Made Men: The Story of Goodfellas

by Glenn Kenny

Overview

A Library Journal Best Book of the Year

A Sight and Sound Best Film Book Of 2020

For the thirtieth anniversary of its premiere comes the vivid and immersive history behind Martin Scorsese’s signature film Goodfellas, hailed by critics as the greatest mob movie ever made.

When Goodfellas first hit the theatres in 1990, a classic was born. Few could anticipate the unparalleled influence it would have on pop culture, one that would inspire future filmmakers and redefine the gangster picture as we know it today. From the rush of grotesque violence in the opening scene to the iconic hilarity of Joe Pesci’s endlessly quoted “Funny how?” shtick, it’s little wonder the film is widely regarded as a mainstay in contemporary cinema.

In the first ever behind-the-scenes story of Goodfellas, film critic Glenn Kenny chronicles the making and afterlife of the film that introduced America to the real modern gangster—brutal, ruthless, yet darkly appealing, the villain we can’t get enough of. Featuring interviews with the film’s major players, including Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro, Made Men shines a light on the lives and stories wrapped up in the Goodfellas universe, and why its enduring legacy is still essential to charting the trajectory of American culture thirty years later.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781335016508
Publisher:	Hanover Square Press
Publication date:	09/15/2020
Edition description:	Original
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	17,818
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Glenn Kenny is a long time film critic based in New York. He has written for publications such as Film Comment, the Village Voice, and Rolling Stones and contributes film reviews to the New York Times and RogerEbert.com. He teaches film at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. He is the author of "Robert De Niro: Anatomy of an Actor" and has appeared in films such as Steven Soderbergh's "The Girlfriend Experience" and Ricky D'Angelo's "The Sky Is Clear and Blue Today."

Table of Contents

Prologue: Martin Scorsese, December 1989 13

1 Nick, and Nora, and others 20

2 Players 36

3 The Prep Work 49

4 A Martin Scorsese Picture, Scene by Scene 67

5 All the Songs 230

6 The Schoonmaker Treatment 255

7 The Aftermath 264

8 The Eventual Tragedy of Henry Hill 280

9 Unofficial Narratives 292

10 From Goodfellas to The Irishman 303

Epilogue: Martin Scorsese, March 2020 321

Postscript: A Goodfellas Library 346

Appendix: A Goodfellas Timeline 361

Notes/Sources 365

Acknowledgments 381

Index 385

Editorial Reviews

07/06/2020

Kenny, a New York Times film critic, offers an exhaustive, sometimes exhausting analysis of Goodfellas, “frequently cited as the most realistic American movie about organized crime.” Director Martin Scorsese, Kenny writes, establishes his deglamorized depiction of mobsters right from the opening scene, which introduces the film’s stars, Ray Liotta, Robert De Niro, and Joe Pesci (playing a “human incendiary device”), with whom the audience is immediately made to share a “realistic intimacy,” even as “stylization as a distancing effect” from their horrendous crimes. Kenny discusses in depth the careers of these actors and of Scorsese, as well as of their supporting cast members and Scorsese’s filmmaking collaborators. These include executive producer Barbara De Fina (who candidly reflects on her divorce from Scorsese around this time), editor Thelma Schoonmaker (“The woman I trust,” according to Scorsese), and Scorsese’s co-screenwriter, Nicholas Pileggi, with whom he turned the latter’s nonfiction book Wiseguy into a script Kenny deems “a model of narrative resourcefulness.” Kenny’s exacting attention to aspects of the production both big and small continues as he examines the soundtrack choices (from Bobby Darin to Sid Vicious) and even the Liotta character’s recipe for ziti. Readers who are only casual admirers of Scorsese may find Kenny’s level of detail tedious, but the director’s most devoted fans will adore this. Agent: Joseph Veltre, Gersh Agency. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

"We saw Goodfellas the night it opened, in a packed theater, when we were in our early twenties. No doubt it changed the direction of our lives. This is the first book we've read that explains how and why the movie has such a deep and lasting impact. Glenn Kenny is a scholar and a writer, and every bit the literary hit man that Tommy DiSimone was in real life."
—Brian Koppelman and David Levien, Screenwriters (“Rounders, Ocean’s 13”), co-creators of “Billions"

"What an incredibly cool and rewarding piece of work. Smart, funny, perceptive, and replete with fascinating trivia (during the legendary one-take tracking shot in the Copa, Henry and Karen travel in a circle), Made Men effectively rebuilds in prose the greatest gangster film ever made. Anyone who cares at all about the movies needs to read this. Glenn Kenny, salud."
—Tom Bissell, author of Creative Types and coauthor of The Disaster Artist


