Scorsese’s 1990 mob saga could be called the father of The Sopranos, since it so effectively fuses the domestic and professional lives of New York gangsters. Chief among them is Henry Hill (Ray Liotta), a half Irish mook who can’t ever become a “made man” like his Sicilian-blooded brethren (e.g. hot-headed Joe Pesci). Robert De Niro plays the calmer, smarter, and therefore more dangerous capo to their criminal clan. Like The Sopranos, GoodFellas is about a central, troubled marriage between Hill and his Jewish wife (Lorraine Bracco); they’re forever outsiders on the inside of wiseguy society, simultaneously unsure yet thrilled by their privileged position. Nothing Scorsese has done since has such propulsive energy and menacing wit—encapsulated, of course, in Pesci’s “How am I funny?” rant. Call for showtimes. (R) BRIAN MILLER

Nov. 1-7, 2010