It’s been nearly a month since Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” hit Netflix, and whether you think its Scorsese’s best, an instant classic or just plainly too long, it can’t be denied it has some of the greatest cinematic moments of the year, and in some cases, the decade.
Let’s have a look at a few…
“Frank avenges Peggy”
Much has been made of the way the actors move not corresponding to how young they’re supposed to be, and it’s understandable to be slightly jarred by a young-looking De Niro moving like the De Niro of today. But no matter your outlook on the de-aging tech, this quiet yet brutal scene in which Frank takes exception to a grocery store managers’ treatment of his daughter not only evokes memories of De Niro roles throughout his career, but also signals the beginning of Frank’s complicated and somewhat saddening relationship with his daughter, a thread that evolves into the backbone of the film’s story.
“Always charge a gun, with a knife you run”
By far one of the standout scenes, and one that contributes to this epic’s through-line of comedy. The films undoubted MVP, Al Pacino as union leader Jimmy Hoffa, comes into his own when confronted with a would-be assassin at a court hearing, charging the assailant and wrestling him to the ground, before getting up to deliver a lesson to all onlookers as if it’s something he’s faced 100 times before. The scene owes much to not only Steven Zailian’s great writing, but also the comedic timing of screen legend Pacino.
“The Killing of Crazy Joe Gallo”
A scene straight out of Scorsese’s usual gangster epic playbook, as Frank performs a hit in a busy restaurant. However, it’s De Niro’s narration that creates a calm before the storm element, as he takes us through the process, serene and seemingly emotionless, all before he fires half a dozen shots into Gallo as he crawls for safety. Scorsese at his most brutal best.
“The Watermelon Scene”
On a lighter note and switching back to one of the many highly comedic moments, few can beat this scene with Bo Deitl’s Joe Glimco alongside Frank as he meets Hoffa face to face for the first time. It’s impossible to do this scene justice with just a few words, but it involves Vodka, a watermelon, and Deitl on glorious form.
“It’s What it is”
Joe Pesci’s ‘Russell Bufalino’ is the most subtle character he’s played for Scorsese. Yet somehow, he may also be his most threatening, and he’s none more so than when he’s laying down the law to Frank, instructing him to explain how things must go to Pacino’s livewire Jimmy Hoffa. If you were to pinpoint one scene that crowns Bufalino as the overlord of events unfolding on screen, this is it. Diminutive in stature, but who casts a huge shadow over Frank, and the story as a whole.
“Who wears shorts to a meeting?
A scene that will unquestionably be shown as a clip when Pacino is announced as a best-supporting actor nominee at February’s Oscars. Going toe to toe with the fantastic Stephen Graham as ‘Anthony “Tony Pro” Provenzano’, the scene involves fireworks both of the verbal and physical kind as the two spar over whether turning up ten minutes late for a meeting is a “Fuck You” and if wearing shorts to a meeting is at the very least acceptable.
“Jimmy’s final moments”
Jimmy Hoffa’s final scenes encapsulate the complete performance of Pacino, both from a comedic and dramatic standpoint. From his suspicious surprise at his son’s appearance, to his clear relief of knowing Frank is by his side, and his last nugget of brilliant life advice, “Never put a fish in your car, you’ll never get rid of the smell”. This scene lingers in the memory long after the film is done as Jimmy meets his tragic end at the hands of his greatest friend. And all that is even after one of the films sharpest exchanges between Jesse Plemons’ ‘Chuckie O’Brien’, and Louis Cancelmi’s ‘Sally Bugs’. Unfortunately, we will never know what type of fish it was.
“Frank’s phone call”
This is the moment that has caused many to label this De Niro’s best performance in over 30 years. The pure visceral pain felt by Frank as he calls the widow of his best friend to console her is as much anxiety-inducing as it is gut-wrenching. You almost feel yourself struggling for breath as Frank does, struggling to get any words of remorse to pour out. A character at the lowest point and an actor reaching for his highest.
“The Final Shot”
The final shot of the film almost creeps up on you like Frank to one of the many ended by him over the three-hour run time. When the flashbacks are done, the drama has unfolded, the jokes have been told and the characters (most of them anyway) are deceased, we are left with Frank. Aged not just by years but by the life he has led and with what appears to be a late leap into faith, he is left to ponder as his visiting priest departs, and we see (through a slightly open door) where Frank’s decisions have left him. Alone.
“Grape Juice”
Left with nothing but a doom-filled life-in-prison sentence, Buffalino, and Sheeran, powerless and barely mobile, share bread with grape juice in the jail cafeteria. Even decades later, with Hoffa’s death still lingering in Sheeran’s head, Buffalino mentions the elephant that’s been in the room for close to 30 years, “That Jimmy was a good guy,” Pesci’s Buffalino says, but “it was us or them” he adds, ‘Fuck ‘em.” This clearly doesn’t satisfy the immense toll which has been building up in Sheeran’s psyche since the kill, it doesn’t even look as though it escaped his compadre’s mind either.