The Irishman - Review - Roberta Lupășteanu

“The Irishman” is a biography, crime and drama film, directed by Martin Scorsese, which appeared last year. It presents the story of the WWII veteran, then the hitman, Frank Sheeran, played by Robert De Niro, who looks back on his life, the hits that defined his mobster career and all the secrets he kept as a loyal member of the Buffalo crime family.

First of all, the storyline is mainly based on the disappearance of his life-long friend, Jimmy Hoffa, played by Al Pacino, the former president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, who mysteriously vanished in late July 1975 at the age of 62, in which Frank Sheeran appears to have an important part. The plot is well-structured and the main idea of the film gives the viewers a realistic perspective on the political life of the 60’s. The atmosphere of the film is special and the few effects used by the film director really take you back to those times, in the given circumstances. Also, the background music, the one that cannot be overlooked, and the real events presented in the film, like the death of the U.S. president of the time, John F. Kennedy, play an important part in experiencing the ‘real feeling’ of the film.

Moreover, the actors are the most important ones for this movie. Having a good script and presenting it from the perspective of a real mobster is not enough to attract such a large number of viewers. Seeing that the film is staged by some of the best known actors is what most attracts the public. The attitude they have and the way they interpret their roles may be the best part of the film. But the way that all of these aspects are put together makes it less captivating, the editing of the film is not as well done as you may have expected. The film director is leaning more on the script and the actors than on the cinematographic side. The film takes too long to watch and the interest tends to get lost in the middle after after watching it for a while .

Therefore, The Irishman is a captivating story of Frank Sheeran and Jimmy Hoffa, played by some of the best actors. I would recommend it, if you have three hours to watch it, but I would not exactly say that I would watch it again, because it might get boring after a while.