ADDITIOnAL WOrDS: MAT T HuSSE Y
PHOTOGrAPHS: ALLSTAr, CAPITAL PICTurES, kOBAL COLLECTIOn, rOnALD GrAnT ArCHIvE
18. a hISTORY
Of VIOlenCe
Dir: David
Cronenberg (2005)
With its theme of the
‘wrong man’ (borrowed
from Hitchcock) and its
structural playfulness,
a number of critics have
noted how Cronenberg continually
implicates the viewer in the presentation
of sex, violence or both.
It’s captivating, but is it strictly
a Mafia movie? William Hurt’s cameo (one
scene – for which he received an Oscar
nomination) is perhaps too jocular and
out-of-tone with the rest, and he’s less
a full-blooded goombah than a minorleague
underboss. But in its themes of the
17. eXCellenT CadaVeRS
Dir: Ricky Tognazzi (1999) This powerful drama is based on
the real-life battle waged by the Italian judiciary against the Sicilian
Mafia during the late Eighties. It works entirely from first-person
accounts and police transcripts and stars American actor Chazz
Palminteri as a prosecutor who enlists the aid of a former mobster
(fellow import F Murray Abraham) willing to turn state’s evidence
after his sons have been slaughtered by a renegade boss.
Their uneasy collaboration – which resulted in more than 300
convictions – is documented in painstaking detail. The film also marked a transition
from the director’s earlier cops-against-the-Mob drama, La Scorta.
Did you know? The woman who catches the bouquet in the wedding scene
is director Ricky Tognazzi’s wife.
rooms, there’s no discernible difference
between business and crime in this caustic
portrait of American business (“Money,”
we’re told, “has no moral opinions”).
Given Polonsky’s background as
a screenwriter it’s unsurprising that the
dialogue crackles (“All Cain did to Abel was
murder him!”). It’s also no surprise that
the director’s career was ended soon after
by the House un-American Activities
Committee due to the film’s Leftist bias
when he pointedly refused to name names.
Did you know? The cinematographer
George Barnes used a book of Edward
Hopper’s paintings as inspiration.
implacability of human nature and the
importance of loyalty it fits the bill.
Did you know? In the first bar scene,
Ed Harris isn’t wearing any trousers.
19. ROad TO
PeRdITIOn
Dir: Sam Mendes
(2002) Stylish –
perhaps too stylish
– and also intensely
stylised (let’s not forget
that, for all its high-art
inclinations, it’s
basically a great adaptation of a comic
book), this crime drama still manages
to survive its most serious shortcoming:
the miscasting of Tom Hanks as a ruthless
Mob enforcer.
Did you know? Ex-Soldier Soldier
warbler Robson Green was considered
for a role in the film.
the mob never carry
or even say the word brolly
20. The
SOPRanOS
Dir: David Chase
(1999-2007) Yes,
we know it’s not
a movie, but it’s
impossible to write
about on-screen Mafia
without including The
Sopranos. In James
Gandolfini’s portrayal
of Jersey Mob patriarch
Tony Soprano, series
creator David Chase gave us a monster
for all seasons, positively Shakespearean
in his pride, ambition and folly.
But it was the wealth of supporting
characters that lifted this into the realms
of the sublime – from Tony’s poisonous
mother Livia, his conflicted lieutenant
Christopher, to his trapped, long-suffering
wife Carmela (Edie Falco). Individual
episodes proved breathtaking –
Season 1’s ‘College’ still has
the sense of a classic – but, as
with the cast, the whole was
far greater than the sum of
its parts. It stands as one of
the benchmarks of our age.
Did you know? Everyone
in the show owns
a Philips TV.
Excellent cadavers, not
so excellent moustaches
“You will include us in
this top 20, capeesh?”
WIld
CaRd
enTRY!
visit shortlist.com
on thu 11 october for
a whole day dedicated
to all things
mafia
On The SeT Of
GOOdfellaS
Photographer Barry Wetcher
saw it all during filming
“I’d worked with Marty [Scorsese]
before on After Hours, which
helped me get the gig. When you
work on a Scorsese movie you
know you’re getting something
special: you’re not working on
some bullsh*t Hollywood movie.
“The first day we filmed
the Cadillac scene with Johnny
Roastbeef and his girlfriend dead
in the car. Right there I knew I was
part of something.
“Working with Bob De Niro was
interesting: seeing how he and
Marty work. They were in tune on
set. When he’d finished his lines
he always went straight back
to his trailer. After each scene,
no one spoke until Scorsese
had spoken to the actors; he
commanded a lot of respect.
Wiseguys never
look at the camera
Barry Wetcher
models his shooters
“We had a guy called Wiseguy
Wrangler whose job it was to
round up extras for the set. I’m
pretty sure the extras were actual
wiseguys off the streets.
“When Ray Liotta’s character
goes on the witness-protection
programme, the guy who plays the
agent [Edward McDonald] was the
actual guy who sorted out Henry
Hill’s protective custody. There
were rumours that Hill was on set,
but he was still wanted then, so he
ran the risk of getting nabbed.
“Even now when I tell people
I worked on GoodFellas
they are still in awe.
It was such an
iconic movie.”
GoodFellas is out
now on DVD, Blu-ray
and HD-DVD from
Warner Home Video
www.ShortList.com / 27
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