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I'll search for information about how GoodFellas was received and reviewed when it was released in 1990 to supplement my knowledge with specific details from that time period.
Let me search for more specific information about critical reviews and awards from 1990.
Based on my knowledge and the search results, I can provide you with comprehensive details about how GoodFellas was received and reviewed at the time of its 1990 release.
GoodFellas received overwhelming critical acclaim upon its release in September 1990.
When released, the film grossed $47 million against a budget of $25 million and received widespread acclaim.
The film was particularly praised by major critics and publications:
In his review for the Chicago Tribune, Gene Siskel wrote, "All of the performances are first-rate; Pesci stands out, though, with his seemingly unscripted manner. GoodFellas is easily one of the year's best films."
Both critics named it the best film of 1990.
In his review for The New York Times, Vincent Canby wrote, "More than any earlier Scorsese film, Goodfellas is memorable for the ensemble nature of the performances... The movie has been beautifully cast from the leading roles to the bits. There is flash also in some of Mr. Scorsese's directorial choices, including freeze frames, fast cutting and the occasional long tracking shot. None of it is superfluous."
USA Today gave the film four stars out of four, and called it, "great cinema—and also a whopping good time".
David Ansen, in his review for Newsweek magazine, wrote, "Every crisp minute of this long, teeming movie vibrates with outlaw energy."
In his review for Time, Richard Corliss wrote, "So it is Scorsese's triumph that GoodFellas offers the fastest, sharpest 2½-hr. ride in recent film history."
Roger Ebert provided an extensive and thoughtful review, praising the film's ability to capture the psychological complexity of mob life, particularly noting Scorsese's skill in
"getting inside someone's head as he does in one of the concluding passages of 'GoodFellas,' in which he follows one day in the life of Henry Hill."
The critical consensus was remarkably strong.
The film is ranked the best of 1990 by Roger Ebert, Gene Siskel and Peter Travers. In a poll of 80 film critics, Goodfellas was named the best film of the year by 34 critics. Director Martin Scorsese was chosen as the year's best director in 45 of the 80 ballots.
The Hollywood Reporter's original review predicted: "This intense, fast-paced, often funny film will be talked about and argued over for years to come. Goodfellas certainly feels like a hit movie. And it certainly should enjoy a long ancillary afterlife."
Rotten Tomatoes describes it as "Hard-hitting and stylish, GoodFellas is a gangster classic -- and arguably the high point of Martin Scorsese's career."
The film was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, with Pesci winning Best Supporting Actor.
Specifically, the Oscar nominations included:
Goodfellas premiered at the 47th Venice International Film Festival on September 9, 1990, where Scorsese was awarded with the Silver Lion award for Best Director.
Critics consistently praised the film's technical achievements.
The consistently fine acting by the large ensemble cast (both known and unknown), the cinematography, editing, dialogue, brilliant use of music, it's all breathtaking. But Scorsese and co-writer Mitch Pileggi never lose lose sight of their main goal - to tell a story. And in that it's really hard to beat this movie.
A great soundtrack of rock oldies drives the film. And Thelma Schoonmaker's staccato editing keeps each scene jumping with restless movement.
The performances were universally acclaimed, with particular praise for the ensemble cast.
As to the actors De Niro is on top form, Ray Liotta is the best he's ever been, and this is Joe Pesci's definitive performance. Plus you have Lorraine Bracco, Paul Sorvino, Michael Imperioli, and lots of well known faces in small but important roles.
Even at the time of release, critics recognized the film's potential lasting impact.
'Goodfellas' is (to date) Scorsese's last Great Movie, and one of the very best films of the 1990s. Goodfellas is a milestone film in that regard because just as Public Enemy and Little Caesar defined it in the Thirties, The Godfather trilogy in the seventies and eighties, Goodfellas set the standard that all other films including Martin Scorsese similar Casino try to meet.
In summary, GoodFellas was received as an instant classic upon its 1990 release, earning widespread critical acclaim, numerous awards and nominations, and immediate recognition as one of the finest gangster films ever made and a career-defining work for Martin Scorsese.
This is arguably the single most significant critical assessment from 1990, representing one of cinema's greatest critics declaring GoodFellas superior to The Godfather. This quote was widely circulated and is still cited today. Its omission is a major oversight
The summary mentions September 1990 but doesn't specify the progression from festival premiere to wide release
Specific opening weekend performance provides important context about the film's immediate commercial reception
While Metacritic is mentioned indirectly through aggregation, the specific score provides quantitative measure of critical consensus
Audience reception data provides balance to critical reception
BAFTA wins represent significant international recognition beyond the US Oscars
This context is important for understanding the film's reception - it was critically acclaimed but lost major awards to a more conventional epic
GoodFellas received overwhelming critical acclaim upon its release in September 1990. The film premiered at the 47th Venice International Film Festival on September 9, 1990, where Martin Scorsese won the Silver Lion award for Best Director. It was released in the United States on September 18-21, 1990.
Major critics were effusive in their praise. Roger Ebert gave the film four stars and wrote in his Chicago Sun-Times review: 'No finer film has ever been made about organized crime – not even The Godfather.' Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune wrote: 'All of the performances are first-rate; Pesci stands out, though, with his seemingly unscripted manner. GoodFellas is easily one of the year's best films.' Both Ebert and Siskel, along with Peter Travers, named it the best film of 1990.
Vincent Canby of The New York Times praised the ensemble performances and Scorsese's directorial choices. USA Today gave it four stars, calling it 'great cinema—and also a whopping good time.' David Ansen in Newsweek wrote that 'Every crisp minute of this long, teeming movie vibrates with outlaw energy.' Richard Corliss of Time called it 'the fastest, sharpest 2½-hr. ride in recent film history.'
The Hollywood Reporter predicted it would 'be talked about and argued over for years to come' and that it 'certainly feels like a hit movie.'
In a poll of 80 film critics, GoodFellas was named the best film of the year by 34 critics, and Scorsese was chosen as the year's best director in 45 of the 80 ballots.
The film was a box office success, grossing $46.8 million domestically against its $25 million budget, opening at #1 with $6.3 million from 1,070 theaters.
GoodFellas received six Academy Award nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Scorsese), Best Supporting Actor (Joe Pesci), Best Supporting Actress (Lorraine Bracco), Best Adapted Screenplay (Nicholas Pileggi and Scorsese), and Best Film Editing (Thelma Schoonmaker). Joe Pesci won Best Supporting Actor. The film also won five BAFTA awards, including Best Film and Best Director.
Critics praised the film's technical achievements, particularly the cinematography, editing (by Thelma Schoonmaker), use of music, and the ensemble performances by Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco, and Paul Sorvino. Modern aggregators show strong retrospective consensus: Rotten Tomatoes gives it 94% (though RT didn't exist in 1990) and Metacritic assigns it 92/100 based on 21 critics.