As far back as I can remember, there have always been symmetrical movies. All the way back to the Buster Keaton classic The General, where the film is structured (appropriately enough) like a railroad track.

Well, today we’re going to discuss the symmetrical nature of another movie called Goodfellas. This is the third film recommended by a reader of mine named Jay. And it works just as well as the first two he sent: Ghostbusters and Die Hard. Let’s start digging into how this film’s chiasmus works. Grab a shovel from ma’s house.

The Chiasmus

Here is the summary of the chiasmus that Jay sent me. I’ll elaborate on it in greater detail below.

A. “I always wanted to be a gangster”
 B. Henry watches Paulie from the cabstand
  C. Henry skips school
   D. Henry’s father beats him
    E. Capturing the mailman
     F. Paulie’s placement in the Mob offering protection
      G. Introduction of Jimmy Conway, giving Henry money
       H. Intro of Tommy/Henry gets pinched
        I. Henry doesn’t rat
         J. Henry and Tommy steal the truck
          K. Intro of wiseguys
           L. Frenchy pitches the airport robbery
            M. “What do you mean I’m funny?”
             N. Paulie gets the Bamboo Lounge
              O. Tommy tries convincing Henry to go on double date
               P. Henry & Karen’s first date
                Q. Henry & Karen’s second date/“it’ll cost you a lot”
                 R. Henry & Karen’s third date @ Copa
                  S. Henry and Tommy pull Frenchy’s airport robbery
                   T. Karen is seduced by the lifestyle
                    U. Intro of Morrie/Karen calls Henry
                     V. Henry attacks Bruce
                      W. Henry marries Karen
                       X. Henry doesn’t come home
                        Y. Karen and the Mob wives
                         Z. Henry reassures Karen
                         AA. Henry and Tommy rob a truck
                          BB. Warrant at the Hills’ house
                           CC. Life as a Mob wife
                            DD. Karen needs some money
                             EE. Billy Batts/“Go get your f#$%ing shine box!”
                              FF. Tommy & Jimmy beat Billy Batts
                               GG. Tommy goes to his mother’s house
                                HH. Tommy and Jimmy kill Billy Batts
                                 II. Henry takes Janice to Copa
                                  JJ. Paulie talks to Henry about Billy Batts
                                   KK. Jimmy tells Henry about Billy’s corpse
                                    LL. Henry, Jimmy, & Tommy exhume Billy’s corpse
                                     MM. Tour through Janice’s apartment
                                      NN. Tommy shoots Spider
                                       OO. Karen doesn’t want Henry to go out
                                        PP. Tommy kills Spider
                                       OO. Karen goes to see Janice
                                      NN. Karen threatens to shoot Henry
                                     MM. Paulie talks to Henry @ Janice’s
                                    LL. “Feed to the lions”
                                   KK. The sister snitches
                                  JJ. Judge sentences Henry & Jimmy
                                 II. “Now take me to jail”
                                HH. Henry sells drugs
                               GG. Karen goes to prison to visit Henry
                              FF. Henry’s released from prison
                             EE. Henry returns home/“just don’t do it”
                            DD. Henry sells drugs, uses Sandy’s place
                           CC. Life as a drug dealer
                          BB. Karen tours the new house
                         AA. Prep the Lufthansa heist
                         Z. Henry hears about the heist on the radio
                        Y. Jimmy and the gang/Don’t buy anything
                       X. Henry comes home with a tree
                      W. Tommy shoots Stacks
                     V. Jimmy tells Henry they’ll make Tommy
                    U. Jimmy kills Morrie/Morrie’s wife calls
                   T. Jimmy talks to Henry about Morrie’s wife
                  S. Jimmy kills the Lufthansa heist crew
                 R. Tommy gets killed
                Q. Jimmy doesn’t want the silencer
               P. Henry nearly rearends a car
              O. Henry picks up his brother
             N. Henry finally cooks dinner
            M. “What do you mean you need your hat?”
           L. Lois needs her hat to move drugs
          K. Cops bust Henry/“If it was wiseguys, I’d be dead”
         J. Karen flushes the cocaine
        I. Henry in prison/“I gotta get out of here”
       H. Henry leaves lockup/“where’s the stuff?”
      G. Paulie gives Henry money and turns his back
     F. Karen visits Jimmy who might have her killed
    E. Henry knows Jimmy wants him whacked
   D. Henry & Karen do WITSEC
  C. Paulie & Jimmy are arrested
 B. Henry snitches on Paulie & Jimmy
A. “I’m an average nobody”

Now I’ll go through and explain these points in my own words.

