9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.4 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.4 |
The life and times of Henry Hill, who grew up idolizing the wiseguys in his neighborhood and eventually became one of them. With his friends Jimmy Conway and Tommy De Vito, Henry lived the dream life of taking whatever he wanted and answering to no one—until everything caught up with him.
Starring: Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco, Paul SorvinoCrime | 100% |
Drama | 92% |
Epic | 62% |
Biography | 29% |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
French: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
English, English SDH, French, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
"As far back as I can remember, I've always wanted to be a gangster." So begins Henry Hill's (Ray Liotta) narrative stream that winds through Martin Scorcese's mafia character study, GoodFellas. The gangster classic is based on a true story that follows Hill from his childhood initiation into an Italian-American crime family through his involvement in heists and stints in prison to his drug trafficking enterprise. As Hill's life and relationships spiral out of control, he must face a choice between death at the hands of his gangster cohorts or turning state's evidence in the witness protection program. Through an unflinching, analytical lens, Scorcese uses a palate of colorful characters to paint a landscape of violence, humor, honor and betrayal. And like few other films, we are given a front row seat to see what life may be like in a Brooklyn crime organization...made all the more real by its 1080p video resolution.
As far back as I can remember, I always wanted GoodFellas to have good picture quality.
Previously released versions did not. All VHS and DVD releases and TV broadcasts of this film
appeared dark and lacking in dynamics and detail. The most recently remastered DVD was a
marked improvement. But being NTSC, it lacked adequate resolution. Warner's Blu-ray disc
features a VC-1 codec and 1080p that, while not reference quality and still a bit dark, is an
absolute revelation. I was mesmerized by the detail in faces, fabrics and set design that was all
but invisible in previous versions.
Scorcese made use of still frames where he would highlight action with a frozen scene. In these
moments, the scope of the improved resolution is made abundantly clear. One good example of a
freeze frame is the night shot as the young Henry Hill runs from exploding cars, the level of
detail and depth is quite astonishing. The image shows overwhelming contrast, yet it is not
oversaturated or smeared. In motion video, the improvement is even more enjoyable, as the full
impact of characters' movements and facial expressions is communicated with far greater
resolution than NTSC could render.
Throughout the film, black level and contrast ratio are excellent. What strikes me most, though,
is the detail and lifelike color that is unmarred by smearing or stepping. Previous versions look
like bad notch filters are used. Now that is replaced with a film-like clarity with small grain and
excellent depth. As mentioned earlier, the overall tone may be a tad dark, but I suspect the
source material would show a similar color balance. The overall effect of the 1080p Blu-ray
presentation is to fully update the look of GoodFellas, bringing it into the 21st century and the
age of high definition video.
With its Dolby Digital 5.1 track, the Blu-ray disc was not among the greatest examples of the
format's audio performance. Nevertheless, the soundstage was strong, with good clarity and
presence in the voices and ample use of the surrounds and LFE channel. Some sound effects,
such
as footsteps and closing car doors, were startlingly realistic. Others were not as palpable.
One of the signatures of GoodFellas is its soundtrack, which features many well-known hits,
spanning the '50s through the '80s. It is heavily weighted toward the earlier recordings, with
such
classics as Rags to Riches (Tony Bennett), Sincerely (The Moonglows), Speedo (The Cadillacs), Life
Is But a Dream (The Harptones) and Beyond the Sea (Bobby Darin). The stereophonics is good,
but
the music lacks adequate "wow-factor" resolution, making it sufficient for background. When the
music comes more to the foreground, however, on later tracks like Sunshine of Your Love
(Cream)
and Layla (Derek and the Dominos), it is missing the additional musical information that lossless
PCM can provide. Still, the DD track's ability to resolve such sounds as squealing tires, gunshots
and
car engines is quite impressive.
Die-hard fans of Scorcese and his gangster classic will find no new content that isn't on the DVD
version GoodFellas. Moreover, this now-familiar material is not in high definition. In those
respects, the supplementary material is a let-down. But it shouldn't be, because the three
documentaries, two commentaries and a storyboard to screen comparison all provide significant
insight into the film.
One of the documentaries, "Getting Made", is worthwhile. Clocking in at nearly half an hour,
"Getting Made" provides detailed interviews with Scorcese, De Niro and Pesci. Newer material
with Liotta and Bracco is also included. The other two documentaries are not as interesting. The
eight-minute "The Workaday Gangster" covers the central theme of the movie, but the subject
is covered in far more detail in the commentary. "Made Men: The GoodFellas Legacy" attempts
to place the Scorcese classic in its proper historical context and praise its vast influence on a
generation of filmmakers.
The commentaries provide the bulk of relevant info, with input from Scorsese, Liotta, Bracco,
Paul Sorvino, Frank Vincent, writer Nicholas Pileggi, producers Irwin Winkler and Barbara De
Fina, cinematographer Michael Ballhaus and editor Thelma Schoonmaker, who went to film
school with Scorcese. Another commentary, "Cop and Crook", features the real-life Henry Hill
and former FBI agent Edward McDonald. Compared to the film, this is actually fairly boring, but it
is important to understand that what is being packaged as entertainment by Warner is actually a
dangerous lifestyle of organized crime.
The writing, acting, cinematography and direction that went into GoodFellas are unique in the history of film. While not a flawless movie, many moments in GoodFellas transcend not only the crime genre, but the art of motion pictures itself. For example, film appreciation classes on every level study Scorcese's unprecedented shot following Liotta and Bracco as they are ushered in an alternate entrance of the Copacabana, through a hallway in the back of the club, the kitchen and out into the dining area where waiters set up a table for the couple in front of the stage. The video quality and increased resolution make the Blu-ray a must-have and an easy recommendation, even for those who are satisfied with the DVD. You have not watched Goodfellas until you watch it in 1080p.
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