"Insightful, gregarious, and encompassing, Made Men is not just the essential book on the making of Goodfellas, but also a wonderful mini-course in film and filmmaking. What a pleasure it is to go to the movies with Glenn Kenny!" - Owen King, author of Double Feature


“Glenn Kenny’s critical acumen and eye for revealing detail is in effervescent display on every page of Made Men, a book not just for Scorsese fans but for everyone who loves the lore of the movies as much as the films themselves.” —Michelle Dean, author of Sharp


Impeccably researched, fluently written, and infused with insight, wit and mastery, Made Men is exactly what you want from a making-of-your-favorite-movie book. From mob stories to the nuts-and-bolts business of crafting a masterpiece, it's all here. You'd have to be a real schnook not to read it. -Shawn Levy, author of De Niro: A Life, Rat Pack Confidential, and The Castle on Sunset


“Glenn Kenny’s Made Men is that rare book that’s as mesmerizing as the film it profiles.” -Library Journal, starred review


“Devoted fans will adore this.” –Publishers Weekly

“Beyond the fresh scholarship it offers, Made Men also happens to be the sort of enjoyable read that any fan of the movie will want to own… it’s one of those books you can’t believe hasn’t been written already. Let’s just be grateful it finally has.” -Sight and Sound


I’m blown away at the level of detail in Kenny’s writing... If you’re a fan of Goodfellas, or filmmaking in general, I can’t recommend Kenny’s book enough." -The Times Georgian

"No one else has seen this magnificent, agonizing, unmooring movie with such piercing clarity." -Slant


"His book dives into everything from the business dealings and camera shots to the recipes for the meals Henry cooks and the soundtrack." -Orange County Register


"Meticulously researched and masterfully written... Filmmaking is a collaborative art, and Glenn Kenny leaves no artistic stone unturned when he analyzes the contributions made by dozens of people behind, and in front of, the camera." -WRBL

"Reading it is like watching the movie again while sitting next to the smartest person you know." -WBUR

“Invaluable.” —Rolling Stone

"Fascinating... oh so worth your time." -Esquire

"Riveting and revealing... One book that is sure to be on every film lover’s bookshelves this fall." -The Film Stage

“Film critic and journalist Kenny knocks one out of the park with this thorough, well-documented, sharply written book about the 1990 Martin Scorsese film Goodfellas… A wonderful analysis of, and tribute to, a classic film.” -Booklist


"With its vivid re-creations of real-world underworld mythology and icons, Made Men makes for fleet, entertaining reading." -The Nation


"It’s everybody’s favorite Mafia movie, and doubtless its many partisans will crack open this book the next time they watch the film.” -Wall Street Journal

“This is film writing with enthusiasm and purpose… Kenny traces the genesis, production, themes, and legacy of Goodfellas with the exactitude of a scholar and excitement of a true Martin Scorsese acolyte.” –The Globe and Mail


"Made Men is obsessive, free-associative and exuberantly geeky. I mean that in a good way; it’s everything a hard-core fan might want." -New York Times Book Review

"A fascinating biography of a wonderful film. A++." -Manhattan Book Review

From the Publisher

★ 08/01/2020

Goodfellas is arguably director Martin Scorsese's most popular film, and while many books have capitalized on its fame—including a volume on leadership and even a cookbook—this is the first title in almost 20 years to take such a thorough and highly entertaining look at the creation and legacy of what many consider one of the best mob movies of all time. Kenny (formerly, film critic, Premiere) has written an engaging first-person narrative, making readers feel they are right there as he interviews Scorsese, co-screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi, actor Robert DeNiro, and producer Barbara De Fina. This extensive study explores Saul Bass's opening credit sequence and the racist and discriminatory language used by characters in the film and in other works by Scorsese. Kenny also considers editor Thelma Schoonmaker's relationship with Scorsese and devotes an entire chapter to the film's music. Every aside, every reference to something as simple as why the coda to Eric Clapton's "Layla" was used in one scene grows into a fascinating behind-the-scenes exploration. Using original interviews, existing criticism, and even the DVD commentary track, Kenny leaves no thread unpulled, no stone unturned. VERDICT A must for any fan of Goodfellas, Scorsese, or movies in general. [See "Turn the Page," p. 18.]—Peter Thornell, Hingham P.L., MA

Library Journal

Read More