I have to admit to being upset at the sight of Lefty removing his watch etc at the end of the movie knowing he has been "called for" - very few movies show the mob from the little guy's perspective.

Lefty dedicates 30 years of his life to the "family" and ends up with didly squat.

I'm not a Johnny Depp fan but I thought he palyed a superb part in this movie.

Whadaya think?

superb. One of the classics. However, in real life, Sonny Black was the one who got clipped. Lefty went to prison in real life. and Nicky went to prison also. The movie streches some things.

Very good movie. But the book was vastly better. Lots more interesting details, as well as accuracy. It's well worth a read.

What i particularily like about the movie was getting to see Al play a "small guy", he played the role perfectly and Depp's performance was admirable as well.Al and Depp had really good on-screen chemistry i thought.

You bet, GP! They had great chemistry! But the chemistry was contrary to real life. In the book, Brasco says that Lefty wasn't the loser he was portrayed in the film--he was a good earner, had clout in the family, saved Brasco from being claimed (maybe killed) by Tony Mirra, a truly scary guy, by prevailing over Mirra in a top-level sit-down. But Brasco had no respect for Lefty, whom he regarded as a cheapskate, whiner and general pain-in-the-ass. The real-life Brasco admired Sonny Black and responded to him in the filial way we saw Depp respond to Pacino in the film.

Is there any particular reason they changed the book to do the movie? Making Donnie closer to Lefty, rather than Sonny. I assumed it was to give Pacino a bigger role in the movie, is that wrong?

Just goes to show what a truly briliant actor Al Pacino is -

he has played an ordinary(ish) guy rising to be Don in GF & GFII

A street guy who rises to the top - Scarface

A wiseguy/button or whatever you want to call Lefty in Donnie Brasco

& A cop in Heat & Serpico to name just a few!

And stayed believable in all rolls.

The guy's a genius.

also a good father in "Author Author"

A blind man with a thing for woman in "Scent of a Woman"

Excellent film.
This is Johnny Depp's best performance to me.

i agree with everone. Johnny Depp did a good one but i thought it would have been much better if Bradd Pitt did the role of Donnie Brasco, IMHO. . .

GoodFella

I think that's exactly the reason they reversed the roles, Liz.

I already made a thread about this, but, it's old, I guess...

Good movie. Got it for Christmas--love it.

I think that's exactly the reason they reversed the roles, Liz.[/b][/quote]bigger role for Al Pacino and bigger income for the producers.

GoodFella

Thank you for the additional information TB, the movie does portray lefty as a loser who had nothing, and it makes you wonder why he was kept around. Somethings are contradictory; he says his mother, wife, and son, can hold their heads up in any neighborhood. He was known all over the 5 boroughs and all over the world anybody knew about "lefty"(how the nickname come about tb?), yet he never moved up.

Did Donnie really get his hands dirty during his undercover work, and was excused from it b/c of his service to the FBI? I imagine yes, otherwise he would have been smelled out.

Well, that's a good one, GP. Pistone talks about how he had to wheedle money out of the FBI to pay his dues to Lefty, for buying drugs and stolen property, etc. He makes it sound all on the up and up--he has to, otherwise he'd be admitting to committing felonies and "straying off the ranch." But we have to wonder what he's not telling us. My view: in order to gain the confidence not only of Lefty but of capo Sonny Black and all the others, Pistone must have gotten his hands good and filthy. We also have to wonder if he kept any of the proceeds? In the film, he had piles of money hidden away in his home. Where'd it come from?

I always assumed that at least most of the money (in the movie) came from the gambling money that he said was "taken" by the police at the raid.

Just seen this movie!

Bruno Kirby is great and reminds me of Joe Pesci.

Donnie, let's fillet this fat fuck!

Turnbull, i heard that Ruggiero threatened to kill Donnie once he went to jail. Is that ture? Who put the hit on Brasco? I read a little about this a long time ago, when I was reading the Castellano book.

Johnny Depp is awesome, and looks like DeNiro in GF2 with that moustache. Anyone remember Johny Depp from Nightmare on Elm Street?

Speaking of Pacino, don't forget the Devil!

Both Pacino & DeNiro played the DEVIL! SEE Angel Heart.

I liked this movie and its one the same level as Goodfellas.

I'd read the book, but i can't find it.

Was there really a Sonny Red? Refresh my memory this was which Family? The Lucheses?

Donnie Brasco...

I liked the scenes where Johnny Depp was with his wife in the movie
And the scene where Pacino's men kill those other guys (I forget who they were).
And also when Depp is explaining "Fuggetaboutit" to the FBI guys.
But I felt sorry for that Japanese guy in the resturent(you try and spell restarunt! go ahead, i dare you!) who gets the shit kicked out of him. Donnie Brasco thought fast on his toes "those Japs killed my father in the war, now you want me to take off my shoes for them?!"

It was a good, dark movie about the Mafia in the 70's.

Joe Pistone ("Brasco") quit the FBI and published the book (which you can order on amazon.com or abebooks.com, Ricardo). He says that the Mob (in general, not necessarily Lefty) put a half-million-dollar price on his head. As far as I know, he's still alive. Lefty and that whole crew were with the Bonannos. Sonny Red Indelicato was a real person, as was his son, Bruno.

aside from the $500,000 on Donnie Brasco's head, they changed their names and no one knows their whereabouts. coz we all know the Mafia's never forgets . . .

GoodFella

Holy SHIT! Gggie has 3,000 plus posts!

Thanks to Turnbull, for Brasco info.

Anyway, did you hear Henry Hill is doing Audio Commentary for the Goodfellas DVD coming out in 2003! Theey're making another one because the old one was a two-sided flip-disc. This one will be one sided, and will feature stuff like:

AMC Backstory: Goodfellas.

Excerpts from Wiseguy by Nick Pileggi.

Audio Commentary by Henry Hill and Karen Hill.

Updated Biographies on the real people. Jimmy (Real Last name slips my mind) is now dead, Paulie, Tutti, and others will have biographies on the DVD.

What else can anyone suggest?

i dont know if they're are any Deleted Scenes for Goodfellas or not.