IMDb >
Mean Streets (1973)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at Blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user reviewsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsMean Streets (1973) More at IMDbPro »
| Photos (see all 25 | slideshow) | Videos (see all 7) |
Overview
User Rating:
Your Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
14 October 1973 (USA)
more
Tagline:
You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets...
Plot:
A small-time hood struggles to succeed on the "mean streets" of Little Italy. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Little Italy
|
Epilepsy
|
New York
|
New York City
|
Money
more
Awards:
2 wins
&
1 nomination
more
NewsDesk:
(50 articles)
What Are You Up To, Scorsese?
(From Cinema Blend. 9 February 2010, 3:13 PM, PST)
Movie Poster of the Week: "Shutter Island"
(From The Auteurs. 29 January 2010, 12:43 PM, PST)
(From Cinema Blend. 9 February 2010, 3:13 PM, PST)
Movie Poster of the Week: "Shutter Island"
(From The Auteurs. 29 January 2010, 12:43 PM, PST)
User Reviews:
Redemption on the Lower East Side
more (163 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Robert De Niro | ... | Johnny Boy | |
| Harvey Keitel | ... | Charlie | |
| David Proval | ... | Tony | |
| Amy Robinson | ... | Teresa | |
| Richard Romanus | ... | Michael | |
| Cesare Danova | ... | Giovanni | |
| Victor Argo | ... | Mario (as Vic Argo) | |
| George Memmoli | ... | Joey | |
| Lenny Scaletta | ... | Jimmy | |
| Jeannie Bell | ... | Diane | |
| Murray Moston | ... | Oscar (as Murray Mosten) | |
| David Carradine | ... | Drunk | |
| Robert Carradine | ... | Boy With Gun | |
| Lois Walden | ... | Jewish Girl | |
| Harry Northup | ... | Soldier |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Season of the Witch (USA) (working title)
more
more
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
112 min | Spain:107 min (DVD edition)
Country:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Glen Glenn Sound)
Certification:
Hong Kong:III |
Argentina:18 |
Iceland:16 |
Canada:R (DVD rating) |
Brazil:16 |
Australia:M |
Canada:18A (video rating) |
Finland:K-16 |
France:-12 (re-rating) |
France:-16 (original rating) |
Ireland:18 |
Italy:VM14 |
New Zealand:R18 |
Norway:16 (1977) |
Singapore:NC-16 |
South Korea:18 |
Spain:18 |
Sweden:15 |
UK:18 (re-rating) (1993) |
UK:X (original rating) |
USA:R |
West Germany:16
Filming Locations:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The title change from SEASON OF THE WITCH to MEAN STREETS was inspired from a Raymond Chandler line, "Down these mean streets a man must go." Film critic Jay Cocks suggested the change to Martin Scorsese, who thought it pretentious at first but eventually came to agree it was effective.
more
Goofs:
Continuity: During one of the pool scenes, balls disappear and change position between cuts.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "Life on Mars: (#1.4)" (2006)
more
Soundtrack:
SHIP OF LOVE
more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (163 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Mean Streets (1973) moreRecommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| Goodfellas | I Call First | A History of Violence | Léon | The Godfather: Part II |
|
IMDb User Rating: |
IMDb User Rating: |
IMDb User Rating: |
IMDb User Rating: |
IMDb User Rating: |
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Crime section | IMDb USA section |
| Add this title to MyMovies |
















Mean Streets has all the characteristics we have come to associate with Scorsese - the fluid camerawork, the expressionistic lighting, the sudden explosions of violence, the eclectic soundtrack. In later films, he took cinema to new heights with the flowering of his technical skills and the broadening of his material, but Mean Streets remains unsurpassed for the emotional intensity which only a young director, passionate about film and intent on making a personal statement, could achieve.
The theme of the film is contained in the famous first line 'You don't make up for your sins in church; you do it in the streets' (a Scorsese voice-over). An extended preface which delineates the nature of the film and its characters before the narrative begins includes brief cameo scenes introducing the four protagonists (a much copied device: see, for example, Trainspotting).
Scorsese's alter-ego is played as in the earlier 'Who's That Knocking At My Door?' by Harvey Keitel, giving the performance of his young life. He is Charlie, a junior member of a Mafia family who collects debts and runs numbers, but who also has aspirations to sainthood. The other key figure is his anarchic friend, Johnny Boy, played with ferocious energy by de Niro.
Charlie is introduced coming out of confession, dissatisfied with his penance. Reciting words doesn't mean anything to him and he can't believe that forgiveness could come so easily. Deliberately burning his hand in a candle flame is a more effective reminder of the pain of hell. The camera follows Charlie from the altar into Tony's bar, a red-lit inferno, and when Johnny Boy comes in, to the tune of Jumping Jack Flash, Charlie recognises that this is the form his penance will take. Johnny Boy is the cross he must bear. 'You send me this, Lord' he says resignedly.
Johnny Boy's irresponsibility and impulsiveness make him everything Charlie, with his controlled, anxious, guilt-ridden persona, is not. The argument which follows in the back room about Johnny Boy's debts deserves its reputation as one of the great scenes in seventies cinema.
Charlie's life moves in well worn, claustrophobic circles. Hardly anyone outside his immediate circle appears in the film and other ethnic groups are viewed with suspicion. The characters seldom appear outdoors or in daylight. Charlie inhabits a world of bars, pool halls and cinemas. In the one scene he appears in sunlight, he looks ill at ease. The suit and heavy overcoat he wears (reflecting his Mafiosi ambitions) look distinctly out of place on a beach. It's significant that in this scene Teresa, his girlfriend, scorns his small-time gangsterism and challenges him to join her in moving away to a new life. But Charlie is trapped by his desire to please his uncle.
Scorsese has said that his choice in adolescence lay between becoming a priest and becoming a gangster and that he failed on both counts. Mean Streets allows him to explore that choice to devastating effect.