Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie
Review: Everyone who sees this will love it. This is a great mafia/FBI movie. Great acting and great story. I'm sure Joe Pistone himself is proud.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, But A Bit Off
Review: This was a great movie, but if you've read the book, you'll know that it was dramatized quite a bit. Such scenes as Donnie (Depp) helping to cut up the bodies of Sonny Red and his crew were completely wrong. Also, they gave the impression that Agent Pistone had trouble remebering who he was some of the time, when really he had no problem with this. I also did not like the ending, because you did not know if Lefty (Pacino) was killed or not, and he definitely was not. There is not an extensive amount of action, but there is some. There is quite a bit of violence in it, and a few moments of nudity, too, so it probably should not be viewed by young audiences (hence its R rating). It is still a little informative on the Mafia, and it is a good movie unto itself.
Rating: 
Summary: A tired genre gets worse with Donnie
Review: The story of Donnie Brasco is one of the more compelling tales of organized crime and policing in America Ñ too bad the book was clunky, convoluted and cliche-ridden. I had high hopes for the film, but the big-screen version offers nothing new in either the gangster or cop movie genre. In fact, if you thought Michael Madsen's one-note turns in Reservoir Dogs and Frankie the Fly were spellbinding, then you're in for a treat: he's back, with the same hulking presence, complete with his trademark monosyllabic muttering. Depp is completely miscast as FBI agent Joe Pistone, and the twisting of "facts" in the film Ñ his strained relationship with family and feds Ñ is puzzling if you've read the book. Why critics raved about Donnie Brasco is beyond me. Spurts of blood, an uninspired '70s soundtrack and Al Pacino does not a good gangster movie make. Leave it at Goodfellas, and move on.
Rating: 
Summary: Unoriginal
Review: Johnny Depp confuses me. Known for his esoteric choices this movie did not seem to fit with his usual fare. Rather mundane compared to other parts of his.That aside, I was not impressed with something Donnie Brasco. Nothing of this film was bad but nothing stood out. Constantly I was reminded of other movies that are better then this one. To add to my frustration, there are no extras on the DVD. Picture and sound quality are passable. Rental.
Rating:
Summary: Not historically accurate
Review: The Movie, Donnie Brasco, was not in my mind a very accurate movie. If I didn't know any better, I'd have thought the movie was made by Oliver Stone. I've read the book written in part by agent Pistone and then watched the movie, and it was like seeing and reading 2 completely different stories. The acting, however, was great, and the settings were very good.
Rating:
Summary: "You go in alive, you come out dead. "
Review: The title of this review is a phrase said by one Benjamin "Lefty" Ruggerro. In the same way some war veterans talk of nothing but their heroics, struggles and the mechanics of their war, Lefty is obsessed with the mythology of the mafia. Toobad for him he is less a Godfather and more of a small fish on the mafia foodchain. The rest of that phrase is "...and its your best friend that does it." Donnie Brasco tells the story of undercover agent Joe Pistone's (Johnny Deppy) ifilteration of the mob in 1978. He introduces himself as "Don the jeweller". He immediately gains the respect and love of Lefty (Al Pacino), and he is presented to the rest of the crew as a "a friend of Lefty's". You see, if he is a "friend of Lefty's" that means he is a connected guy, if he were a "friend of ours" that would make him a made guy. Donnie Brasco will not disappoint fans of the genre, it has all the mob talk, the back alley butcherings and the tense stand offs. But what makes the film the masterpiece that it is, the warm and brilliantly acted and realised central relationship between Donnie/Joe and Lefty. I read an interview with director Mike Newel where he called the film "a love story", and that is absolutely right. People often accuse Al Pacino of hamming it up and going for an autopilot "whoa" performance in many of his films, like his Satan in The Devil's Advocate. Nevermind the fact that Pacino's autopilot is more gripping then most actors' most vivid characterisation, his performance in Donnie Brasco is arguably his best. As Lefty Ruggerro he is both heartbreaking and frightening, ruthless and all too human. He delivers his lines with is patented fiery intensity, but this time he lets you know he's bluffing, that he' can't back up that big mouth of his. He shines in two particular scenes, one in the hospital and the other is final haunting scene. I will not describe them here. See them for yourself. Donnie Brasco was released in the spring of 1997, and since the Academy has a pathetically short memory, the film only managed one Oscar nomination which was for Paul Attanasio screen adaptation. When they ignored Pacino's performance here, that is when they completely lost credibility with me. Is Donnie Brasco one of the best gangster pictures ever made? Fuggedaboutit (in the positive sense of the phrase). It deserves to sit at the same table and have coffee on the house with the masterpiece of the genre, Goodfellas.
