The Irishman

A fascinating watch - totally worth the 209 minute run time. There's so much to like about 'The Irishman'. From the top class performances, the ace cinematography, the excellent music and, most importantly, the captivating plot. I enjoyed this more than (the great) 'Goodfellas', which is my only previous experience of a Martin Scorsese film. Robert De Niro is always a fantastic watch and here he is no different, I absolutely loved every scene of him as Frank. Al Pacino (Jimmy) and Joe Pesci (Russell) are also superb, Pacino particularly. Away from those three, you also have Ray Romano, Bobby Cannavale, Stephen Graham and Harvey Keitel involved. Awesome cast. No idea how true to life it is, all I care is if it delivers a fantastic film - and it undoubtedly does. I felt entertained for every second. The de-aging effects are cool to see, also. I understand why some may fault this. Me? Loved it!

Wanted to love this but there were moments where I sort of lost interest. And while I don't at all mind lengthy movies (Godfather Part II and Apocalypse Now are two of my favorite movies), this one was probably a good 20-minutes too long IMO. That said, nice to see De Niro at least trying to act rather than sleepwalk through a role and seeing Joe Pesci was great. Pacino however I never 100% bought into playing Hoffa. Guess it's worth checking out but doesn't hold a candle to other Scorsese's films. **3.5/5**

It might not be Martin Scorsese’s best film yet, but it’s one more proof that he’s one of the most talented filmmakers ever. With Robert De Niro delivering his best performance of the decade, Al Pacino going crazy and Joe Pesci brilliantly coming out of retirement, The Irishman is a wonderfully-written, (very) long story about friendship and life. The best editing (Thelma Schoonmaker) of the year makes the runtime smoother, but it still drags on for too long. I also feel that Anna Paquin’s character should have had more impact. The de-aging VFX is mind-blowing, even if it takes a few minutes to get used to it. Rating: A-