Martin Scorsese's Use of Character Arcs Through Voiceover
Throughout the work of esteemed film director, Martin Scorsese, viewers can notice the portrayal of the morality, or lack thereof, of individuals leading a certain lifestyle and how, based on the actions they take, the gilded allure of their lives slowly fades revealing a sense of deserved emptiness. No two films capture the rise and fall of an individual enthralled by the enticing nature of their chosen profession as Goodfellas (1990) and The Wolf of Wall Street(2013). The protagonists of these two films Henry Hill, played by Ray Liotta, and Jordan Belfort, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, respectively lead lives that, to an onlooker, might seem to be quite glamorous, but in reality, quickly lose their charm propelling the main character into a whirlwind of despair. The stories of Henry and Jordan are structured as such that they both are introduced to the hidden benefits of their occupations by a mentor who gives them a taste of the life they have chosen early in their respective careers. In addition to similarities in their past, Scorsese’s cinematic use of voiceover and thematic elements of character degradation highlight the director’s desire to examine the thread of an individual going from rags to riches and eventually back to rags.
The first line in Goodfellas (1990) is the narration of Henry saying, “As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster.”[1] It is important to take into account Hill’s reasoning behind this statement. It does not convey a desire for wanton mayhem, reflected by his uneasiness at the sight of seeing someone bleeding because of getting shot. On the contrary, Hill is tempted to join a life of crime because of a sense of elevated status gained by members of the mafia in his community, embodied by the stature of Jimmy Conway, played by Robert De Niro. The introduction of Conway’s character portrays a mutual respect between members of the underworld as long as there was an exchange of money in each interaction shown by Conway sliding cash in everyone’s pocket giving him an elevated sense of authority. Henry is also aware of the influence that the mafia has on society. This is exemplified by members of the mafia helping Hill skip school and avoid beatings by his father by violently threatening the postman to stop delivering any more letters from the schools to Hill’s family. Observing this lifestyle from a young age and understanding its benefits, Hill is motivated to chase the feeling of authority and respect by involving himself in organized crime. There is a similar initiation in the case of investor Jordan Belfort. During a flashback, the audience sees the beginnings of Jordan’s career as a Wall Street broker under the influence of the firm’s senior partner Mark Hanna, played by Matthew McConaughey. Though Mark is present on screen for a relatively short amount of time, the impact he has on Jordan’s outlook is astronomical. Before Mark takes Jordan out to lunch, Jordan’s view of life on Wall Street is completely different as opposed to after his discussion with Mark. Jordan is initially portrayed as a small fish in a large pond as is demonstrated by his first day as a stockbroker. It is evident that he is out of his depth and extremely new to the overall culture of the firm. During the meeting between Mark and Jordan, Mark reveals the insider knowledge that he has accumulated over his years as a stockbroker essentially describing how the broker-client relationship is not meant to be “advantageous to everyone”[2] as initially perceived by Jordan. Mark clearly explains that Jordan’s sole goal should be to “move the money from [the] client’s pocket, into [Jordan’s] pocket”[3] via selling the client more stock in order to collect commission fees on every trade. The effect that Jimmy Conway has on Henry Hill’s view of life in the underworld is the same effect that Mark Hanna has on Jordan Belfort. Jimmy Conway shows Henry the difference between being someone and no one even if the methods behind it are dubious. During the release of the film Goodfellas, many viewers were outraged by what they thought was the aggrandizing of life in the mafia. One of the primary points of evidence that can be employed to back their views was the depiction of Jimmy Conway’s suave character and the social benefits that Henry Hill gains by following in his footsteps. A prime example of the height of Henry’s influence was the famous tracking shot of Henry and his date, Karen, skipping the line at the Copacabana and entering through a back door as he slipped cash to fellow members of the mafia, imitating the actions of Jimmy Conway. Similarly, Mark Hanna shatters Jordan’s misconceptions about a supposed fairness in Wall Street and enlightens him as to the true intentions of brokers and the questionable methods that they employ for monetary gain. The conversation that they have, in many ways, fuels Jordan’s descent into drugs, sexual addictions, and an even deeper infatuation with the greed for money. The film is full of several scenes during which Jordan’s addictions, substance and sexual, are revealed to the viewer. This is, in part, influenced by his conversation with Mark Hanna during which Mark says that the only way to do the job of a stockbroker is through the use of “cocaine and hookers”[4]. The primary instance during which this kind of relationship differs between the two films is the fact that Jimmy Conway plays a key role in the film throughout its tenure. Mark Hanna, on the other hand, does not appear for the rest of the film implying that Jordan had absorbed all that he could from him. Another point of difference is that Jimmy always holds a greater level of authority and prowess than Henry who could be considered Jimmy’s partner in crime. Jordan, however, takes the experience that he gained from working with Mark and eventually becomes an even more exuberant version of Mark representing the quality of excess.
