Goodfellas
The rise and fall of mob associate Henry Hill, from Pileggi's Wiseguy.
Goodfellas is a 1990 biographical gangster film directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Nicholas Pileggi and Scorsese and produced by Irwin Winkler. It adapts Pileggi's 1985 non-fiction book Wiseguy and follows the rise and fall of Mafia associate Henry Hill and his friends and family from 1955 to 1980.
The cast is led by Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco and Paul Sorvino.
Quick Facts
- Director
- Martin Scorsese
- Producer
- Irwin Winkler
- Screenplay
- Nicholas Pileggi; Martin Scorsese
- Based on
- Wiseguy, Nicholas Pileggi
- Starring
- Robert De Niro
- Ray Liotta
- Joe Pesci
- Lorraine Bracco
- Paul Sorvino
- Cinematography
- Michael Ballhaus
- Editing
- Thelma Schoonmaker
- Studio
- Warner Bros.; Irwin Winkler Productions
Facts from the source article.
Background
Scorsese first called the project Wise Guy before he and Pileggi renamed it. Much of the dialogue came from rehearsals in which Scorsese let the actors improvise; he had the sessions transcribed and worked the lines he liked into the shooting script. The film premiered at the 47th Venice International Film Festival, where Scorsese won the Silver Lion for Best Director, and Warner Bros. released it in the United States on 18 September 1990. It grossed $47 million on a $25 million budget, received six Academy Award nominations with Pesci winning Best Supporting Actor, and won five BAFTAs including Best Film and Best Director.
More in Films
Elsewhere in Martin Scorsese
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced