Mean Streets (1973)

When I first saw Matin Scorsese's 'Mean Streets' from 1973 several years ago, I was a bit disappointed. I had recently seen 'Goodfellas' and 'The Godfather' and was looking for the next 'grand' gangster movie. 'Mean Streets' however was nothing like that. It was more low key and didn't deal with organized crime on the same scale. Even though this was my initial reaction 'Mean Streets' has grown on me during the years, to the point where it's now one of my favourite movies within the genre, and i consider it a masterpiece.

The plot is fairly simple, but it got a lot to it, and it's difficult to summarize it in just a couple of sentences. We follow Charlie, a young Italian American man, played by Harvey Keitel. He's the nephew of a local mob boss and has ambitions of climbing the ranks. Charlie is a devoted catholic, but finds it hard to believe that simply saying a cuople of Hail Marys can get him off the hook when he's done something wrong. He feels that the only proper way for him to do it, is to make up for himself on the streets.

Charlie has a childhood friend called Johnny Boy, played by Robert De Niro. He is a complete fuck up and owes money to a bunch of different people in the neighborhood. One of these is Michael, who's another friend of Charlie. Michael is determined to get his money back and Charlie takes Johnny Boy under his wings and tries to help him get his act together. At the same time Charlie is trying to hide this from his uncle who doesn't want him to have anything to do with either Johnny Boy or Johnny Boy's cousin, Theresa, whom Charlie is in a relationship with.

Harvey Keitel is just amazing in his role and really brings the complexity of Charlie to life. He's a tough and street smart, but more sensitive than his friends. He likes to trust people and gets hurt when he's let down. Charlie seems to struggle a lot between what others expect from him and his own wishes. He's a very genuinely nice guy, and cares about his friends and the people around him. You really feel for him, being caught in the middle of his uncle's wishes and his own abitions on one side, and his wish to help his friend and have a relationship with Theresa on the other. De Niro as Johnny Boy is also very good. He's funny and charming in his own way, but it's frustrating to see how much he messes things up for himself and refuses to take responsibility.

I really like the realistic tone of this movie and how well it portrays the characters. It's easy to sympathize with them even when they sometimes do bad things. I believe that 'Mean Streets' shows a far more truthful picture of the life of the Italian American society and culture than say 'The Godfather' does. It's less of an opera, and more a realistic depiction of life on the streets. That being sad I don't necessarily think one is better than the other.

Personally I consider 'Mean Streets' a masterpiece and think it's one of Scorsese's best and most interesting films.