Watched it for the first time in a while today, and two questions I have....

Why, when Henry visits Paulie for the last time, and Paulie seems okay with him, does he still have to leave? Wasn't Paulie capo? Therefore, shouldn't Henry be safe? Or was it Jimmy that he had to get away from? Or Batts' crew?

And another question (regarding more of a technical aspect of the film):
When Henry agrees to meet a bespectacled Jimmy (the one where he gets there early and Jimmy is already there)....if you watch the window which they sit by, the outside world seems to zoom in, while Jimmy and Henry get further away. What camera movement is Scorsese using? Is it the track back-zoom in shot that was used in Vertigo by Hitchcock? Or something else? At any rate, camera movement in this is perhaps Scorsese's best aspect--even better than Raging Bull and Cape Fear, which I watched yesterday for the first time.

Mick

Mick, the operative part of that scene with Henry and Paulie was when Paulie, after giving Henry a wad of cash, said, "Now I gotta turn my back on you." He was telling Henry, in effect, "You're on your own now, you're not part of my crew--no protection, no old time's sake, anyone who thinks you might turn rat can take a shot at whacking you with no beef from me." In other words: fair game.
I'm not sure about the specific technique of that scene. But Scorsese won plaudits for the earlier scene where he and Karen enter the Copa through the basement entrance--it was shot in a continuous scene with a hand-held camera.

Yes, the Copa scene, in being one continuous swoop, reflects the seductive life in which Henry has grown up, and it is seducing Karen for the first (and by no means the last) time also.

Turnbull, right now I'm reading "Scorsese on Scorsese", which is a personal commentary on his own films (up to and including Casino, as it's rather old). In it, he discusses many of his techniques he uses, and also his influences on his work. A great insight into a greater director (and my personal favourite). I highly recommend the book!

Mick

WHERE CAN I GET SOME INFOM ON hENRY hILL ON THE INTERNET. I AM ALSO INTERESTED IN DONNIE BRASCO AS WELL

Dirty Blonde, check out Henry Hill's site at http://www.goodfellahenry.com. Otherwise you're best top purchase the book on which Goodfellas was based - Wiseguy. My personal favourite Mafia book is Donnie Brasco and I'm sure you'd love it too.