‘The Irishman’ is a somber and slow-burning triumph for Scorsese 

Brandon Shillingford, Contributing Writer

Martin Scorsese is a director who commits to his craft and refuses to compromise his vision for the sake of audiences and executives. This has repeatedly shown through his diverse filmography in bold crime dramas such as “The Departed” and “Goodfellas,” along with thoughtful period dramas like “The Age of Innocence” and “The Aviator.” And despite this, he’s one of the most successful and widely revered filmmakers in Hollywood. 

But with his newest sprawling crime epic, “The Irishman,” Scorsese leans into that same bold and brash nature of his previous films while subverting our expectations with a subtle and surprisingly introspective tale of betrayal, regret and shame.

“The Irishman,” based on the novel “I Heard You Paint Houses” by Charles Brandt, chronicles the life of New York teamster and mob hitman Frank Sheeran, played by Robert De Niro.

 It details his rise to the top of the Buffalino crime family and downfall as his actions take a toll on the relationships between his friends and family. Its supporting cast features a who’s who of old Italian men including Al Pacino, Harvey Keitel, Ray Romano, and Joe Pesci.

This is a story that we’ve seen from Scorsese before. The tragic tale of the powerful man who loves power a bit too much. From watching the trailers and hearing the stories about the troubled film production, it could lead you to think that “The Irishman” is just more of the same from a filmmaker who is too afraid to deviate from a reliable formula. 

“‘The Irishman’ is a story about legacy and the unwavering desire to be remembered by a world that seems hellbent on passing you by.” —Brandon Shillingford

I’m happy to say “The Irishman” completely shocked me. Instead of using the stereotypical tropes of the life of crime to glorify violence, misogyny and gang life, he uses them to paint a portrait of a man who has become disillusioned with life and has tragically given up so many years to a lost cause. 

The film is without a doubt much longer than it needs to be, choosing to overindulge in the details of the time by attempting to draw parallels between politics and crime in a way that distracts the viewer from the interesting stuff that’s happening with Frank. 

But the sheer ambition of “The Irishman” and Scorsese’s willingness to push the envelope makes it easy enough to forget its shortcomings and focus on what it gets right. And it gets a lot right.

The de-aging technology used in the film will likely be a huge talking point in the months leading up to its release. It’s a ridiculous idea in theory, but in actual practice and within the context of the story, it’s actually pretty powerful. 

One of the main themes of “The Irishman” is how the sins we commit can wear on us over time. Its extraneous three-and-a-half-hour runtime communicates that — while some of us are richer, smarter, and more socially inclined than others — we’re all human, and we all die. And once we’re in the grave, all that’s left is to repent and reflect on those sins and ask for forgiveness. It’s surprisingly melancholy in its execution and not quite like anything we’ve seen from Scorsese before. 

De Niro and Pesci give impeccably sincere performances that will undoubtedly go unnoticed compared to their earlier work, but it’s a moving and phenomenal portrayal of men trying and failing to cling to humanity. De Niro is basically the sole focus of the final 45 minutes of “The Irishman” and works with some of the most heart-wrenching and emotionally devastating material that Scorsese has ever done. 

And contrary to what the marketing material would lead you to believe, this film is pretty hilarious, with a good amount of the humor coming from Pacino in a suitably loud and over the top performance. But he’s able to ground himself pretty quickly and deliver a fantastic performance throughout. 

“The Irishman” is a story about legacy and the unwavering desire to be remembered by a world that seems hellbent on passing you by. It’s much quieter and somber than most of Scorsese’s work but just as — if not more — poignant and affecting. As a result, we have some of Scorsese’s best work in a very long time.

Rating: 4/5