A. From Gangster to Nobody

In 1970, Henry Hill hears sounds coming from the trunk of his car, so he pulls over. His associates Tommy and Jimmy murder a badly wounded man after Henry opens the trunk. Then Henry says in a voiceover, “As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster.”

Safe in the Witness Protection Program, Henry still yearns for the life of a gangster. He thinks of Tommy casually shooting people, and he closes his front door. Text appears letting us know Henry’s ultimate fate as an informant on the Mob.

B. Henry Sees Paulie from a Distance

In 1955, Henry watches wiseguys at the cabstand getting away with all kinds of crimes. He idolizes them.

In a courtroom, Henry snitches on Jimmy and Paulie, ensuring they will pay for their crimes. Henry still idolizes the Mob life.

C. Skipping School

Henry skips school to go work at the cabstand. He is treated like a grownup and makes lots of friends with wiseguys.

Jimmy and Paulie are taken out of their businesses and arrested. They are treated like the criminals they are by the authorities.

D. Painful Sacrifices

Henry’s father learns that Henry has been skipping school for months, so he beats him with his belt.

Henry and his wife Karen learn that they’ll have to cut ties with all relatives to enter the Witness Protection Program, and Henry gently asks her to join him.

E. Mob Death Threats

The wiseguys angrily threaten a mailman with death if he ever again tries to deliver a letter from the school to Henry’s house.

Jimmy politely asks Henry to go to Florida and kill a rat, and Henry knows he will never return home if he goes on that mission.

F. Seeking Protection

Henry explains that Paulie offers protection to wiseguys who can’t go to the police because what they’re doing is illegal. Henry helps a man with a gunshot wound, against the wishes of a wiseguy.

Henry tells Karen that they have to leave and seek protection from the government against the wiseguys or they’re dead. Karen goes to Jimmy to seek help, against the wishes of Henry.

G. First and Last Mob Money

Henry meets Jimmy, who gives him (and everyone else) money. Jimmy is one of the most-feared men in the city, having done hits and thefts his whole life.

Henry humbly talks to Paulie, who gives him money. Henry is afraid of Paulie because now Paulie has turned his back on Henry after a lifetime of doing jobs together.

H. Henry Gets Pinched

Jimmy introduces Henry to Tommy. Henry gets pinched by the police when they find him distributing Jimmy’s stolen goods with Tommy.

Henry goes home to Karen. He realizes he’s in a major pinch when he learns that she flushed his cocaine to prevent the police from finding it.

I. “Never Rat on Your Friends”

Henry is celebrated by Jimmy and all the other wiseguys by refusing to rat anyone out during his trial. He learned to keep his mouth shut and never rat on his friends.

Henry refuses to talk to the police, even though all of his partners in crime are being processed along with him. He gets out on bail, but he’s afraid Jimmy and Paulie will think he’s going to rat them out.

J. Covering Up Crimes

In 1963, Henry and Tommy steal a truck near Idlewood Airport.

In 1980, Karen flushes Henry’s cocaine to try to cover up their crimes.

K. Above the Law

Henry walks through a bar and introduces the audience to a variety of wiseguys and their quirks. He thinks of himself as above regular people and their rules.

Henry walks right into a trap set by the cops, and he knows that it’s not wiseguys because they would have just killed him. The cops have rules, and they don’t just kill people.

L. Untraceable

Frenchy tells Henry and Jimmy about a big opportunity to steal from an Air France delivery. The money will be untraceable, and all they need is a key.

Henry tells his wife Karen he’s going to get Lois’s hat so she can fly on an airplane. He puts his key in the ignition, and he discovers he’s surrounded by police.

M. “What Do You Mean?”

Tommy tells a humorous story at a restaurant to make his associates laugh. Henry says he’s funny, and Tommy suddenly turns deadly serious, demanding to know, “What do you mean, I’m funny?” Henry eventually gets out of it.

Lois tells Henry she needs to go get her lucky hat before she flies on a plane with drugs. Henry asks if she understands what they’re involved in, and she remains totally serious in her demand to get her hat. Henry eventually gives in.

N. Handing Off Ownership

Paulie agrees to co-own Sonny’s restaurant and put Henry in charge of running it. They bleed Sonny dry and burn the place down for insurance money.

Henry starts cooking dinner for his family, and he asks his brother Mike to take charge of the sauce. He and Karen drop some guns off at Karen’s mother’s house and then purchase drugs.

O. Convincing Henry

Tommy begs Henry to join him on a double date in order to help him seal the deal with a Jew broad he’s interested in.

