Mean Streets

Composite Score: 84.97

Starring: Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, David Proval, Amy Robinson, Richard Romanus, Cesare Danova, Victor Argo, George Memmoli, Lenny Scaletta, Jeannie Bell, and Murray Moston

Director: Martin Scorsese

Writers: Martin Scorsese and Mardik Martin

Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller, Coming-of-Age

MPAA Rating: R

Box Office: $41,131 worldwide

Why should you Watch This Film?

                Mean Streets is Martin Scorsese’s film about a young New York gangster and his struggle to balance friendship and romance with his drive to rise within the underworld of Little Italy. The film stars Harvey Keitel in the leading role of Charlie, joined by Robert De Niro (in his first collaboration with Scorsese) as his psychotic friend Johnny Boy, Amy Robinson as his epileptic girlfriend Teresa, David Proval as his bar-owning friend Tony, and Richard Romanus as Michael – the street businessman of the crew. The film’s study of Charlie’s guilt, relationships, and the complex world he tries to live in helped make this the first true critical success of Scorsese’s career, along with a truly chilling performance from De Niro – a year out from his Oscar win for The Godfather Part II.

Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?

                Mean Streets is undeniably Scorsese’s rawest gangster flick, and it suffers slightly for that. The performances from the supporting cast that aren’t Keitel and De Niro don’t feel quite as polished as in his later offerings – it’s still strong and enjoyable, but you do get some interesting deliveries of some of his dialogue that doesn’t always work. Where the first act does a great job of establishing the film’s cast of characters, the film’s second act drags uncharacteristically for the auteur whose films so often take off in that second act – think when Henry starts dating Karen in GoodFellas or Paul’s decision to leave Marcy’s apartment for the first time in After Hours. Instead, we get a kind of convoluted second act where we learn of Charlie’s secret romance with Teresa, watch Johnny continuing to be a degenerate, and find out that Tony now owns some big cats that never really show up again. The first and third acts and the film’s general development of Charlie’s character go a long way in helping the film along toward greatness, but not without some hindrances from the middle portion.

So wait, why should you Watch This Film?

                Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro carry Mean Streets with their leading performances. Keitel’s Charlie receives the full focus of the film, and he shoulders that burden well, showcasing some standout acting that captures the listlessness that often accompanies young adulthood. His desires for friendship, for romance, and for success are on full display, and Keitel plays easily in all three spaces. His interactions with Johnny, Michael, and Tony always have that sense of familiarity and competition that is so common in male friendships, lending authenticity to Scorsese’s inspired-by-reality tale. He carries the romantic scenes with Teresa, keeping them fun and engaging while also playing at the tension that is constantly present in that relationship’s clash with his other two goals. His desire for depth while feeling like he has to keep Teresa at arms’ length comes through excellently in their scenes together. Even in the moments where he gets to be a gangster, Keitel delivers – showcasing an insecure but driven up-and-comer who knows his place but also wants more. Keitel’s character is dynamic and complex, and he pulls it off beautifully. Unfortunately for Keitel, Robert De Niro overshadows his more nuanced performance with a truly unhinged showing that is equal parts endearing and terrifying. De Niro’s Johnny Boy is the film’s loose cannon, constantly complicating things for no reason while sabotaging himself and others in the process. In every scene, you can see him building to the point of no return, and when he crosses it, it becomes a trainwreck that you can’t look away from until all that’s left is whatever carnage he’s left behind. Legitimately, I don’t know if I could tell you three other performances from the seasoned actor that are better than this one.

                Scorsese’s first widely touted crime flick, Mean Streets, has earned its reputation thanks to Harvey Keitel’s strong delivery of Scorsese’s story of youth in Little Italy and De Niro’s unhinged wrench in the works that turns the whole thing on its head. The film does lag some in the second act, but the characters and ambience of the world certainly help to make it through to the film’s explosive and thoroughly engrossing final act. This film is currently available to rent on most streaming services if you’d like to check it out.