Martin Scorsese has never been a stranger to the use of voiceover in films. It is present in his early works, such as Taxi Driver, and even in his more modern films like The Irishman. Even though Scorsese uses voiceovers in both Goodfellas and in The Wolf of Wall Street, there are subtle differences between the two concerning the method in which they are delivered. The overall purpose of each is largely analogous in that the objective of the voiceovers is to put the viewer in the shoes of the main character by giving a verbal depiction of what the audience should understand about the particular situation that is taking place. In Goodfellas, a scene in which the use of voiceover is effective and important is when Henry is listing all the people in the nightclub who are members of the underworld. Ray Liotta’s narration coupled with the first-person point-of-view of the camera movement immerses the audience into what it might have been like to experience Henry Hill’s lifestyle during the height of his influence in the underworld. This effect is primarily achieved through the dialogue being directed at the camera instead of at another character in the scene. At the end of the scene, however, the viewer is surprised by the sudden appearance of Henry as he enters through the left side of the frame revealing that the shot was not, in fact, from the perspective of Henry moving through the club but instead of the audience being directed as if they were another character in the narrative. Another aspect that the voiceover helps to highlight is the inner chaos within a particular character. This is most evident during one of the final scenes in the film when Henry meets his demise and gets arrested for dealing drugs. The scene starts off with Henry snorting a line of cocaine and then frantically going about his day. The rapid camera movements coupled with the faster paced narration help to convey the dizzying nature of Henry’s downfall. It also serves as a depiction of the nature of Henry’s mind during the scene as being troubled and clouded. During the narration, Henry mentions all of the things that he has to get done: “I had to drop off some guns at Jimmy’s to match some silencers he had gotten. I had to pick up my brother at the hospital and drive him back to the house for dinner that night and then I had to pick up some new Pittsburgh stuff for Lois to fly down to some customers I had near Atlanta.”[5] The rushed nature of the narration perfectly complements the inner turmoil that Henry is going through concerning his increasing level of paranoia shown through him constantly looking at the sky for a helicopter that he thinks has been following him. In the middle of this pandemonium, the narration resumes and informs the audience of yet another task Henry has to get done: “I had to start braising the beef, pork butt, and veal shanks for the tomato sauce. […] I was making ziti with the meat gravy, and I’m planning to roast some peppers over the flames, and I was putting on some string beans with the olive oil and garlic, and I had some beautiful cutlets, cut just right, that I was going to fry up before dinner just as an appetizer.”[6] The constant use of run-on sentences provides more evidence as to how the voiceover allows the audience to visualize the tumultuous nature of Henry’s mind ultimately leading to his demise.
Scorsese uses a similar technique of surprise in the film The Wolf of Wall Street with the narration of Jordan Belfort highlighting his ascension to wealth and his painful, yet comical, descent into a drug-induced madness. One of the most important instances of voiceover in the film that demonstrates Jordan’s hunger for money is when his wife asks him why rich people do not buy the stocks that he sells. When his wife asks him why they don’t, Jordan looks in the distance and narrates “Because they’re too smart, that’s why not.”[7] At this exact moment, an idea emerges in his mind that sets the foundation for his rise. He envisions, and later creates, a firm called Stratton Oakmont that uses advanced salesmanship techniques to “target the wealthiest 1% of Americans”[8] to invest in penny-stocks of companies that are known to be unstable. The voiceover coupled with Leonardo DiCaprio’s acting perfectly convey to the audience a sense of wheels turning in his mind as to what he is envisioning for his future. A later montage reveals to the viewers the progress that he makes and the dubious techniques he and his team employ to extract their clients’ trust and money. During a kind of sales-training seminar, Jordan mentions that his process relies on slowly gaining an investor’s trust and “once [they have] suckered them in, [they] unload the dog shit: the pink sheets, the penny stocks, where [they] make the money.”[9] In this situation, the voiceover functions as a window for the audience to see into the mind of Jordan Belfort. He reveals himself to the viewer instead of his wife and gives the audience an idea of what is about to transpire in the next scene. There are, in addition to moving the narrative along, moments during which the voiceover serves as a surprise for the audience and at the same time puts the viewer in Jordan’s position. This is primarily noticed during the scene in which Jordan is completely intoxicated on drugs called “Lemmons”. As the scene unfolds, Jordan is unable to walk as a result of his substance abuse. The visuals of Jordan writhing on the floor are perfectly paired with his voice walking the audience and himself through his thoughts. It feels almost as if he is working through the problems he is facing in real time as the audience is watching him. This is signified through dialogue such as “All right, think, think. What else is there? Yes! I can crawl.”[10] when he is finding his way back to his car.
In the past, the use of voiceover in film has often been frowned upon because of the choice to convey information through visual elements instead of directly telling the audience what a scene comprises of. Individuals who believe this argument against the use of voiceover try to relate emotion through the means of dialogue, acting performance, lighting, composition, and even music. These methods are very proficient in conveying emotion and feeling. The one area in which they lack, however, is in transferring information originally in writer format, like a novel, to a visual element. Since both films, Goodfellas and The Wolf of Wall Street, are adapted from novels, it only makes sense to incorporate voiceover that complements the visuals in order to provide the audience with the proper amount of information and detail. Furthermore, the element of narration immerses the audience into the world of the primary protagonist in such a way that they feel connected to the narrative in each film. The alterations in the voiceover through the tenure of each of the films mentioned reflects the characters’ arc and overall emotional journey.