Henry picks up his brother from the hospital, and a doctor prevails upon him to get checked out before he leaves.

P. Bad Date and Drive

Henry has a terrible time on his first date with Karen. Fidgeting and not wanting to be there, he accidentally hurts her feelings.

Henry has a terrible drive to pick up his brother. Distracted by a helicopter and trying to hurry, he almost gets in a car accident.

Q. Costly Mistakes

Henry’s second date with Karen is a disaster because he doesn’t even show up. Karen hunts him down and makes a big scene in front of the wiseguys. She says it’s going to cost him a lot.

Henry’s dropoff of silencers to Jimmy is a disaster because he doesn’t even want them. Jimmy refuses to pay for them, and Henry silently takes them back. Henry is pretty sure he’ll get paid for them later.

R. Made Man

Henry takes Karen to the Copacabana on their third date, and he shows off how respected he is. He looks like he has it made.

The Mob takes Tommy to a house on the pretense of making him, then they show how little they respect him when they shoot him in the face. He’ll never be a made man.

S. Heist Consequences

Henry and Tommy walk into the airport and steal hundreds of thousands of dollars, with Frenchy’s help, without firing a single bullet.

Jimmy kills everyone involved in the Lufthansa heist, except Henry and Tommy. He uses many bullets in the process.

T. Falling in and Out of Love

Karen spends more and more time with Henry, and she falls in love with him.

Henry asks Jimmy what he should say to Morrie’s wife, and Jimmy says to tell her that Morrie left her for another woman.

U. Morrie’s Entrance and Exit

Jimmy threatens to kill Morrie, the owner of a wig shop, if he doesn’t pay extra money. Jimmy strangles Morrie until he agrees to pay. Karen calls Henry to tell him that Bruce came onto her and hurt her when she rebuffed his advances.

Jimmy tells Henry he’s going to kill Morrie over the Lufthansa heist money. Tommy stabs Morrie in the neck until he dies. Morrie’s wife comes to Henry’s house to tell him that Morrie never called or came home, and she’s worried about him.

V. Excited by the Mob

Henry takes Karen home, then he walks across the street and attacks Bruce to defend Karen’s honor. She gets turned on when Henry gives her a gun to hide.

Henry goes to see Jimmy, then they walk across the bar, and Henry asks about Stacks’ murder. Henry gets excited when Jimmy reveals that the Mob is about to make Tommy.

W. Mob Gifts

Henry marries Karen in a Jewish ceremony. Wiseguys puts thousands of dollars into her hand in honor of their wedding. Henry knows that no one will take their money.

Henry wishes Karen a Happy Hannukah. Tommy goes to Stacks’ apartment, says Stacks will be late to his own funeral, and puts a bullet in his head. Tommy jokes that another wiseguy should take Stacks’ coffee.

X. Late Nights

Henry doesn’t come home until very late one night, and Karen’s parents get angry with him. Karen defends him. Henry walks away after getting shouted at when he finally comes home.

Henry comes home late one night with a Christmas tree, and his family is happy with him. Karen gets a gift from him. He gives his wife lots of money and tells her to go get herself something nice.

Y. Mob Wives’ Miserable Lives

Karen realizes that all the other Mob wives have cheap makeup, and they look unhealthy and miserable.

Jimmy realizes that members of the Lufthansa crew are making expensive purchases, which could get them all pinched and miserable.

Z. Risk and Reward

Karen tells Henry about the potential for him to go to prison, and he tells her not to worry about it because he’s got everything figured out.

Henry hears on the radio about the Lufthansa heist, and he’s so thrilled because it sounds like everything went smoothly.

AA. Small and Big Heists

Tommy and Henry accost a truck driver and leave him in the dust as they steal his truck. Tommy shoots his gun in the air without caring about possibly getting caught.

Morrie talks to Henry about the Lufthansa heist that will leave all other heists in the dust. Henry snorts cocaine and tries to get Sandy to care about not getting caught.

BB. Tour of Karen’s House

The police arrive at Karen’s house with a search warrant. They proceed to search the house. She is always polite and calls a lawyer.

Jimmy checks in with the Department of Probation. Karen shows off her new house to some friends. She is polite and even a bit showy.

CC. No Outsiders

Karen notes that she and the other Mob wives do everything together. No outsiders allowed.

Henry brings Tommy and Jimmy in on his drug business. They just can’t let Paulie know about it.

DD. Henry’s Payments

Before Henry leaves his home, Karen asks him for money so she can go shopping. She just has to do certain favors for him in return.

At Paulie’s home, Paulie warns Henry not to keep selling drugs. Henry sells drugs from Sandy’s place in return for letting her have some and saying he loves her.

