the audience applauded

So much average

Memorable, crazy movie

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

It's been a long time since I read Joseph Pistone's story in the book "Donnie Brasco", but I can still recall three essential elements that kept recurring throughout his story. They had to do with the principal fears Pistone had while working undercover for the FBI. The first obviously was being found out, which would have meant curtains for him. That would have immediately brought recrimination by the Mob against his sponsor Lefty for bringing him into the Family. And there was one other element that didn't get singled out specifically in this film, Pistone's qualms about what he would do if he was actually ordered to perform a hit on someone. I remember his wrestling over the idea that if the hit was ordered on another mobster whether he would do it or not, since they were all bad guys and the victim would have deserved it in line with the Mafia code of honor. As it is, I don't think he was ever asked to perform one.Now I don't know about anyone else, but while watching this picture and knowing that it was based on a true story, you had to give unparalleled credit to the real life Joe Pistone for his ability to infiltrate the Mob under circumstances that could have been a career ending move. He must have had nerves of steel to balance his gangster life with his real identity and home life, which as we saw began to unravel as time went on.After experiencing Johnny Depp in any number of identity altering movie roles, and seeing him here as agent Pistone, alias Donnie Brasco, it doesn't even look to me like Depp in the role. Pretty weird if you think about it. As for Pacino, he's quite good as a small fish in a big pond so to speak, a gangster with twenty seven hits to his credit who looked like he wouldn't hurt a fly except for the tough talk and wise guy demeanor. His frustration at not rising higher in the Family ranks is given palpable resonance in the story, yet he never overstepped his superiors or demanded more for his loyalty.As far as gangster films go this is a good one, and without the typical type bloodshed one might expect from a story like this. There's some of that of course but it doesn't overwhelm the senses like some flicks do. Among the seventy or so gangster films I've seen and reviewed here on IMDb, this one ranks in the upper tier.

It's the 70s in New York and Donnie Brasco, a young jewels experts, gets pulled into the mafia by an ageing gangster named Lefty. Donnie is introduced to people, given responsibilities, allowed in the know about the rules of the crime family, all that jazz. But not everyone is as they seem and soon inner quarrelling threatens the integrity of the family.Watching this film feels slightly weird if you've seen Goodfellas, like I have. Because they're eerily similar in their portrayal of mafia. Like scene for scene similar. There's talk about made men, my friend versus our friend, all that stuff. They even exchange wads of cash for Christmas, just like in Goodfellas. I get that that is actually how the mafia just might work, but it's still weird how much stuff is pulled from that movie. Because the stories are not all that similar at all. Goodfellas is about mafia from the point of view of mafia, whereas this is about infiltration, examining the mafia from the point of view of an intruder.And it's a good movie all around. Johnny Depp and Al Pacino are both powerhouse actors, despite this being relatively early on in Depp's career. The story is interesting, the gangster world created is even more interesting and it just has style to it. Goodfellas perhaps portrayed the lure of mafia better, but this allows us to see the ugly underbelly of that.All in all worth a watch for all gangster movie fans. It has it all.

FBI Agent Joe Pistone goes undercover in a section of the New York City mob. Using the name Donnie Brasco, he befriends mafioso Benjamin 'Lefty' Ruggiero. As time goes by, Pistone begins to identify with, and care for his mafia friends, especially Lefty. Pistone is married and has children, but he is away for weeks or months at a time, eventually leading to the break up of his marriage. When he stops reporting to the FBI, his superiors decide the time has come to pull the plug on the operation......Back when this was first released, I thought this was one of the most interesting, well acted crime thrillers I'd ever seen. It was unlike Depp to star in something that appeared to be so mainstream, and the thought of Pacino playing an empathetic protagonist seemed like the perfect idea.Seeing it with fresh eyes nearly twenty years later, it's clear that Newell wanted to make his Goodfellas, and Pacino was his ticket to success.It has the music, it has the great cast, and it has the unpredictable violence. But what it doesn't have, is the passion that Scorcese put into that masterpiece, and the biggest problem with the film is Pacino.He isn't terrible, it's just that he appears to be doing nothing more than parody, and if he says 'forget about it' once, he must say it literally 70-80 times. And that's just him.There is one scene where Depp is discussing with, of all people Paul Giamatti, and Tim Blake-Nelson the different ways of saying 'forget about it' and what it connotes to, and it's a wonder that they keep straight faces throughout.Thank goodness for Madsen, who is clearly the best thing in the film, and again, this is lazy casting. But thank heavens this was the time in his career when he actually put in a good performance, and whenever he's on screen, the film comes alive.Pistone is portrayed as a selfish individual, yes he gets in too deep, but there's no reason to act like a child every time you interact with the real world.So all in all, it's not terrible, it's just nowhere near as good as it thinks it is, hence why you never really see it quoted like the film it's trying to be.It's been forgot about.

Just watching the end, where Joe Pistone aka. Donnie Brasco, received a big cheque, ones in sizes you can't cash at banks, to the value of 500 hundred dollars, and a medal of commendation, what he went through, prefore, those years of undercover work, leads you to ask "Is it all worth it?" My opinion. No. Because it was his quality of family life, and normal life that suffered. I had heard the real Joe Pistone, tell quite a terrifying tale, which had him in another room, where two mafia guys were fifty fifty about him, and were having a discussion on whether to whack him, where Joe heard the whole tale. Now, put yourself in this situation, you can imagine. Depp, plays the real life Pistone, again to polished perfection, who went undercover as Don the jeweler, and was taken in by Lefty, (a feared mafia man, who becomes a pathetic pussy later on, as his status deteriorates, where Sonny (Michael Madsen, doing what he does best, smiling and looking intimidating with those mannerisms, we love) one of Lefty's gang, replaced him. It's really hard to rate Madsen's performance in this. The other two of Lefty's mob are played by Bruno Kirby and James Russo. Russo really surprised me actually. He's hasn't done work this good for a long time. Pacino as Lefty is just another masterpiece of a performance. I mean, what else can I say? He really carved out this real life character so deep, especially playing the pitiable part well, where Donnie seems to be his real only friend. Anne Heche is great as Depp's suffering wife, and is sexy too, as well as being a great actress. Violence wise, it's only violent when it needs to be, but when it happens, when the blood sprays, it's strong. In particular I'm taking about one scene, before human dismemberment, takes place. This is very smartly modified, as the visuals could of been much worse. Here's just another well told mafia tale, with great acting and writing. In contrast, bits of this one I familiarize with the current Black Mass, with Depp on the other end of the law. But what you really get out of this film, is how scary going over cover is, and Lefty's mob aren't idiots. Check out Pacino's remark about cooks, and his shock revelation, concerning his ill heath in the nether region.