Talking about gazes and how the characters understand each other well, there is a seen in a restaurant where Joe Pesci's character looks and De Niro's character. There is no visible change in expression except for the eyes. And De Niro just looks at Pesci and his eyes acknowledge that he has understood what needed to be done. No dialogue, no nod of the head or anything else. Brilliant acting. And brilliant decision on the director's part to let it play out like that.