EE. Out of Prison

Billy Batts gets out of prison and tells Tommy to go get his shine box like he was a little kid. This insults Tommy to the point that Henry has to physically restrain him and remove him from the bar.

Henry comes home from prison and tells Karen to pack up because they’re moving. She worries about that, but Henry comforts her and invites them to go to Uncle Paulie’s house.

FF. Locked Doors

Tommy and Jilly beat Billy to a bloody mess, and Henry locks the door. They make plans to take him upstate to a place where no one will ever find him.

The prison door opens, and Henry is released safely. He walks over to his wife, who is ready to take him back home to their children.

GG. Awkward Family Dinner

Henry, Jimmy, and Tommy go to Tommy’s mother’s house to get a shovel, and they accidentally wake her up and share a meal. Tommy borrows a big knife on the table from her. Henry remains mostly quiet during their dinner. Tommy’s mom shows off a painting of a man who looks like Billy, who they just beat to a pulp.

Karen and her two children go to prison to see Harry, and she accidentally wakes up to the fact that his mistress Janice Rossi has been to see him. She drops all the food she snuck in for him on a table. Henry asks her to be quiet because she’s upsetting their children. Karen complains that their friend Paulie is ignoring her when he used to be ready to help.

HH. Potential Danger

After dinner at Tommy’s mom’s house, Tommy and Jimmy cross a major threshold by killing Billy in secret. They’re now in danger of being killed themselves.

After dinner in prison, crosses a major threshold by selling drugs to other inmates in front of a guard. He’s in no danger of getting in trouble.

II. Going Away from Karen

Henry takes his girlfriend named Janice to the Copacabana with his fellow wiseguys. He then takes Janice home, and they spend the night together.

Henry goes out for drinks with the wiseguys while Karen looks at him tearfully. He leaves Karen and gets into a car to be taken to jail.

JJ. Henry’s False Pleas

Paulie asks Henry what happened to Billy, and Henry pleads ignorance of the matter.

A judge sentences Henry and Jimmy to 10 years in federal prison, ignoring any pleas for mercy.

KK. Found Out

Jimmy warns Henry that they need to move Billy’s body before it gets found by a property owner.

A man who Henry and Jimmy beat up has a sister who works for the FBI, and she snitches on them before they can do anything about it.

LL. Dark Humor

Henry, Jimmy, and Tommy dig up Billy’s remains, and they joke about it as they do it. The smell makes Henry sick.

Henry and Jimmy threaten to literally feed a man to the lions unless he pays them. Henry is afraid of getting too close to the lions.

MM. Janice’s Apartment

Henry rents an apartment for his mistress Janice. Henry beats up her boss to make sure he doesn’t fire her for doing a bad job.

Paul and Jimmy come to Janice’s apartment. They tell Henry he needs to go home and make up with Karen because she’s causing trouble.

NN. Near-Death Experiences

Tommy gets angry at a young man named Spider. He pulls out a gun and waves it around wildly. Then he accidentally shoots Spider in the foot and blames him for getting shot.

Karen is furious at Henry. She angrily points a gun at Henry’s head as he wakes up. He disarms her and then makes her feel bad for making him do that, to the point that she apologizes.

OO. Henry’s Infidelity

Karen demands that Henry stay one night, and she suspects he’s up to something. He throws a lamp at her, and she tells him to get out of her life. He claims she’s imagining things.

Karen goes to Janice’s apartment building and makes threats to her. She calls the superintendent and tells him that Karen is a whore. She tells Janice that Henry is her husband, and Janice should get her own man.

PP. Spider’s Death

The turning point comes when Spider returns with his foot in a cast. He serves drinks to everyone at the table. Tommy runs his mouth at Spider, insulting him over and over while Spider silently takes it.

Spider tells Tommy to go f$#% himself, stunning Tommy into silence. Jimmy puts money down on the table for Spider’s courage, and he runs his mouth at Tommy asking if he’s going to let Spider get away with that. Tommy pulls a gun out and kills Spider, so he won’t return anymore.

Do I Amuse You?

I think Jay did a brilliant job with this one. Everything works great, just like he said. I have to admit that Goodfellas is not my favorite movie to watch, but I can’t deny that it’s a brilliant achievement in the way it tells its story.

If you find this amusing, or at least interesting, you’ll want to catch Jay’s fourth and final (so far) Cinematic Chiasmus contribution: The Big Lebowski. I’ll hopefully publish that one soon.

This is the Deja Reviewer bidding you farewell until we meet again.

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