departed can easily fit into a list of my all-time favorite movies, and that Scorsese in particular is a filmmaker who heavily influenced my selective taste for films. Add to that the raving critic reviews and multiple award nominations, and so all was set for me to witness another cinematic masterpiece. Unfortunately however, by the end of the movie, I realized I was somehow disappointed by the outcome.

The overall letdown by The Irishman doesn't take away the fact that it is indeed a very good movie by certain standards. Therefore, I will split this review into two parts, where the first talks about the positive aspects and strengths, while the second handles the drawbacks that eventually led me to believe that this could've been a much better cinematic experience.

The Positives

1. The Acting

You can't mention Scorsese without referring to De Niro. The two men heavily contributed to each other's titanic status over the span of almost half a century. De Niro, aside from his unforgettable role in The Godfather Part II, arguably delivered his most memorable performances and cemented his reputation as the best actor of his generation under Scorsese's direction. This fact is ensured again in The Irishman; De Niro digs deep and brings out his best serious performance in years (he's been mostly involved in comedies or as a guest lately) as Frank "The Irishman" Sheeran. His character is the main one, around which all of the events and other characters revolve. Whenever he's on screen, which is for almost 95% of the total scenes, he's just at his usual awesome.

Pesci on his part, rumor has it that it took Scorsese and the film producers around 50 attempts to convince him out of his retirement and play the role. Contrary to the majority of expectations, you don't see the bloody, ass-kicking, head-blowing Pesci from Goodfellas and Casino in The Irishman. Here, he plays the sly, cold-blooded mob head Russel Bufalino, who perhaps his own words describe him best: "When I ask somebody to take care of something for me, I expect them to take care of it themselves. I don't need two roads coming back to me". There have always been doubts about Pesci's acting credentials outside of the rage and the cursing and the gun-firing perimeter, but this probable final role of his glorious career will again prove any remaining doubters wrong. He's that good.

"You might be demonstrating a failure to show appreciation" - Pesci is Intimidating in his Role as the Boss

As for Mr. Pacino, we finally get to see him collaborate with Scorsese, playing the famous Jimmy Hoffa, and for me, he is the one that stands out most among the three amazing leads. As with De Niro, Pacino was unfortunately involved in some really crappy productions over the last two decades, slightly tarnishing his legacy. So this was a massive opportunity for him to showcase his mythical acting capabilities, especially for the younger viewers. As the historic Hoffa, Pacino gets to do what he does best when he's in character: scream and point and show off and, most importantly, bring the best out of his co-stars. The Irishman will undoubtedly be mentioned among his best works. 

2. The Last Hurrah

Despite the drawbacks that will be explained below, I can't deny the nostalgia I felt when I watched the lead actors sharing intense scenes together, or when classic songs were playing in the background, bringing those 70's and 80's vibes back, or when the end credits wrote "Directed by Martin Scorsese". The Irishman is probably - and sadly so - the final curtain call for those stars and their great director, at least in this genre, which they made their own. Moreover, the way the story evolved for each character, made my admiration grow even bigger for this golden generation of professionals who gave us such a unique and rich perspective into the world of organized crime through multiple movies, and inspired many other filmmakers as well as millions of viewers worldwide.

The Negatives

1. The Anti-Aging Technology and the Cast

One of the most talked-about aspects of The Irishman is the anti-aging or de-aging technology that was used to convey the lead actors in the earlier ages of their characters, given that all three leads are in their late 70's. Why am I considering it a weak point in the movie? Simply because only the faces of the actors were made younger. It was great seeing the face of a 40-year old De Niro back on the screen, but it still was the movement, the posture and simply the body of a 70-year old man. Acting doesn't only require facial expressions, it requires body language and physicality. So for me as a viewer, I really felt the struggle of De Niro and Pacino in particular, throughout multiple scenes, when they were not only required to look younger, but to act so. Also, there is a slight confusion for the viewers as to what period was being shown, due to the difficulty in differentiating between the characters' appearances at different points in time.

As such, and given that the movie had been in the making for at least 25 years according to some reports, was it worth it to proceed with the same cast members in the first place? I mean yes it is marvelous to have such titans return for a mob movie under Scorsese, but wouldn't it had been better if younger class-A actors were given some of the lead roles instead?

A Large Part of the $175 Million Budget is Dedicated to the Digital "Youthification" Technology 

2. The Run-Time and the Script 

Director Martin Scorsese has always expressed his concern about the future of the traditional film-making and movie-watching experiences with the ongoing rise of giant streaming services, but with a movie of a duration of 3-plus hours, I think he made the right decision to release The Irishman via Netflix rather than theatrically. I think that the number of viewers who criticized the movie for its extended length would've been much bigger had it been released in theaters. At least if at some point a viewer was not able to stand such a long running time, he/she would easily be able to resume the movie shortly afterwards. I am stressing on this point because yes, The Irishman could have easily been at least half an hour shorter, and this is mainly due to the script.

Screenwriter Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List, Gangs of New York, Moneyball, among many others), who is a frequent collaborator with Scorsese, is not at his absolute best here. A very big chunk of the movie covers the Italian mafia's insistence on taking action against Jimmy Hoffa, and the latter's defiance to their powers and influence, leaving Frank (De Niro) in an intermediary position, moving forwards and backwards between the two parties to try and prevent the inevitable. Also, despite the effortless delivery of the lines from the actors, many major scenes feel dragged and could have been much, much shorter. When you make a 3-plus hour movie, you need to take advantage of such a duration in properly building up character background and come up with original, never-seen-before plot lines; neither is fully demonstrated by Zaillian's script.



So, The Irishman will probably go on and win multiple Oscars come the end of February, and it is indeed a great nod to a genre and style that impressed countless people over decades, but personally, I wouldn't mention it if I'm asked about the greatest mafia movies I've ever watched.


My Rating: 8/10