Rating: 
Summary: A side of the mafia seldom seen.
Review: In 1976, the government of the United States took on the Mafia in perhaps one of the greatest showdowns in crime history. One man, Joe Pistone a.k.a. Donnie Brasco, sacrificed everything in his life including family and sometimes sanity to become the FBI's supreme undercover agent. By 1982, the work of Donnie Brasco would bring in not only about 200 convictions (A staggering amount by any standard), but would also bring down the most powerful mob bosses in history up to that date (the fall of John Gotti was still almost a decade away.) Pistone/Brasco (Johnny Depp) is introduced into the mob by passing himself off as a jewelry smuggler. Eventually he befriends Lefty (Al Pacino), a mid-level mob hitman who takes Brasco under his wing. As time goes by, Brasco makes connections with the high-ranking officials of the New York Mafia by making himself visible and gaining their trust by way of business and clout. After perfectly keeping up his act as Donnie Brasco for more than five years, Joe Pistone, his wife (Anne Heche) and children go into the witness protection program under which they still live. To this day the Mafia still has a contract on Pistone's life for $ 500,000. Although there is some violence and interesting action, one thing not to expect in this film is gun blazing, bloodletting action ala Goodfellas. This film focuses more on the carrying out of operations and relationships, which Brasco had to prevent from meeting on the same playing field.
Rating:
Summary: Before Falcone, there's Donnie Brasco
Review: Al Pacino and Johnny Depp shine in this based-on-real-life account. The film itself is wonderful, although I hear it's not as good as the book (isn't that usually the case?). The DVD quality itself is very good, but I wish there were some worthwhile extras (there's just a trailer). It should've contained audio commentary by Pistone himself, or at least the filmmakers. Ahh, well - it's still a worthwhile addition to your Mob or Pacino collection!
Rating: 
Summary: Don't read the book first if you want to enjoy the movie!
Review: My rating is the average of the movie as simply an FBI in the mob movie (5 stars) and as an account of the true story of Agent Joe Pistone (1 star). Much as I like the work Al Pacino and Johnny Depp did in this movie, the film version pales in comparison to the book. It does not do justice to the book. The real Agent Joe Pistone and the one portrayed in the film have notable differences as does the real Lefty Ruggiero and Pacino's character. As a fictional account of FBI undercover work in the mob, this is a good, perhaps even great movie. Since I saw the movie before reading the book, I was able to enjoy it. However, once I read the book, the inconsistencies between the book and movie were obvious. Too bad Hollywood couldn't see the merit of the true story. There are too many distortions of the facts and characters. So, if you want to enjoy the movie at all, see it before reading the book. Then read the book and enjoy the real story.
Rating:
Summary: Only 3 stars? Yes....
Review: Frankly, I only saw most of this. It was broadcast on CBS on March 12th....maybe they'll do it again sometime? (shameless plea to any execs reading this! ) It was interesting. Too violent for me, but as its' a mob film, that is to be expected. Al Pacino does a good job as a downtrodden mob lackey who befriends a undercover FBI agent (Depp) who, in turn, gets further and further into the mob society while neglecting his family....a good job, though, in showing us his feelings and not condemning him for doing so. There are several subtle metaphors, the most hilarious (to me) being the one of the gift of the lion. The lion....in the backseat of a new car. Now is that absolute power or what? Good film, all around--just not my piece of cake.
|
