Goodfellas is right up there with one of the greatest mob stories ever told. But many people hold it to an even higher degree as one of the greatest movies ever made. Recently, Steven Spielberg wrote a short guest essay for Variety on why the movie, made by his peer, Martin Scorsese, is not only one of his favorite movies but he also feels it’s a masterclass in filmmaking.
Spielberg mentions that all you need to do is mention the name of one of the characters from the film and that puts him in the mood to watch the gangster epic. He elaborates, “It’s no longer a guilty pleasure to sit for 2 hours and 26 minutes, but rather a master class for any aspiring filmmaker who wants to see a breathtaking balancing act of multiple storylines, timelines, shocking violence and violent humor. The film has an intoxicating energy expressed not only through masterful editing,...
Spielberg mentions that all you need to do is mention the name of one of the characters from the film and that puts him in the mood to watch the gangster epic. He elaborates, “It’s no longer a guilty pleasure to sit for 2 hours and 26 minutes, but rather a master class for any aspiring filmmaker who wants to see a breathtaking balancing act of multiple storylines, timelines, shocking violence and violent humor. The film has an intoxicating energy expressed not only through masterful editing,...
- 12/29/2022
- by EJ Tangonan
- JoBlo.com
Actor Paul Sorvino, who died today at 83, played a legion of mobsters throughout his long career, including a seminal turn as Paul Cicero in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas.
But Sorvino also played plenty of cops, a movie producer, a televangelist, Henry Kissinger, God, a founder of the American Communist Party, an Italian fashion designer, an MLB manager, a Shakespearean lord and a wide array of other colorful characters.
His co-stars included Al Pacino (twice), Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise, Robert Redford, Angela Bassett, Jennifer Connelly, Charlton Heston, Warren Beatty (four times), James Caan (five times), Richard Gere, Robert Mitchum, Glenda Jackson, Forest Whitaker, Gena Rowlands, Rita Moreno, Alec Baldwin, Diane Keaton, Joaquin Phoenix and his own Oscar-winning daughter, Mira.
Click on the photo above to see a gallery of Sorvino’s long and varied career.
Launch Gallery: Paul Sorvino: A Career In Pictures...
But Sorvino also played plenty of cops, a movie producer, a televangelist, Henry Kissinger, God, a founder of the American Communist Party, an Italian fashion designer, an MLB manager, a Shakespearean lord and a wide array of other colorful characters.
His co-stars included Al Pacino (twice), Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise, Robert Redford, Angela Bassett, Jennifer Connelly, Charlton Heston, Warren Beatty (four times), James Caan (five times), Richard Gere, Robert Mitchum, Glenda Jackson, Forest Whitaker, Gena Rowlands, Rita Moreno, Alec Baldwin, Diane Keaton, Joaquin Phoenix and his own Oscar-winning daughter, Mira.
Click on the photo above to see a gallery of Sorvino’s long and varied career.
Launch Gallery: Paul Sorvino: A Career In Pictures...
- 7/25/2022
- by Tom Tapp
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Hollywood stars were heartbroken over the news of Paul Sorvino’s death on Monday and took to social media to pay tribute to the late actor.
Sorvino, the father of Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino, died Monday of natural causes at the age of 83, his wife, Dee Dee, announced. Publicist Roger Neal said he died at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.
“Our hearts are broken, there will never be another Paul Sorvino, he was the love of my life and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage,” Dee Dee said.
Throughout his career Sorvino starred in a myriad of projects including The Gambler (1974), Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet (1996), Oliver Stone’s Nixon (1995) and in The Cooler (2003). Other notable roles include The Panic in Needle Park (1971), William Friedkin’s The Brink’s Job (1978), The Rocketeer (1991) and The Firm...
Hollywood stars were heartbroken over the news of Paul Sorvino’s death on Monday and took to social media to pay tribute to the late actor.
Sorvino, the father of Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino, died Monday of natural causes at the age of 83, his wife, Dee Dee, announced. Publicist Roger Neal said he died at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.
“Our hearts are broken, there will never be another Paul Sorvino, he was the love of my life and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage,” Dee Dee said.
Throughout his career Sorvino starred in a myriad of projects including The Gambler (1974), Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet (1996), Oliver Stone’s Nixon (1995) and in The Cooler (2003). Other notable roles include The Panic in Needle Park (1971), William Friedkin’s The Brink’s Job (1978), The Rocketeer (1991) and The Firm...
- 7/25/2022
- by Lexy Perez
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Sad news out of Hollywood today.
Paul Sorvino, best known for his roles in Goodfellas and Law & Order, has died.
He was 83.
Sorvino's wife, Dee Dee, revealed the news of the star's passing on Monday.
“Our hearts are broken, there will never be another Paul Sorvino, he was the love of my life, and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage,” she said, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Sorvino had a wealth of TV and movie credits under his belt.
He played Paul Cicero in the 1990 gangster movie, Goodfellas.
The flick remains one of the most iconic movies, 32 years on.
New York Times spoke to Sorvino on the 25th anniversary of the movie in 2015.
The star said that it was the role of a lifetime, but he did have some reservations.
