Goodfellas Movie Analysis

Theme is defined as “an idea, issue, or concept that a writer wants to express through a story; a message or meaning that the audience is meant to take away from a movie”(Goodykoontz 2014). There is usually more than one theme in every movie, but they are not always easy to determine, and are subject to the opinion of the viewer. What one person thinks is the main theme may not be what another viewer defines as the main theme. The screenwriter, director, and actors may have different ideas as to the main theme of the same movie, but usually the director’s theme is the one that is most important. He or she will guide the film in the direction of his or her vision, including what he or she believes the theme(s) should be and how the theme(s) …show more content…
The audience is following so closely what the main character, Henry, is doing, we are made to feel connected and included in what Henry is going through. We are invited to meetings that few are allowed to attend, participate in things that no one is supposed to know about, just as Henry has hoped to do since he was a little boy. In this way, the director establishes one of the main themes of the movie; control. The child Henry wants to be in control of his own destiny, have control of others, and be free of the control of those in authority. Henry narrates for us that “as far back as I can remember, I knew I always wanted to be a gangster”(Goodfellas 1990) …show more content…
We are thus as invested in Henry’s success as Henry is himself. Perhaps the most predominant technique used by the director to convey significant moments in the film is the use of the freeze-frame. Scorsese uses the freeze frame frequently throughout the movie to allow time for another important technique, narration. “A freeze frame shot of his father beating him remains on the screen for a full fifteen-seconds as narrator Henry tells us that the true source of his father’s rage was his hanging out at the cab stand”(GoodFellas 1990). This quote refers to the scene in the movie where Henry is beaten by his father because a letter has been delivered to Mr. Hill stating that Henry has not been attending school for months. This is Henry’s first taste of the control he so desperately wants, because upon reporting the beating to his mafia family, the mailman is then threatened Henry’s new associates if the mailman delivers any further letters from the school to Henry’s home address. All of the family’s mail ends up being delivered to the cab stand.The use of narration also helps us to feel an intimate connection to Henry, because we are privy to his thoughts, feelings, insights, and

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