We are indeed a privileged lot to be able to watch cinematic legends Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci (badgered out of retirement for this movie) all on screen together and directed by another legend, Martin Scorsese. The Irishman had a limited release in American theatres and is now streaming on Netflix. With a running time of 209 minutes and made at a reported budget of 159 million dollars, this is Scorsese’s longest and most expensive film.
Based on the novel I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt, with a screenplay Steve Zaillian, The Irishman went through what is referred to as ‘development hell’ for over a decade before the final cast and crew fell into place and filming began. The film starts with an almost 80-year-old Frank Sheeran (Robert De Niro) in a wheelchair, remembering his past life as a hitman for the mob. As we go back in time, the narrative uses the flashback in flashback technique and branches into several parallel tracks.
When Frank and his wife take a road trip in 1975 with Russel Bufalino( Joe Pesci) and his wife to attend a wedding, Frank remembers how he first met Russel in the 1950s as a truck driver for a meatpacking delivery company. When he gets caught for selling some cuts of meat from his truck to a local gangster Felix "Skinny Razor" DiTullio (Bobby Cannavale), Bill Bufalino (Ray Romano) takes up his case and gets him off. Bill, in turn, introduces him to his cousin Russell, the head of the northeast Pennsylvania crime family. Russell, in turn, introduces Frank to Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino) who heads the labour union International Brotherhood of Teamsters and has ties to the Bufalino crime family. Frank becomes Jimmy’s trusted aide and bodyguard when he travels.
The long film then meanders slowly through the decades tracing the journey of its main players, their involvement with the rise and fall of Kennedy and Nixon, and their own personal journeys of struggling to stay powerful and relevant. The familiar tropes and themes of gangster films are all there, and one can’t help but remember other films in the genre like The Godfather, Goodfellas, Gangs of New York and even Casino which coincidentally starred De Niro and Pesci.
The characters are ambitious, corrupt and violent but they have a deep love for their families. Russell keeps telling Frank to value his kids and tries in vain to bond with Frank’s daughter Peggy who becomes very fond of Jimmy Hoffa instead. In fact, some of the most moving scenes of the film come right at the end when Frank is trying to reconnect with his estranged daughter, desperately trying to speak to her one last time. So, while it is a gangster-crime drama, what Scorsese ultimately creates is a Greek tragedy, where flawed men either self-destruct or are destroyed in their never-ending quest for money and power.
De Niro and Pacino are brilliant actors and it’s a treat to watch them together. What kept me spellbound was how sincerely both these seasoned actors submitted to their characters, with their appearance, style of walking, speech and mannerisms. You are never distracted by the fact that there are these two legends in a single frame because all you can see are Jimmy Hoffa and Frank Sheeran. Pacino and De Niro seem to be doing this delicate dance, refusing to step on the other’s toes, not trying to outshine the other and their simmering tension and chemistry is a rare treat.
Al Pacino steals a scene or two from De Niro, especially the climax where you just wish you could reach out and help him in some way. Perhaps it’s just me, or maybe it was a sneaky reference to crazed powerful men, but a lot of Hoffa’s mannerisms and style of speaking reminded me of Donald Trump and his rambling, and it added a deeper layer of relevance to the film. Joe Pesci is also impressive as the calm but brutal Russell who extorts money and gives orders for a hit without ever raising his voice. It’s this contrast between his physicality and the brutality he is capable of that makes him especially terrifying.
While the women are completely sidelined, the men are not frothing at the mouth with their masculinity. Apart from Hoffa who is shown to be charismatic, Russell and Frank and most of their colleagues could just easily blend into a crowd. Their inconspicuousness is their strength, making them hard to remember and maybe easy for us to forgive as an audience. While Scorsese has been critical of special effects-laden films, he uses the de-ageing effects that work for the most part but take time to get used to. It’s a little distracting sometimes to see De Niro with smooth glowing skin, and for a couple of seconds at least you wonder just how they must have done it. Some might argue that hiring younger actors would have been a better option, but Scorsese stays true to how human memory functions given that this is Frank’s flashback. When we remember ourselves in the past we still look like ourselves, with perhaps a not so accurate recollection of how ‘young’ we looked.
Special credit has to go to cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto, production designer Bob Shaw, and editor Thelma Schoonmaker who play a huge role in transforming Scorsese’s vision into art and ensuring complete authenticity to the time period. The Irishman is not binge-worthy, but that's because it’s not fast food. It’s a degustation menu, to be enjoyed slowly and carefully, savouring the fine performances, and acknowledging that you may never see such talent in a single frame again. It’s not an easy watch, but if you are a true cinephile, please make the time to watch it.
Disclaimer: This review was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the series/film. TNM Editorial is independent of any business relationship the organisation may have with producers or any other members of its cast or crew.