"I’d done a lot of comedies as well as dramas, but I...
Paul Sorvino, best known for his roles in Goodfellas and Law & Order, has died.
He was 83.
Sorvino's wife, Dee Dee, revealed the news of the star's passing on Monday.
“Our hearts are broken, there will never be another Paul Sorvino, he was the love of my life, and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage,” she said, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Sorvino had a wealth of TV and movie credits under his belt.
He played Paul Cicero in the 1990 gangster movie, Goodfellas.
The flick remains one of the most iconic movies, 32 years on.
New York Times spoke to Sorvino on the 25th anniversary of the movie in 2015.
The star said that it was the role of a lifetime, but he did have some reservations.
"I’d done a lot of comedies as well as dramas, but I...
- 7/25/2022
- by Paul Dailly
- TVfanatic
Paul Sorvino, who starred in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas and early seasons of the NBC series Law & Order, died today of natural causes after suffering health issues over the past few years. He was 83.
His death was announced by his publicist Roger Neal on behalf of Sorvino’s wife Dee Dee Sorvino, who was at his side when he passed.
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery
“Our hearts are broken,” said Dee Dee Sorvino in a statement. “There will never be another Paul Sorvino, he was the love of my life, and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage.”
Sorvino was the father of Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino.
My father the great Paul Sorvino has passed. My heart is rent asunder- a life of love and joy and wisdom with him is over. He was the most wonderful father. I love him so much.
His death was announced by his publicist Roger Neal on behalf of Sorvino’s wife Dee Dee Sorvino, who was at his side when he passed.
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery
“Our hearts are broken,” said Dee Dee Sorvino in a statement. “There will never be another Paul Sorvino, he was the love of my life, and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage.”
Sorvino was the father of Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino.
My father the great Paul Sorvino has passed. My heart is rent asunder- a life of love and joy and wisdom with him is over. He was the most wonderful father. I love him so much.
- 7/25/2022
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
As an actor, Ray Liotta could look into the eyes of the most coldblooded sociopath and find the glimmer of mirth needed to transmit a familiar character to the screen. Someone the audience can identify with, cheer on even as he does the most vile things, for the least redeemable reasons. Liotta will go down in motion picture history as one of the great character actors because he found fully realized people inside the most damaged goods.
Liotta played bad cops and good robbers, sympathetic psychos and friendly ghosts. He is at his best when he is at his worst, and he takes you along with him. If his character is annoyed, the audience gets mad. When his character gets angry, the audience wants blood. Liotta can accommodate without even pulling a trigger. In Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas (1990), Henry Hill learns at one point his girlfriend, and future wife, Karen...
Liotta played bad cops and good robbers, sympathetic psychos and friendly ghosts. He is at his best when he is at his worst, and he takes you along with him. If his character is annoyed, the audience gets mad. When his character gets angry, the audience wants blood. Liotta can accommodate without even pulling a trigger. In Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas (1990), Henry Hill learns at one point his girlfriend, and future wife, Karen...
- 5/27/2022
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
William Wellman’s The Public Enemy (1931) turns 90 this weekend. When the film first came out, a theater in Times Square showed it nonstop, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The movie marks the true beginning of gangster movies as a genre. Mervyn LeRoy’s Little Caesar may have hit theaters first, but The Public Enemy set the pattern, and James Cagney nailed the patter. Not just the street talk either; he also understood its machine gun delivery. His Tommy Powers is just a hoodlum, never a boss. He is a button man at best, even if he insisted his suits have six buttons.
The Public Enemy character wasn’t even as high up the ladder as Paul Sorvino’s caporegime Paul Cicero in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas. But Cagney secured the turf Edward G. Robinson’s Rico Bandello took a bullet to claim in Little Caesar, and for the...
The Public Enemy character wasn’t even as high up the ladder as Paul Sorvino’s caporegime Paul Cicero in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas. But Cagney secured the turf Edward G. Robinson’s Rico Bandello took a bullet to claim in Little Caesar, and for the...
- 4/23/2021
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
Exclusive: Paul Sorvino is set for a role in Godfather of Harlem, Epix’s straight-to-series crime drama starring and executive produced by Forest Whitaker. The series hails from Narcos co-creator Chris Brancato and Paul Eckstein and ABC Signature Studios. Vincent D’Onofrio, Ilfenesh Hadera, Antoinette Crowe-Legacy, Nigél Thatch, Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Lucy Fry also star.
Written and executive produced by Brancato and Eckstein, Godfather of Harlem is inspired by the story of infamous crime boss Bumpy Johnson (Whitaker), who in the early 1960s returned from 10 years in prison to find the neighborhood he once ruled in shambles. With the streets controlled by the Italian mob, Bumpy must take on the Genovese crime family to regain control. During the brutal battle, he forms an alliance with radical preacher Malcolm X (Thatch) – catching Malcolm’s political rise in the crosshairs of social upheaval and a mob war that threatens to tear the city apart.
