What's the Fascination with Mafia/Gangster Movies?

You just listed the godfather, Goodfellas, the departed etc. Some of the greatest movies ever made.

I don't get your point? There are some shocking "gangster" movies too.

Confused.

But ok.

Go home and get your shinebox.

Humans are interested in power as it puts us higher in the dominance hierarchy as Jordan Peterson would say. The higher in the dominance hierarchy we are, the happier we feel. Powerful figures (like in these movies) are interesting to watch because we might learn something about how they command respect. They may teach us lessons about how to be more powerful ourselves.

That's my 2 cents anyway.

The Sopranos is a good example of the same thing. For one the focal point of everything is the family, which is common to most gangster material. Everyone can relate to family dynamics and most find it interesting and compelling. Most mafia stuff revolves around the idea of family being the one solid constant in life which is dependable - or turning on one another in the end. Another theme as old as time which is very relatable.

Then you have the power aspect. Tony didn't attend a great college, isn't an elite professional like many of his neighbours, he's just a normal working class type who lives in a very wealthy area and has all the trappings of money. He knows powerful people and is influential. People are attracted to that and it's something which is also common in the mob genre.

Then you have the criminality. Gangsters take the shortcut to wealth. They don't work 18 hour days in a drab office. They get rich through unlawful activities and are constantly trying to stay a step ahead of the authorities. Tony is in "waste management" but never goes to the office. The staff don't know him. When he's not gambling big money in one form or another he splits his time between a small deli shop and a lap dancing club. People are excited by the fantasy of chucking in their factory job and maybe trying a bit of armed robbery, extortion etc..

Humour - the whole witty wiseguy thing, embodied by Joe Pesci basically.

It's as old as time itself. The concept of the 'flawed' hero. And when you find yourself rooting for a lying, cheating, psychopath, you do begin to wonder about your own moral compass. All part of the fun of the engagement. All the world loves a 'bad boy'

Its the most visceral form of modern drama from the last 30 - 40 years. It is also a visceral form of dramatic escapism, as the organised criminal world is a world that 99.9% of the audience will never know. I would disagree with this notion that the audience continuously "roots for the bad guy", the conclusion to the vast majority of works in this genre, especially the greatest pieces of work, always results in the "bad guy" either dead, imprisoned or eradicated. That's half the reason audience watch also, the gradual rise and ultimate fall. I would agree that nowadays there is far too much saturation of the genre being created by a lot of sub par writers and studios, who just seem to want to portray a showcase of edginess, recreating the same visual design of the likes of 'The Sopranos' or 'The Wire' but have none of the imaginative writing capability and build of those two series.

Scarface is the only film I like out of the ones you listed. The soundtrack alone is brilliant. I hate films with constant narration. Snatch is the only exception.

The True Romance Mafia bit was inspired I have to say, there's also the guest appearance of the little known actor at the time who would play Tony Soprano.