Martin Scorsese's next film is the much-anticipated The Irishman – his first film since 2016's Silence, it marks a return to the gangster genre for the Oscar-winning director and a reunion with Robert De Niro, with whom he worked on such classics as Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980) and Goodfellas (1990).

Ad

Scorsese's been planning to make the film – an adaptation of Charles Brandt's book I Heard You Paint Houses – for years, but it sounds like it'll be worth the wait, with a truly epic runtime of 3-and-a-half-hours, or 210 minutes.

That'll make it Scorsese's longest picture to date, by quite some distance – it surpasses Silence (which ran to two hours, 40 minutes) by almost an hour.

The Irishman will have its world premiere at the New York Film Festival on 27th September, before receiving a limited theatrical run will from 1st November.

The movie will then be made more widely available from 27th November, when it will begin streaming on Netflix.

Speaking at a Tribeca Film Festival event earlier this year, Scorsese insisted that "no one else" but the streaming service was willing to bankroll his ambitious vision for The Irishman.

“We decided to make it with the understanding that it’ll maybe never be shown in theatres," he said. "They said, ‘You would have a time in theatres’ — a few weeks or whatever. I said fine. The idea was to make the movie, you see."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Expe7hf6MU

The Irishman will dramatise the true life story of Frank Sheeran (De Niro), a mob hitman and World War II veteran, chronicling his involvement in the disappearance of American labor union leader Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino) and his involvement with the Bufalino crime family.

As well as reuniting De Niro with Scorsese for the first time since 1995's Casino, the film will also mark his fourth collaboration with Pacino, following The Godfather Part II (1974), Heat (1995) and Righteous Kill (2008).

The Irishman will also star Joe Pesci and Harvey Keitel as the mobsters Russell Bufalino and Angelo Bruno, Anna Paquin as Sheeran's rebellious daughter Peggy and Stephen Graham as Mafia capo Anthony 'Tony Prop' Provenzano.

With a budget that's been reported as being as high as $200 million, it'll be not just Scorsese's longest film but also one of his most expensive.

Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro

New York Film Festival director Kent Jones has described the movie as "rich, funny, troubling, [and] entertaining," saying, "It's the work of masters, made with a command of the art of cinema that I've seen very rarely in my lifetime, and it plays out at a level of subtlety and human intimacy that truly stunned me. All I can say is that the minute it was over my immediate reaction was that I wanted to watch it all over again."

Given the running time, that's really saying something! Its limited run in cinemas will allow The Irishman to be nominated for Academy Awards, with films requiring a minimum seven-day theatrical run in a Los Angeles theatre to be eligible.

Ad

The Irishman is set for limited release on 1st November and will be available to stream on Netflix from 27th November.

Authors

Morgan JefferyAssociate Editor

Morgan Jeffery

Comments, questions and tips

Rate this recipe

What is your star rating out of 5?

Choose the type of message you'd like to post

Choose the type of message you'd like to post

Overall rating

Ad
Ad
Ad
Create an image depicting a festive scene with elements from the top Christmas songs, such as a snowy New York for 'Fairytale of New York', a cozy home setting for 'Last Christmas', and a glamorous Christmas party for 'All I Want for Christmas Is You'. Include musical notes and festive decorations to represent the spirit of these iconic Christmas songs.

RT offer

Immediate’s iconic brands reach 21m people every month – that’s more than a third of the UK’s adults – through its world-class magazines, innovative digital products and exciting live events

hello
An image depicting a festive scene with iconic Christmas elements such as a beautifully decorated Christmas tree with twinkling lights, snow gently falling, and perhaps a cozy fireplace in the background. The image should capture the essence of popular Christmas songs, with musical notes and lyrics subtly included in the design, representing a playlist of classic Christmas tunes.

summer

Immediate’s iconic brands reach 21m people every month – that’s more than a third of the UK’s adults – through its world-class magazines, innovative digital products and exciting live eventsImmediate’s iconic brands reach 21m people every month – that’s more than a third of the UK’s adults – through its world-class magazines, innovative digital products and exciting live eventsImmediate’s iconic brands reach 21m people every month – that’s more than a third of the UK’s adults – through its world-class magazines, innovative digital products and exciting live events

More