Mark my words: The Irishman will be a big Netflix hit

Just a small prediction: Netflix will once again be the downfall of Dutch cinemas. I believe that the number of visitors has been declining for years, and a streaming service certainly doesn't help.. Especially not when a Netflix film releases after film that make a trip to the cinema unnecessary. We can soon put this to the test, as The Irishman aka the next hit will be showing in a number of Dutch cinemas. In the United States, it will actually get a full theatrical release, a small month before it is available to stream. I'm very curious how many people will see it on the big screen.

I think I will wait until it is available on Netflix, but that doesn't mean this isn't one to look forward to. It absolutely is. I mention Al Pacino, Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci, and Ray Romano. In other words, real Hollywood veterans with an Oscar or two in the trophy cabinet. Not the least of them, therefore. The director is Martin Scorsese, in case you needed one last convincing reason to watch this. Yes, after Wolf of Wall Street, Shutter Island, The Aviator, and Gangs of New York (I'm just naming all the films with Leo DiCaprio) he is now making the switch to the streaming service. Next film perhaps with Leo back in it, pretty please?

The story of The Irishman is one that is almost a guaranteed hit. DeNiro plays mafia hitman Frank Sheeran, who collaborates with the biggest criminals of the twentieth century. It is based on the memoirs of Charles Brandt, so there are certainly a large number of truths in the film. Pacino plays Jimmy Hoffa, the main character of one of the most famous disappearance cases in America. Hoffa was a public figure who mingled with the underworld. Not a good combination, and after being released from a thirteen-year prison sentence, he disappeared from the face of the earth. And has never been found since. Quite spooky and quite obvious that the mafia was behind this. We shall see in the film.

Mafia, violence, Pacino, and DeNiro: I think it's a delightful combination. Pacino is of course best known for his role in The Godfather series and Scarface (and rightly so), so I have little trouble imagining him as a mafia type again. Tony Montana is back. On November 27.