Gotti

Gotti is exceptional piece of film brought to the small screen,the cast is outstanding and nail biting stuff from the start to the very end. armand assante`s performance is so chilling as the dapper don,and it brings so much intensity leaving the audience compelled by this larger than life charismatic figure of the underworld.The dialogue is snappy and the onscreen chemistry between Assante`s portrayal of Gotti and Quinns as Neil dellacross is more than convincing.This film works well because it doesn't rely to much on violence as its predessors did in Goodfellas and others like casino.

For a TV movie this is very good. Why Mr. Assante doesn't get more good parts is amazing to me. He nails this part and if you have ever read anything about Gotti you have to believe that the two met. The movie has some great scenes. The best are when the mob guys are just hanging around. The creators of "Sopranos" have used this very well because while wiseguys are not always wise they are sure colorful.

I have watched 'Gotti' over 100 times. If you like quotable dialog you will love this movie. It is one of my all time favorite movies of any genre. Armand Assante is awesome as John Gotti. If it wasn't an HBO movie I believe Assante would have been nominated for an academy award. Anthony Quinn is also excellent as Neil. The dialog is spoken in a hastened Queens/Brooklyn accent so turn the subtitles on so you don't miss any lines. This movie has become a cult favorite in my circle of movie fanatic friends. It is on par with Goodfellas, Mean Streets, Carlito's Way and the like. If you liked these films you should like 'Gotti' as well.

Some years ago I was in Canton, Ohio going to my hotel in a cab and when the driver learned I was from New York he asked me kind of hesitantly that being from the Big Apple had I ever run into John Gotti. I learned there and then what an impression Gotti had made with his Dapper Don public persona. So in this film Gotti I can easily understand that brief scene where the couple from Rochester gush over Armand Assante when they meet him in a restaurant. And Assante plays it to the hilt ordering champagne for the couple's table. You would have thought they met Cary Grant.

The made for TV movie Gotti hits all the noted incidents in the Gotti legend. Based in part in the research and writings of Jerry Capeci who used to report on gangland activities in the Daily News the script gives us a three dimensional portrait of Gotti.

It used to fascinate me that when Joey Gallo was killed and later Joe Columbo was shot and lived in a coma for about 7 years it would resonate once and for all that publicity seeking gangsters don't really make out in the end. It makes them a more visible target to shoot at.

I like very much what William Forsythe did with the part of Sammy the Bull Gravano, Gotti's underboss and total opposite of him in personality. Forsythe who was Al Capone in the revived Untouchables series does the gangster persona very well.

In fact this film also boasts the casting of a pair of old Hollywood oldtimers. Marc Lawrence did gangster parts in old Hollywood plays the aging Carlo Gambino and Anthony Quinn who did a few of those parts as well in his varied career plays Gotti patron Neil Dellacroce the Gambino underboss. Quinn has some great scenes with Assante trying to warn him of the error of his ways.

This film should have gotten the theatrical release it was originally intended.

This movie focuses a LOT more on just the actual man John Gotti rather than all the affect he has. Armand Assante is very convincing and did an excellent job acting. However, unlike The Godfather, this is a REAL story. That makes it all the more fun to watch. It's definitely worth watching if you're a gangster movie addict like me

It's definitely no Godfather, but if you're looking for something new...give it a shot

8/10