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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 4 page research paper/essay that analyzes the use of sound in this film. Director Martin Scorsese's 1990 film Goodfellas (produced by Irwin Winkler; released by Warner Brothers) focuses on life is like as a member of the Mafia. Based on the real-life biography of gangster Henry Hill (Ray Liotta), the movie chronicles Henry's life and the attraction of a life of crime, the illusion of glamour, of being a "somebody." While numerous cinematic elements combine to make this film compelling, one of the features that adds to the nuance and feel of the narrative is the director's use of sound. Examination of this element demonstrates how various aspects of sound can affect the characterization and substantiate the director's storytelling goals. Bibliography lists 3 sources.
Page Count:
4 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khgfs.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
the real-life biography of gangster Henry Hill (Ray Liotta), the movie chronicles Henrys life and the attraction of a life of crime, the illusion of glamour, of being a "somebody."
While numerous cinematic elements combine to make this film compelling, one of the features that adds to the nuance and feel of the narrative is the directors use of sound.
Examination of this element demonstrates how various aspects of sound can affect the characterization and substantiate the directors storytelling goals. As one reviewer points out, just as The Godfather
films celebrate the world of the Mafia elite, Goodfellas shows the brutal life of the Mafia foot soldiers (Hilton). To help convey the nuance of this life, the film uses
music that fits the "baggy-suited swagger of the early 1950s hustlers" who inhabited the bars of Little Italy (Hilton). Songs such as Tony Bennetts "Rags To Riches" and Bobby Darins
"Beyond the Sea," not only set the mood for the film but foreshadow details of the plot by offering a strong Italian-American flavor. In fact, many of the musicians featured
on the sound track can trace their roots back to the immigrant neighborhoods of New York City (Hilton). Additionally, songs from the doo-wop movement, that is, tracks such as "Life
is But a Dream" by the Harptones and "Speedo" by the Cadillacs, combine seamlessly with additional orchestration to convey a "let the goods times roll" attitude, as the gangsters drink
and gamble between robberies and shootings (Hilton). As this suggests, the music helps to convey the allure of the mob life, explaining its attraction for the young protagonist. As
the decades progress, the music changes accordingly and this devise aids Scorsese in conveying to the viewer a sense of time and place. The schmaltz of earlier tracks gives way
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