First Take: The Irishman- the G.O.A.T is back in business

SYNOPSIS: A mob hitman recalls his possible involvement with the slaying of Jimmy Hoffa.

So here we go. Martin Scorsese is back with his first film since 2016′s Silence, and arguably his biggest mainstream release since Wolf of Wall Street (purely because of the partnership with Netflix). Arguably one of the most anticipated films of 2019, The Irishman has a very big set of expectations- so I am relieved to say that all the hype was indeed justified.

We’re gonna start by talking about the cast, because this is really where this film comes alive. Scorsese has reunited with a lot of his frequent collaborators, and they include Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci (who came out of retirement to make this film), Al Pacino and Harvey Keitel amongst others. All of them have been digitally de-aged, and in De Niro’s case, it is some of the most convincing CG work that has ever been done. Supporting them is a group of heavyweights that is just as legendary, and just as talented- Ray Romano, Anna Paquin, Stephen Graham, Bobby Cannavale and Jesse Plemons join the fold to create a cast that can make a film this long worth watching.

Now, tech time. Scorsese directs this one really well, it is the longest film he has ever made, and one of his most expensive films too- all of the money went on the CG needed for a big part of the film, but he turns in a pretty decently paced 3 hours 29 minutes of cinema (although multiple sittings may be required for some viewers) that tells a truly epic story pretty well. It’s adapted from a book called I Heard You Paint Horses, and legendary screenwriter Stephen Zaillan is the man tasked with adapting it- sure, the flashbacks could confuse a modern audience, but it is a damn good script, one which has been refined a fair bit in the 15 years it took Scorsese to get this film made. Rodrigo Prieto is behind the camera, just like the last 2 of Scorsese’s films, Robbie Robertson is on scoring duties, and the unsung hero that is Thelma Schoonmaker is behind the edit… it’s an Avengers tier line-up both on and off screen. Could this be regarded as a masterpiece eventually? If the cinemas had any say, it would be no- because Netflix were involved. But this is pretty damn close to one.

THE VERDICT

Only Scorsese could make a 3 and a half hour film in this day and age, and still make it pretty damn good. It’s a true epic, and with a cast he knows arguably better than anyone else, it is easy to understand why this has been seen as a major awards contender.

RATING: 5/5