Day
135 Mean
Streets [1973]
Screenplay Martin Scorsese & Mardick Martin
Director Martin Scorsese
Cinematography Kent L. Wakeford
Leads Harvey
Keitel, Robert De Niro, David Proval, Amy Robinson, Richard Romanus, Cesare
Donova
Production Taplin-Perry-Scorsese Productions
IMDb 7.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes 96%
Vintage
Scorsese. The first feature film of his own design. They say write about what
you know and here is Scorsese’s love letter to New York’s Little Italy. The
film explores the predicaments of low-level hoodlums and friends Charlie
(Keitel), ‘Johnny Boy’ (De Niro) and Tony (Proval). Specifically, we follow
Charlie as he struggles to juggle various problems such as keeping his powerful
uncle happy, whilst looking after his erratic family friend Johnny and his
affair with Johnny’s cousin Teresa (Robinson). All at the same time we hear his
inner dialogue as he questions everything he does because of his devotion to
the Catholic church. Keitel and De Niro are electrifying. I don’t know too much
about his history, but I think this must have been a break-out performance for
De Niro and the start of a long and happy relationship with Scorsese. He plays
a man on edge, you don’t know whether he is going to lash out and hit someone
or burst into tears. It’s an emotional performance for sure, despite the
seemingly tough character he portrays. The music is what makes the movie, and I
think it’s what most of the budget went towards too. The Rolling Stones, The
Ronettes and The Marvelettes lead the line in a celebratory sound track. The
camerawork feels ahead of its time too, with handheld camera shots that make it
a far more personal film. They took me by surprise and made it feel like a
modern indie film rather than a 70s gangster (ish) movie. The scene where Charlie
is drunk for example is like a GoPro shot of today. The innovative camerawork,
classic backing track and excellent acting make this film one of the best.
Acting 4 / 4
Writing 3 / 4
Cinematography 3.5 / 4
Music 4 / 4
HWF rating 3.5 / 4
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