‘Donnie Brasco’ Has 1 of the ‘Most Realistic Scenes’ in Mob Movies, Ex-Mafia Boss Says
Gangster and mob movies have a special place in Hollywood. The films have managed to glamorize crime and make it seem cool. Although most are purely works of fiction, others are based on true stories, and some even appear connected. However, when it comes to realism, one ex-mafia boss says Donnie Brasco has one of the “most realistic scenes in mob movies.”
‘Donnie Brasco’ is based on an FBI agent’s life
Donnie Brasco tells the real-life story of a young FBI agent who goes undercover in the Bonanno crime family to take them down from the inside. The movie starts in 1978 when Lefty Ruggiero of the crime family welcomes Joe Pistone, who uses the alias Donnie Brasco to pose as a small-time jewel thief.
It doesn’t take long for Donnie to rise through the ranks and strike up a friendship with Lefty, who teaches Donnie the rules and secrets of the mafia. He also introduces the young agent to other members of the mafia.
Pistone’s personal life, however, crumbles as he slowly begins morphing into the criminal he pretends to be. His marriage also hits the rocks due to the increasing moments of absence.
Donnie Brasco was a commercial and critical hit earning $124.9 million against a $35 million budget.
Ex-mafia boss says ‘Donnie Brasco’ has one of the ‘most realistic scenes’
Michael Franzese, who was once a caporegime of the Colombo crime families, recently sat down with Insider to Rate 13 Mafia Movie Scenes. When rating Donnie Brasco, Franzese gave the film a 10 out of 10 score for its realism.
Franzese watched one scene involving Johnny Depp’s character Donnie lying on the couch. He said, “This is probably one of the most realistic scenes in all of mob moviedom.” The former mobster acknowledged that the phrase ‘fuggedaboutit’ was made famous by the Depp scene in the 1997 film.
He explained that as a former mobster, he always finds himself saying the phrase in his speeches but noted that it applied to many situations. He also praised the movie for its accurate depiction of the sit-down, saying,
“Just like the sit-down. Anytime you had any kind of meeting, it was always at a sit-down. Had a sit-down and discussed, you know, a life-and-death matter. We had a sit down just to have dinner.”
Franzese told the publication that “everything” was done at a sit-down meeting.
Michael Franzese was a med student before joining the mafia
Franzese was a pre-med student at Hofstra University before dropping out and joining the family business. For the former mafia boss, the decision was purely to help his family as his father had received a 50-year imprisonment sentence.
During his time in the mafia, Franzese was part of a scheme to defraud the government with gas taxes. The scheme made Franzese millions as the ex-mob boss made more than a million dollars weekly.
Franzese’s crimes eventually caught up with him, and he got arrested. However, in 1991 things changed when in prison. Franzese found the Lord and decided to part ways with the mob. After leaving prison, the now-motivational speaker had to move to California as hits were put out on his life.
