While I do genuinely like horror movies, I’m in love with movies that involve the lucrative and clandestine organization that is the mafia. There’s nothing quite like them. They are able to blend multiple genres into one while still being able to tell suspense-filled story. For example, the movie “Goodfellas” was a blend of drama, comedy, and action, with a hint of romance thrown into the mix. It was still able to tell a complex crime story and maintain its violent narrative. With the blending of all the genres I feel it enriches the movie greatly. What’s also great about these kinds of movies is that they are normally very quotable. Almost everyone can quote Don Corleone, Tony Montana, or Tommy Devito. My favorite quotes come from “Goodfellas,” some of them are “As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster,” and probably the best movie quote of quote of all time “Am I a clown? Am I here to amuse you?” I don’t know why, but that scene when Joe Pesci interrogates Ray Liotta always makes me laugh no matter how many times I see it.  What also makes them great is their lack of restraint. Mafia movies are ones that do not shy away from the realism of mafia life just to make it more accessible  for the general audience.  If mafia movies were supposed to restrain themselves,  imagine how unrealistic “Scarface” or “Goodfellas” would’ve been if they hadn’t shown violence and felonies being committed. They would be flat out boring and a complete waste of time since you’re removing the crime from a crime-laced story. That would be like removing anything scary from a horror movie.

What also makes them great is how they make you curious about how the mafia members were able get away with everything they did, at least in the movies based on actual events that is. I still can’t believe that Henry Hill and Tommy Devito were able to rob so many trucks and walk out of an airport with over $400,000 and not get caught by the police. It makes you wonder how effective our laws and judicial system here in America really are. What drives me insane, though, is that they normally end the same way, with the mafia members either getting arrested or getting killed due to their horrible life choices. Take for example Tony Montana and Tommy Devito; they were both killed by rivals at the end of their respective films and Jimmy Conway was arrested for the daring Lufthansa heist at the end of “Goodfellas.” While I have nothing against a story that ends with a man falling from grace, it just gets old after a while. Then again, aren’t all mafia movies practically the same? A man does some horrible things and benefits from it all.