Mean Streets [Blu-ray] [DVD]

Mean Streets is a 1973 American crime film directed by Martin Scorsese, co-written by Scorsese and Mardik Martin, and starring Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro. It was produced by Warner Bros. The film premiered at the New York Film Festival on October 2, 1973, and was released on October 14. De Niro won the National Society of Film Critics and the New York Film Critics Circle award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as "Johnny Boy" Civello.Mean Streets is set in the Little Italy neighborhood of New York City in the early 1970s. The film follows Charlie (Harvey Keitel), a small-time hoodlum who is trying to keep his friend Johnny Boy (Robert De Niro) out of trouble. Johnny Boy is a volatile and dangerous character who is constantly getting into debt with loan sharks. Charlie is trying to help Johnny Boy, but he is also getting in over his head with the mob.Mean Streets is a gritty and realistic film that captures the violence and despair of life in the inner city. The film is also notable for its innovative use of cinematography and editing. Scorsese uses a handheld camera and fast cutting to create a sense of urgency and immediacy.Mean Streets was a critical and commercial success. It was praised for its realism, its performances, and its direction. The film was also a major influence on later gangster films, such as Goodfellas and The Sopranos.Here are some of the themes of Mean Streets:Loyalty and friendship: Charlie is fiercely loyal to Johnny Boy, even though he knows that Johnny Boy is bad for him.Violence and crime: Violence is a constant threat in the world of Mean Streets. Johnny Boy is a violent character, and Charlie is often forced to resort to violence himself.Religion and guilt: Charlie is a Catholic, and he is often struggling with his guilt. He knows that he is living a sinful life, but he is unable to escape it.Mean Streets is a powerful and disturbing film that is a must-see for fans of gangster films.

Martin Scorsese's early film "Mean Streets" (1973) tells a story of religious redemption and of loyalty set in the criminal world of New York City's Lower East Side in the 1960s. The movie featured brilliant acting debuts by its two main characters, Robert DeNiro (Johnny Boy) and Harvey Keitel (Charlie), both of whom played leading roles in later Scorsese films.The movie has a thin plot, or tangle of thin plots. Charlie is a young, rising petty criminal in the Mafia who has strong Catholic convictions together with guilt about his apparent path in life. He is a faithful friend of another young man, Johnny Boy, headstrong, selfish, impulsive, and half-crazy. Johnny Boy is deeply in debt to another rising and menacing young criminal, Michael (Richard Romanus). At great risk to himself, Charlie tries to help out Johnny Boy. Charlie is also involved with a young epileptic woman, Teresa, (Amy Robinson) related to Johnny Boy. Charlie's boss, his uncle and a higher figure in the criminal ranks, Giovanni, (Cesare Danova) warns his young protege to steer clear of both Johnny Boy and Teresa. The film builds to a violent ephiphany of a conclusion which reminded me of the ending of Henry Roth's novel, "Call it Sleep".The film is difficult to follow for viewers with the expectation of a linear, straightforward story. The movie rewards more than one viewing, as I took the opportunity to do through Amazon's rental program. With careful viewing, the film has a powerful, cumulative impact."Mean Streets" is set in the bars, restaurants, go-go clubs, apartments, and, in particular, the streets of Little Italy. Most of the action takes place at night. The movie is improvisatory and episodic. It consists of a number of small, carefully developed vignettes which at first may seem unconnected to one another. The different themes develop slowly and indirectly. The religious themes are suggested throughout as the movie explores Charlie's tormented character. Each individual scene has a great deal of tension and atmosphere, as the characters alternate between cameraderie and barely suppressed violence in the unforgiving world of Little Italy. The cinematography and lighting add immeasurably in defining the action and were unusual for their time. The movie includes an insightfully appropriate musical score consisting largely of doo-wop songs from girl groups of the early 1960's.The film offers a rough, raw picture of streets and of crime, combined with a hovering feeling of religious grace. Scorsese explored these themes in many subsequent movies. "Mean Streets" stands on its own without needing comparison to his latter efforts. "Mean Streets" is a tough, suggestive film for viewers with a passion for exploring the meaning of American urban life.Robin Friedman