Donnie Brasco

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2009)

Donnie Brasco
Donnie Brasco theatrical poster
Directed by	Mike Newell
Produced by	Alan Greenspan, Patrick McCormick
Written by	Paul Attanasio
Starring	Johnny Depp Al Pacino Michael Madsen Anne Heche Bruno Kirby
Distributed by	Tri-Star
Release date(s)	February 28, 1997
Running time	127 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Gross revenue	$124,909,762 [1]

Donnie Brasco is a 1997 film by Mike Newell, starring Al Pacino, Michael Madsen and Johnny Depp. It is loosely based on the real-life events of Joseph D. Pistone, a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent who successfully infiltrated the Bonanno crime family, one of the Mafia's Five Families based in New York City during the 1970s, under the alias "Donnie Brasco". Depp met with Pistone several times while preparing for his role. The film was nominated an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Plot

In the late 1970s, FBI agent Joe Pistone (Depp) is assigned to infiltrate the New York City–based Bonanno crime family. Calling himself, "Donnie Brasco" and posing as a diamond expert from Vero Beach, Florida, he befriends Benjamin "Lefty" Ruggiero (Pacino), a low-level mob hit man whose personal life is in tatters, and Dominick "Sonny Black" Napolitano (Madsen). Lefty can't seem to make enough money, his son is a drug-addict and he is continually passed over for promotion to a higher position within the crime family. He continually reminds Brasco of his growing disillusionment about having spent 30 years in the Mafia (and killing 26 people), with little to show for it. In Donnie, however, Lefty sees a young protégé who might be able to succeed where he had failed. He takes Donnie under his wing, and under Lefty's tutelage Donnie quickly becomes accepted by the other Family members, although he is never elevated above the rank of "associate" member (the lowest mafia rank). But the longer Pistone plays the role of a gangster, the more he finds himself actually becoming Donnie Brasco during his rare off duty hours. His long work hours and change in personality drives a wedge between him and his wife (played by Anne Heche) and three children. Over time, Pistone comes to realize that the slightest mistake in his performance as a mobster could result in the death of him and his family. In addition, Joe Pistone has come to regard Lefty as a close and trusted friend. He knows that when the day finally comes that the FBI arrests his mob associates, he will be ending Lefty's life as surely as if he himself had killed him.

Cast

Critical reception

Donnie Brasco has received mostly positive reviews. The film currently has an 87% positive "Tomatometer" review rating on RottenTomatoes.com, with 45 "fresh" reviews and 7 "rotten." Roger Ebert from the Chicago Sun-Times gave it three stars out of four. Siskel and Ebert gave Donnie Brasco two thumbs up. On Yahoo, the film has a B+. Peter Travers of the Rolling Stone praised the film, saying that "Donnie Brasco is one terrific movie." Mike LaSalle from the San Francisco Chronicle gave the film a positive review and said that Donnie Brasco was "a first class Mafia thriller". In addition, Mediacritic cites that the film has a generally favorable 76/100 positive reviews, while the user rating is 8.7

The real life Joseph D. Pistone also praises the film, saying that it is very accurate in its depiction of the historical people portrayed in the film. Pistone says that Depp moved and spoke like him, as well as using similar facial expressions to his. Joseph D. Pistone did say that Al Pacino's Lefty Ruggiero was a bit downplayed from the real life Lefty but still great. Pistone also praised the performances of Michael Madsen as being "right on the money" and said that Bruno Kirby's portrayal of Nicholas Santora was accurate as well.

Box office

US Gross Domestic Box Office Numbers: US$ 41,909,762

+ International Gross Box Office Numbers: $83,000,000

= Worldwide Gross Box Office Numbers: $124,909,763

Academy Award nominations

The film was nominated for an Academy Award in the category of Best Adapted Screenplay.

Historical inaccuracies

• The loan shark collection scene at the strip club really did happen, except that Joe Pistone was with the notorious Anthony Mirra who worked for the Bonanno family. Tony almost did this after Joe got into an argument with a drunken patron at a nightclub.

• Joe Pistone was never involved in the murders of Alphonse Indelicato and his two capos, Phillip Giaccone and Dominick Trinchera. Pistone only found out afterwards.

• Nicholas Santora, portrayed as "Nicky" by Bruno Kirby, was never murdered by Benjamin Ruggiero, as he is still alive and is a high ranking member of the Bonanno crime family as of 2009.

• Bonanno soldier John "Boobie" Cerasani (whose character was called Paulie in the movie) played by James Russo, filed a libel suit against Sony Corporations, TriStar Pictures, the film director Mike Newell and other corporations that were involved in producing the film. Cersani had dealings with Donnie Brasco from back in 1972 and was actually brought up on racketeering charges in 1982 that were brought on by the Donnie Brasco investigation.

• King's Court was located in Holiday, Florida on U.S. 19. Since the 1980s, the building was moved to house a church on Darlington Road in Holiday.

• It is implied that the character Lefty was killed by fellow Family members for allowing Pistone to infiltrate the Family; in reality, Ruggiero died of lung cancer on Thanksgiving in 1994, after serving federal time for crimes in both New York and Florida. And in real life, Dominick "Sonny Black" Napolitano, Lefty's boss, was the one murdered for having allowed Pistone's infiltration, allegedly on the orders of then-current imprisoned boss Philip Rastelli, whose nickname "Rusty" is mentioned several times by Michael Madsen in the film.

• Over the closing credits the film states that at the time of its release "there is still a $500,000 open contract on [Pistone's] head". Following separate sitdowns FBI officials had with the Bonanno crime family and Paul Castellano, the head of the The Commission and boss of the Gambino crime family at that time, ordered all Mafia bounties on Pistone to be rescinded. Subsequent wiretaps and intelligence reports confirm that this was indeed ordered throughout the Mafia.

See also

• List of American films of 1997

References

External links

• Donnie Brasco at the Internet Movie Database
• Donnie Brasco at Rotten Tomatoes
• Donnie Brasco at Box Office Mojo