Joe Pesci Follow

It's no secret I love Scorcese. For the reason I love all the best directors -- he has an amazing ear for speech patters and rythms and knows how to play with language. Certainly this story of an up-and-coming young gangster (a very babyfaced Ray Liotta) is no exception in that regard. Hell, Joe Pesci's whole 'So I'm a clown, here to amuse you" bit alone proves that. But what really amazed me here was also an utterly fantastic five-minute tracking shot following Liotta and his girlfriend (Lorraine Bracco) into the back kitchen door of a nightclub, through the kitchen, out into the club and finally, to a table specially set up at the edge of the stage. Fantastic! Of course I enjoyed this -- it is Scorcese after all -- even if some might find it to be too violent. Two final notes: a. the "Goodfeathers" from Animaniacs now makes much more sense. b. I am reminded yet again of why I could not get into The Sopranos -- Lorrainne Bracco has a voice like fingernails on a chalkboard. The only person with a more annoying honk of a "Joizy" accent is Fran Drescher.