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Donnie Brasco (1997)

tomatometer

87

Average Rating: 7.8/10
Reviews Counted: 55
Fresh: 48 | Rotten: 7

A stark, nuanced portrait of life in organized crime, bolstered by strong performances from Al Pacino and Johnny Depp.

78

Average Rating: 7.2/10
Critic Reviews: 18
Fresh: 14 | Rotten: 4

A stark, nuanced portrait of life in organized crime, bolstered by strong performances from Al Pacino and Johnny Depp.

audience

85

liked it
Average Rating: 3.7/5
User Ratings: 176,682

My Rating

Movie Info

This drama about an undercover cop who learns the hidden dangers of working his way inside the mob was based on a true story. Joe Pistone (Johnny Depp) is an FBI agent who is given an assignment to infiltrate the Mafia; calling himself Donnie Brasco, he befriends Lefty Ruggiero (Al Pacino), a low-level mob hit man whose personal life is in tatters. Lefty's marriage is falling apart, his son is a junkie, and his health is failing, which only adds to his growing disillusionment about having spent

R,

Mystery & Suspense, Drama

Paul Attanasio

Jan 20, 1998

TriStar

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Cast

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All Critics (57) | Top Critics (19) | Fresh (51) | Rotten (7) | DVD (24)

Although perhaps familiar in its outer trappings, Pacino's fine work is the key to the film succeeding to the extent that it does.

November 20, 2008 Full Review Source: Variety
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A tense, sharp and compelling character study, Newell's film is a worthy addition to the Mob-movie canon.

January 26, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out
Time Out
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Unfortunately, the story isn't inventive and Newell's methodical approach to it verges on monotony.

August 14, 2002 Full Review Source: Washington Post | Comments (3)
Washington Post
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A first-class Mafia thriller that is also, in its way, a love story.

June 18, 2002 Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic IconTop Critic

In the tired figure of Lefty, manifest in the craggy icon of Pacino, our sympathies are definitely enlisted, and the theme rings a poignant note.

April 12, 2002 Full Review Source: Globe and Mail
Globe and Mail
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Pacino and Depp are a match made in acting heaven, riffing off each other with astonishing subtlety and wit.

May 11, 2001
Rolling Stone
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A gritty and humorous crime drama about an undercover cop infiltrating the Mafia.

January 29, 2010 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Depp's tight, guarded performance is almost painful to watch, and Newell seems to have reined in the flamboyant Pacino, whose portrait of the mobster as a grumpy old man may be his best work in years.

June 20, 2009 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide
TV Guide's Movie Guide

It's tempting to think Pacino stopped trying sometime in the mid-1980s. But watch Lefty's elegiac final scene and you might conclude that it's not Al's ability that's dimmed, rather it's the imagination of casting directors that's grown stale.

June 20, 2009 Full Review Source: Film4
Film4

[Newell and Attanasio] pay as much attention to emotional details as to the clockwork details of mob life.

July 30, 2007 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com
eFilmCritic.com

Belongs in the first tier of mobster/wise guy movies, though the extended version doesn't add (or detract) much.

July 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Movie Metropolis
Movie Metropolis

Just misses ranking in the upper echelon of mob movies.

May 9, 2007 Full Review Source: FulvueDrive-in.com
FulvueDrive-in.com

A classy piece of work that may disappoint those looking for something more conventional.

September 17, 2005 Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com
TheMovieReport.com

A blue collar gangster movie that succeeds on all attempted levels, particularly acting.

April 9, 2005 Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews
Reeling Reviews

Donnie Brasco is a fine movie but it might just be best remembered as Johnny Depp's coming-out party. A star -- check that, an actor -- is born.

January 8, 2005 Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Shows that solid acting and writing can salvage even material that has been covered by much better filmmakers.

August 26, 2003 Full Review
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Donnie Brasco manages to sidestep the obvious and dwell on the intriguing.

May 14, 2003
Palo Alto Weekly

In almost every respect, Donnie Brasco is an original, the unexpected rebirth of an old and oft-told tale.

October 15, 2002 Full Review Source: Cincinnati Enquirer
Cincinnati Enquirer

Donnie Brasco is 120 minutes of riveting filmmaking.

September 10, 2002 Full Review Source: Montreal Film Journal
Montreal Film Journal

It's gritty, real and totally engrossing.

August 14, 2002
Jam! Movies

Audience Reviews for Donnie Brasco

WOO! A breath of fresh air. After a recommendation from a good friend of mine -- yup, I'm talking to you Rottentomatoes buddy ;) -- "Donnie Brasco" took me by a big surprise. What an enthralling piece of work that surges the audience into a non-Hollywood-ized portrayal of an everyday Mafia lifestyle. Everything you can ask for from a movie, "Donnie Brasco" answers it all.

An undercover within the mob. It's been done countless and millions of times. However, when done as exquisitely as "Donnie Brasco" does, it's like watching an original plotline again. The obvious story outcomes that we're expecting from a plotline in this type of genre, "Donnie Brasco" hurdles over somewhat the same plot-points with a higher emphasis on the psyche and the hidden. Altogether, it makes for an incredibly rich and engaging narrative. One of the most entertaining mafia flicks I've seen in an extremely long time, mainly due to the mind-blowingly outstanding performances -- by the likes of Johnny Depp and the infamous Al Pacino, -- the entertaining dips and dives of the narrative, and the exquisitely sharp writing that throws a lot of comedic punches to the gut, all the while having a sober basis on reality. "Donnie Brasco", with these elements done in grade-A fashion, manages to place itself as one of the most well-paced gangster movies of all time. Not once does the movie begin to outstay its welcome.

There's not much more to talk about without giving out the vital details of the narrative. Everything within this film works. This is a pitch-perfect, immaculate B-movie mafia flick, coupled with real rich tension, characters the audience deeply sympathizes with, and a narrative that's buttery-smooth. "Donnie Brasco" is a much watch.
August 31, 2012
Albert Kim

Super Reviewer

Undercover FBI agent Johnny Depp is taken under the wing of low level mobster Al Pacino and soon finds that the lines between his work and his personal life start to blur. Donnie Brasco is the true story of Joseph Pistone whose testimony resulted in hundreds of arrests within the New York Mafia in the late 1970s. Pacino plays the virtual opposite of Tony Montana in this warts and all depiction of life in the mob; he is a rather pathetic figure, little more than a flunky to self serving bosses within a world that's riddled with duplicity, treachery and hypocrisy. His partnership with Depp works really well as you start to feel the same sympathy for this shambling, dishevelled figure trying to get ahead without the intelligence or faculties to do so and the film is one of the first mainstream American films to tackle the implications of the work for a deep cover operative. Mike Newell's direction is maybe a little too slick so it was never going to challenge Goodfellas or The Godfather, but thanks to a fascinating true life story that's expertly performed it's a minor classic and worthy forerunner to the likes of The Departed and American Gangster.
November 4, 2006
garyX
xGary Xx

Super Reviewer

    1. Lefty Ruggiero: I never said you were a rat. You's my best friend!
    – Submitted by Nash A (7 months ago)
    1. Lefty Ruggiero: If you're a rat, then I'm the biggest f***ing mutt in the history of the maffia.
    – Submitted by Nash A (7 months ago)
    1. Donnie Brasco/Joe Pistone: Forget about it.
    – Submitted by Chris P (2 years ago)

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