Mean Streets (1973)

A small-time hood aspires to work his way up the ranks of a local mob.

Director:

Martin Scorsese

Writers:

Martin Scorsese (screenplay), Mardik Martin (screenplay)

Stars:

Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, David Proval

5 wins & 5 nominations.

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) (as Victor 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

Storyline

The future is set for Tony and Michael - owning a neighbourhood bar and making deals in the mean streets of New York city's Little Italy. For Charlie, the future is less clearly defined. A small-time hood, he works for his uncle, making collections and reclaiming bad debts. He's probably too nice to succeed. In love with a woman his uncle disapproves of (because of her epilepsy) and a friend of her cousin, Johnny Boy, a near psychotic whose trouble-making threatens them all - he can't reconcile opposing values. A failed attempt to escape (to Brooklyn) moves them all a step closer to a bitter, almost preordained future.

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Plot Keywords:

italian american | epilepsy | bar | close up of breasts | catholic guilt | 

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Taglines:

Go to church on Sunday. Go to hell on Monday.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the songs in the soundtrack is "Pledging My Love" by Johnny Ace. This song was also featured in another Harvey Keitel film, "Bad Lieutenant (1992)."

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Goofs

Tony is driving with a bandaged right little finger, then the bandage is gone and it reappears again.

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Quotes

Charlie: That's all that's important to me now.
Teresa: Right. Guys like my cousin Johnny.
Charlie: No, not exactly your cousin Johnny.
Teresa: Why I hope not because he is crazy! I mean he is driving me nuts! I don't know how you can be with him all the time. He's like an insane person!
Charlie: What is the matter with you? How can you talk to me about him? He's your own cousin.
Teresa: Oh, fuck him!
Charlie: That's terrible. Who's gonna help him if I don't? That's what's the matter. Nobody, nobody tries anymore.
Teresa: Tries what?
Charlie: Tries to - to help, that's all. To ...
[...]

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Alternate Versions

NBC edited 10 minutes from this film for its 1977 network television premiere.

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Connections

Featured in Edge of Outside (2006)

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Soundtracks

Tell Me
Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards (uncredited)
By The Rolling Stones
Courtesy of ABKCO Records

User Reviews

A look at life in NY

'Mean Streets', the earliest Scorsese film people have heard of, is the result of an on-form film maker, telling a personal story.

One thing to immediately note about 'Mean Streets' is the performance of our two leads, Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro, both looking young and are full of energy. They deliver the goods, big time. They are both so watchable and make up at least half of the movie's appeal. In fact, 'Mean Streets' is an inherently watchable movie overall, helped by some fine dialogue and Scorsese's trademark energetic and involving camera-work. The main draw is the antics of the characters and their relationships rather than a high-stakes narrative. Dramatic things happen but don't relate intrinsically to the central plot: that of De Niro's character Johnny Boy, his debts to clubs, bars and old pals along with his long-suffering buddy Charlie (Keitel).

In comparison to other Scorsese films (which is inevitably going to happen if this is not your first Scorsese), it is very low on scale and as mentioned before, low on stakes. This is no gangster epic or psychological portrait but simply a 2 hour window into the streets of New York. It is certainly worth watching.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

14 October 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Season of the Witch

Filming Locations:

Bowery & Bleecker St, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$32,645, 15 March 1998

Gross USA:

$32,645

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$41,131

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Taplin - Perry - Scorsese Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor) (uncredited)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1