Written and executive produced by Brancato and Eckstein, Godfather of Harlem is inspired by the story of infamous crime boss Bumpy Johnson (Whitaker), who in the early 1960s returned from 10 years in prison to find the neighborhood he once ruled in shambles. With the streets controlled by the Italian mob, Bumpy must take on the Genovese crime family to regain control. During the brutal battle, he forms an alliance with radical preacher Malcolm X (Thatch) – catching Malcolm’s political rise in the crosshairs of social upheaval and a mob war that threatens to tear the city apart.
- 9/27/2018
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Recently, Fox released the new,official synopsis/spoilers for their upcoming "Gotham" episode 3 of season 2. The episode is entitled, "Rise Of The Villains," and it turns out that we're going to see some very interesting and high drama stuff go down as a huge stand off goes down between Jerome and Gordon while a major hostage situation takes place, and more! In the new, 3rd episode press release: Abracadabra, Hostages! On An All-new "Gotham" Monday, October 5, On Fox. Press release number 2: Gordon and Bullock will track down a nemesis from the past, leading to a standoff between Jerome (guest-star Cameron Monaghan) and Gordon. In the meantime, a magic show at the Gotham Children's Hospital gala is going to turn into a hostage situation. Guest stars feature: Cameron Monaghan as Jerome, Mark Margolis as Paul Cicero and Norm Lewis as Deputy Mayor Harrison Kane. Episode 3 is set to air Monday night,...
- 9/28/2015
- by Chris
- OnTheFlix
The mafia genre ain’t what it used to be, and that’s a tragedy. One of the oldest genres, the mob hit the big screen in a big way from Hollywood’s earliest moments, with the likes of Edward G. Robinson and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. Scorsese became the unofficial, though widely acknowledged master of the genre in the 1990s, and The Sopranos took the family to the same screen and made television history. But since then, the genre has fallen from favor. Mafia films used to be a breeding ground for young, aggressive actors flexing their stuff: DeNiro, Pacino, Liotta, Pesci, and more. Today, the genre churns out the occasional flick, but the stars have, strangely, stayed the same. The “old” mafia movie, with has-beens and never-was returning the streets saw Pacino and Walken take on Stand Up Guys, and now it has Goodfellas’ own Paul Cicero, Paul Sorvino,...
- 12/28/2014
- by Kyle North
- JustPressPlay.net
If you were to peruse any greatest films of all time list chances are you would find a ‘gangster’ film pretty high up there, battling it out with the Jedis, Sharks and Tim Robbins.
But who exactly would come out on top if the wise-guys squared off against each other? Who’d end up sleeping with the fishes and who would reign supreme as the big screen don? (I’m done with the clichés now…)
So to celebrate the release of the ridiculously awesome looking Scarface on Blu-ray I thought I would compile said list, so here is a countdown of the Top 10 Gangster Films to ever hit the big screen and if you don’t like my list don’t put a horses head in my bed… Capiche?
(Okay, now I’m done…)
#10
The Untouchables
(1987)
Based on some of the most infamous figures in organized crime history, directed, and written,...
But who exactly would come out on top if the wise-guys squared off against each other? Who’d end up sleeping with the fishes and who would reign supreme as the big screen don? (I’m done with the clichés now…)
So to celebrate the release of the ridiculously awesome looking Scarface on Blu-ray I thought I would compile said list, so here is a countdown of the Top 10 Gangster Films to ever hit the big screen and if you don’t like my list don’t put a horses head in my bed… Capiche?
(Okay, now I’m done…)
#10
The Untouchables
(1987)
Based on some of the most infamous figures in organized crime history, directed, and written,...
- 8/22/2011
- by Gareth Bunkham
- Obsessed with Film
When you think of mafia movies, do you immediately hear the mournful trumpet from The Godfather’s elegant main title? Or do you hear Eric Clapton’s “Layla”? It’s the question at the core of a crucial cinematic debate. What is the greatest mob movie ever? Francis Ford Coppola’s epic drama, The Godfather? Or Martin Scorsese’s gritty masterpiece, Goodfellas? Even though Sonny would’ve been pals with Jimmy Conway, and Paul Cicero would’ve been welcome in Don Corleone’s home, these are two very different Italian-American filmmakers telling very different tales about the Italian-American experience. But...
- 8/12/2011
- by EW staff
- EW.com - PopWatch
Al Pacino has joined the John Gotti film starring John Travolta, and the Godfather actor will play Neil Dellacroce, the longtime consigliere to Mafia chieftain Carlo Gambino, Fiore Films announced, confirming a Variety report. “Dellacroce’s the person who kind of brings John Gotti up through the ranks,” says producer Marc Fiore. “We’re very excited .”
Nabbing the Godfather of Godfather movies for Gotti: Three Generations is a huge boost for the project, which also features Kelly Preston, Lindsay Lohan, and reportedly, Joe Pesci. Dellacroce was a loyal and admired member of the Gambino crime family who was nevertheless passed over for top leadership.
Nabbing the Godfather of Godfather movies for Gotti: Three Generations is a huge boost for the project, which also features Kelly Preston, Lindsay Lohan, and reportedly, Joe Pesci. Dellacroce was a loyal and admired member of the Gambino crime family who was nevertheless passed over for top leadership.
- 5/10/2011
- by Jeff Labrecque
- EW.com - PopWatch
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