I noticed we didn't have one yet, so i thought i might as well start one up.

Feel free to talk about anything you want thats related to this movie, but just to get started how would you rate this movie. i'd give it 4.5/5

Great movie, despite slowing down for the last thirty minutes. I'd give it 7.5 out of 10. Excellent acting all round (Pacino, as always, steals the show with his typically over-the-top performance). Brilliantly realistic script, and the actual plot is great. The first thirty minutes are magic.

Mick

I like this movie and have the DVD. I think Al's preformance was actually quite subdued.(at least for him ) I also thought that Johnny Depp did a very good job and he played a semi-normal character!! It was well srcipted and acted and on my top fifteen list.(that is very high for me,i like way to many movies)um.....theres my 2 cents!

Good movie, Pacino like you said is great as always. I surprised Depp even took this role. He's a great actor but takes the weirdest roles. Anyway, I'd give it 7/10. Not the best I've seen but good none the less.

I just saw this last night, what a great movie! Pacino is awesome (when is he not?) and Depp was pretty good too. I'm getting the dvd for only $10 How is the documentary on it?

I have this movie and like it alot if you can't see that by my signature Iwould give it a 8.5 but when I first saw it I would have givin it a 7 but I watch it again and now It's on my top ten. I guess I didn't realy understand the first time I saw it. The documentary is very good and shows the real Donnie Brasco.

Its a great movie and as usual, awesome performance by Mr Al Pacino. Michael Madsen did well too, i hope they give him this types of roles in the future . . .

GoodFella

I'd give it 7.5 of 10. Fine performances, good story. But lots of detail from the book were missing. The film would have been better, IMO, if it had included Tony Mirra (a very scary guy) and the fascinating saga of how Brasco tried to set up a vending machine business in Milwaukee and was almost whacked by the local Don.

Last time you said that about Tony Mirra I did myself a little research, and would now love to see the film with that storyline involving the "claim" on Donnie would be great!

Mick

I read the book too long ago to remember too many details (its on my re-read list) but I've seen the movie more than a few times and thought it was really good. Al Pacino was fantastic, and Johnny Depp and Michael Madsen were great as well (they're both so under rated). Anyone who doubts Depp's acting ability should watch this movie or Blow in which he which he gave arguably an even better performance. I give D.B. an 8 out of 10.

Donnie Brasco was a fantastic film, but often not true to life. This doesn't really damage the film but after reading the book I realised that the film could have been even better. Maybe a 3 hour epic with narration. The only problem with this direction would be too many people comparing it to Goodfellas. But I still feel it could have worked.

Not many directors take risks nowadays with films. Scorsese was the last with Gangs of New York. Another great film and i've finally after all this time bought the book of the same name by Herbert Astbury. Looks very good and the illustrations taken from newspapers at the time are fantastic. Scorsese did a great job recreating those pictures.

But I digress, Directors nowadays only make 2 hour dumbed down films to suit the new generation of movie audiences.

I love Donnie Brasco, although not quite as good as many of my other favourites like Goodfellas and Carlito's Way. The only problem I have, is that I can't figure out what happened to the money!

I think this is a MUCH better film than the overrated Goodfella's and Casino.

Pacino's only great performance since Scent of a Women ruined his career.

Johnny Depp is also excellent.

i dont know about you, but i liked Scent of a Woman. Sure, its not gangster in any sense, but i wouldnt own it or go ags far as saying it almost ruined his career? (Maybe i a wrong and it legitimentally dampered his career in the movie business)

he did the voice of tony cipriani in GTA3

Whatever happened to the days when movies were an hour and a half, sometimes less. I wouldn't say that 2 hour movies are dumbed down since it seems like every movie now is 2 to 3 hours long. I'm sure you're right though, I haven't read the book, so Donnie Brasco probably would have been good longer, but I don't think it's right to say directors are dumbing their movies down to 2 hours when movies used to be a lot shorter.

I used to not bother with 2 1/2 hour+ movies (Godfather, Saving Private Ryan, Gladiator, Titanic, Once Upon A Time In America, Heat, Scarface; some of the great pictures are really, really long)

but lately I get tired of movies much quicker (say, at about 60 minutes). for my study I get to see a lot of old movies (from the Silent-Film age, for example) which usually are between 50 en 80 minutes; what a great lenght!! I recommend the 1998-lowbudget-masterpiece by Chris 'Memento' Nolan, "Following" at only 70 minutes, but brilliant!


this was off-topic, by the way

After my recentmost viewing of this film, a question ahs arised: Why, after Sonny Black and Co. kill Sonny Red et al, does Paulie get his gun out at Donnie? Is it to simply scare him? Does he not like the guy or something?

Mick

It's a good movie, but it is a little inaccurate from the book. But I guess that is typical of Hollywood.

7/10. starts out great but tends to get slow. -Pat

How are they different what dose the movie leave out?

anyone have a pic of the real donnie brasco? -Pat

What is it about exactly?

Pat do you have the Donnie Brasco DVD if you do there's a interveiw of him in it.

I don't think there's any real explanation for that, the whole event went down quite different in real life and it just seems to be written into the film for entertainment purposes, to give the viewer more suspense. It works quite well though.

How are they different what dose the movie leave out? [/b][/quote]A few examples...In the movie, they show Pistone writing up reports at his apartment while he was undercover. Pistone never wrote up reports in real life. Instead he memorized most of the events that occured and he would report them back to his correspondent when he got the chance. And the whole way Lefty and Pistone met up in the movie is completley inaacurate. Pistone actually worked for another crew before meeting up with Lefty....That and there are other minor mistakes made in the movie. It's not a bad movie, but it is one of those things Hollywood does and always strays from the actual events in one way or the other.

Read the book "Donnie Brasco" and compare it to the movie. It's a great book and an easy read.

I was also wondering why did Lefty checked Donnie's radio in his car in the begaining of the movie. Was he really looking for a wire? And I'll be sure to get the book. Thanks.

Yeah he was looking for a wire and according to real life taken from the book apparantly that did happen but with someone else checking and not Lefty. There are a few discrepancies like this.

The film is excellent, you can't fault the scriptwriters for that and yeah they did change a few events. But that's the film industry, I don't think the makers of this film were trying to make a true story but a dramatised story based on real events. They did a good job being able to put that into a 2hr movie.

I own the DVD and it is one of my favorite gangster movies. There were some other things I wish they would have included in the movie though. Lefty [Pacino] owned a social club which was not mentioned at all in the movie. Also at the end we are made to believe that Lefty gets whacked. That is not the case. Lefty was nabbed by the FBI and they offered him to enter the Witness Protection program in exchange for his testimony. He declined and was tried, convicted, and sentenced to 20 years. Lefty was paroled in 1992 after serving 13 years. He died of cancer on Thanksgiving Day 1995. I rate the movie an 8 out of 10.