THE IRISHMAN (2019) *** ½

The Irishman finds director Martin Scorsese rummaging through old themes that flow throughout his previous Mob movies and affixing them to the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa.  While these themes are overly familiar, especially for Scorsese devotees, it’s a fine late-era addition to his robust body of work.  The biggest thing that Scorsese now brings to the table is that he and his characters have the benefit of old age and hindsight.  Most of his pictures are cautionary tales that glamourize the gangster life as much as they denounce their inherent evils.  This is the rare Scorsese Mob flick in which the characters live long enough to look back on their lives with equal parts regret and heartache.  

In Goodfellas, Henry Hill survived his experiences, only to complain about shitty marinara sauce.  Here, the character of Frank (brilliantly played by Robert DeNiro) lives to old age.  His reward?  Sitting alone in a nursing home haunted by his past misdeeds. 

In his glory days, Frank was a low-level hood who caught the eye of crime boss Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci).  Russell takes a shine to Frank, who makes the transition from foot soldier to professional hitman effortlessly.  When the Mob backs Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino) and his teamsters, Frank is assigned to keep an eye on him.  The two become fast friends, a friendship that is tested when Jimmy begins to refuse to play ball with the Mob.

Everyone in the cast is great.  Pesci is the exact opposite of how you’d imagine him.  He’s as quiet and reserved here as he was frightening and intimidating in Goodfellas and Casino.  DeNiro is particularly great in the scene where he has to make a very awkward phone call to Hoffa’s wife.  For me, Pacino took the cake as his performance is full of that old timey Pacino gusto.  He and DeNiro play off each other beautifully and their scenes together have a poignancy I wasn’t expecting. 

Did the film really need to be 3 ½ hours long?  Probably not.  Could Scorsese have made his point more succinctly with a shorter running time?  Sure.  However, when you’re watching The Irishman, you kind of get the feeling that this may be his final word on the subject, and he’s in no hurry to rush it.  As I said, this is a film about regret and the benefit of old age.  It’s almost like the cinematic equivalent of going for a Sunday drive with your grandfather who insists on taking the scenic route.  You may have heard the story before, and he’s sure as heck taking his time to get where he’s going, but there’s so much love and respect there that you listen contently anyway.  Besides, if you listen hard enough, you might actually learn something.