"The Godfather, Casino, they show them as sort of folk heroes. GoodFellas pins them down to exactly what they are - street thugs."
Ex-squeeze me Henry, Casino, 'folk heroes'. Must be a different 'Casino' than I saw or Henry ...
And I really like Goodfellas but Casino didn't make anyone a 'Folk Hero'. It was as true as you can almost get without using real names. Like the 'crooked' Gaming Commission Chairman who at the time in real life was ... Harry Reid. Now, 'The Godfather' that work of fiction did glorify Wiseguys.
(1) In real life 'Nicky Santoro' was Tony 'The Ant' Spilotro of the Chicago Outfit.
(2) That really happened though not in Vegas, a Chicago suburb.
(3) Tony Spilotro & his brother Michael WERE beat to death and buried in an Indiana Corn Field. But the beating occurred in the basement of a Chicago suburban house.
(4) That shooting occurred actually as shown. (I can't, wont, say any more about it)
(5) 'People' weren't pleased when Tony & Michael's bodies were found so soon after getting whacked. The botched burial cost those guy's their lives.
Casino is my favorite gangster movie. Hoffa was also good. I never watched the God father movies.
Heat was also a great movie but not mafia goombahs