Jimmy Hoffa was one of the most fascinating public figures of the 20th century and the events depicted in this movie are an attempt to encapsulate in 140 minutes what it was that made this force of nature so remarkable. What emerges most strongly is that he had a very clear vision of what he wanted to achieve and some exceptional personal qualities that enabled him to succeed where others couldn't. His story spans a forty year period and unfolds in a way that aims for objectivity by acknowledging his outstanding leadership and negotiating skills whilst also unflinchingly exposing his links with organised crime and his apparent lack of compunction about being involved in a whole variety of corrupt practices.
The action begins in 1975 at a roadside diner on the outskirts of Detroit, Michigan, where two men in a car are anxiously awaiting the arrival of someone they've arranged to meet there. The men in question are Jimmy Hoffa (Jack Nicholson) and Bobby Ciaro (Danny DeVito) and during what seems like an interminable wait, Bobby's mind wanders back to his first meeting with Hoffa in 1935 when the union firebrand had approached his parked truck and tried to convince him of the benefits of joining his union. Against his better judgement, Bobby had been talked into giving Hoffa a lift but dropped him off some time before reaching his destination because he knew that if he was seen with his notorious passenger, it would cost him his job. Unfortunately, when they meet again some time later, something Hoffa says does cost Bobby his job and following this incident, Hoffa gives him a role in the union.
Through Bobby's reminiscences, the events that propelled Hoffa from a union organizer to the Presidency of the Brotherhood of Teamsters are played out. These include the firebombing of a laundry where the owner had resisted the unionization of his workforce and where Hoffa's associate Billy Flynn (Robert Prosky) had died after sustaining terrible burns all over his body. After a particular strike had turned violent because of skirmishes that broke out between strikers and non-union drivers, Hoffa is "invited" to a meeting with a local Mafia boss who discloses that he "protects" the business that was involved in the strike and questions why he shouldn't simply dispose of the problems that Hoffa had caused by eliminating him. Hoffa responds by proposing a scheme that would enable the mob to profit from an arrangement whereby the union would arrange for certain cargos to be diverted to mob locations. It's at this meeting that Hoffa and Carol D'Allesandro (Armand Assante) establish a long-lasting alliance that strengthens Hoffa's power further and contributes to his inexorable rise to the top.
Hoffa further abuses his power when he makes an arrangement with D'Allesandro for union pension funds to be used to finance mob investments and gets subjected to some scrutiny by Robert Kennedy at a Congressional Hearing. Hoffa subsequently gets jailed in 1967 after being found guilty of fraud but has his sentence commuted in 1971 by a Presidential pardon issued by Richard Nixon. This pardon, however, precludes him from returning to his previous role as the union's leader and the roadside diner meeting with D'Allesandro had been set up to make an arrangement whereby he could try to regain his previous position of power. What follows, however, soon makes it clear that this can't and won't ever happen.
Bobby Ciaro is an entirely fictitious character who embodies the qualities of a number of Hoffa's real-life associates and acts as a conduit through which the audience learns about the actions and fearless nature of the legendary union leader. This device works well and Danny DeVito is very effective as Hoffa's closest and most loyal friend. Jack Nicholson is also absolutely tremendous as he not only immerses himself entirely into his role but also looks stunningly like the man he's portraying.
It's understandable that even the relatively long running time of this movie can't possibly cover everything that happened in Hoffa's exceptionally eventful life but the most regrettable omission is any explanation of what inspired his mission, what made him so driven and how this self-proclaimed "friend of labor" could be so unconcerned about jeopardising his members' pension funds.
The action begins in 1975 at a roadside diner on the outskirts of Detroit, Michigan, where two men in a car are anxiously awaiting the arrival of someone they've arranged to meet there. The men in question are Jimmy Hoffa (Jack Nicholson) and Bobby Ciaro (Danny DeVito) and during what seems like an interminable wait, Bobby's mind wanders back to his first meeting with Hoffa in 1935 when the union firebrand had approached his parked truck and tried to convince him of the benefits of joining his union. Against his better judgement, Bobby had been talked into giving Hoffa a lift but dropped him off some time before reaching his destination because he knew that if he was seen with his notorious passenger, it would cost him his job. Unfortunately, when they meet again some time later, something Hoffa says does cost Bobby his job and following this incident, Hoffa gives him a role in the union.
Through Bobby's reminiscences, the events that propelled Hoffa from a union organizer to the Presidency of the Brotherhood of Teamsters are played out. These include the firebombing of a laundry where the owner had resisted the unionization of his workforce and where Hoffa's associate Billy Flynn (Robert Prosky) had died after sustaining terrible burns all over his body. After a particular strike had turned violent because of skirmishes that broke out between strikers and non-union drivers, Hoffa is "invited" to a meeting with a local Mafia boss who discloses that he "protects" the business that was involved in the strike and questions why he shouldn't simply dispose of the problems that Hoffa had caused by eliminating him. Hoffa responds by proposing a scheme that would enable the mob to profit from an arrangement whereby the union would arrange for certain cargos to be diverted to mob locations. It's at this meeting that Hoffa and Carol D'Allesandro (Armand Assante) establish a long-lasting alliance that strengthens Hoffa's power further and contributes to his inexorable rise to the top.
Hoffa further abuses his power when he makes an arrangement with D'Allesandro for union pension funds to be used to finance mob investments and gets subjected to some scrutiny by Robert Kennedy at a Congressional Hearing. Hoffa subsequently gets jailed in 1967 after being found guilty of fraud but has his sentence commuted in 1971 by a Presidential pardon issued by Richard Nixon. This pardon, however, precludes him from returning to his previous role as the union's leader and the roadside diner meeting with D'Allesandro had been set up to make an arrangement whereby he could try to regain his previous position of power. What follows, however, soon makes it clear that this can't and won't ever happen.
Bobby Ciaro is an entirely fictitious character who embodies the qualities of a number of Hoffa's real-life associates and acts as a conduit through which the audience learns about the actions and fearless nature of the legendary union leader. This device works well and Danny DeVito is very effective as Hoffa's closest and most loyal friend. Jack Nicholson is also absolutely tremendous as he not only immerses himself entirely into his role but also looks stunningly like the man he's portraying.
It's understandable that even the relatively long running time of this movie can't possibly cover everything that happened in Hoffa's exceptionally eventful life but the most regrettable omission is any explanation of what inspired his mission, what made him so driven and how this self-proclaimed "friend of labor" could be so unconcerned about jeopardising his members' pension funds.