John Gotti was the biggest star in organized crime since Al Capone. The difference is, according to the new Netflix documentary Get Gotti, he welcomed attention during the age of television. A centerpiece of news stories throughout the 1980s, the mafia boss went from being known as “The Dapper Don” to “The Teflon Don,” becoming a larger-than-life figure who couldn’t be caught.
Unbelievably, Mr. Gotti was considered a Robin Hood figure. (This was despite law enforcement viewing him as violent and ruthless.) The new documentary follows the day Mr. Gotti rose to the top with a bold, even arrogant, and remarkably confident move to assure himself of power and prestige to be on top of the organized crime food chain.
Per reports, Mr. Gotti became the head of New York’s Gambino crime family after orchestrating the 1985 killing of Paul Castellano. From there, Sebastian Smith (Fear City: New York vs. the Mafia) meticulously weaves two fascinating storylines. One is the effort by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and the New York City-based Organized Crime Task Force (OCTF) to investigate him.
It’s a fascinating tale with eye-opening, frank discussions. Those come directly from the elite members of the OCTF and the FBI. Both organizations chronicle their efforts to videotape and the painstaking process of somehow producing audio recordings. Many young people may only understand this world with the technological advances we have today.
There’s no Ring alarm. There are no UHD video recordings or high-resolution audio. Frankly, how can you be a mobster in today’s day and age? However, that’s what makes Get Gotti so interesting. His infamous story represents a time when tabloid journalism used technology to raise his profile. During a time when you were supposed to keep your affiliation with Cosa Nostra a secret.
Instead, he was almost a Christ-like figure who, I’m sure, was kissing babies, hugging citizens, and signing autographs because the “selfie” hadn’t yet been a thing. Behind the scenes, you have a very entertaining defense attorney, Bruce Cutler. The man knows how to work a jury and the media. Mr. Cutler was so effective in the cross-examination that it was called being “Brucified,” as if he were crucifying witnesses on the stand.
Sometimes, people on the other side of the aisle also do questionable things. For example, at the time, Diane Giacalone was an assistant United States attorney in charge of prosecuting Mr. Gotti. She decided to call out a federal witness sitting right next to the notorious and deathly-feared figure during the trial. Ms. Giacalone’s explanation was straightforward—the witness’s life was going in an inevitable direction.
From an entertainment perspective, there’s nothing new brought to the table by Get Gotti. It’s nostalgic in terms of showing the special techniques. For example, manually picking locks is an art form. And the patience of working a case from a surveillance van. In movies and television, these scenes are exciting. When, in real life, the process is painstakingly slow.
In the end, Get Gotti is interesting in how the series connects the dawn of a court trial(s) with the birth of American tabloid journalism. There are fascinating interviews with undercover agents and retired mafiosos. Even stories of Hollywood starlets and renowned artists rubbing shoulders with mobsters like Gotti as long as the cocaine was as fresh as powdered snow.
Netflix’s Get Gotti is fairly standard streaming fare while capturing a fascinating time in true crime history.
Get Gotti is currently available to stream on Netflix.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBCdoKF1bJs]
Netflix's Get Gotti is fairly standard streaming fare while capturing a fascinating time in true crime history.
I am a film and television critic and a proud member of the Las Vegas Film Critic Society, Critics Choice Association, and a 🍅 Rotten Tomatoes/Tomato meter approved. However, I still put on my pants one leg at a time, and that’s when I often stumble over. When I’m not writing about movies, I patiently wait for the next Pearl Jam album and pass the time by scratching my wife’s back on Sunday afternoons while she watches endless reruns of California Dreams. I was proclaimed the smartest reviewer alive by actor Jason Isaacs, but I chose to ignore his obvious sarcasm. You can also find my work on InSession Film, Ready Steady Cut, Hidden Remote, Music City Drive-In, Nerd Alert, and Film Focus Online.
