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Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, David Proval, Amy Robinson, Richard Romanus ... see more see more... , Cesare Danova , Julie Andelman , Victor Argo , Jeanie Bell , Robert Carradine , D'Mitch Davis , Peter Fain , George Memmoli , Murray Moston , Harry Northrup , Lenny Scaletta , Catherine Scorsese , Dino Seragusa , Ken Sinclair , Lois Walden , David Carradine , Martin Scorsese , Jaime Alba , Robert Wilder

"You don't make up for your sins in church; you do it in the streets; you do it at home. The rest is bulls--t, and you know it." Returning to the autobiographical milieu of his 1968 debut Who's That K... read more read more...nocking at My Door? for his third feature, Martin Scorsese examined the daily struggles of a wannabe hood to keep his morals straight on the streets of Little Italy. Driven equally by his wish to become a respectable gangster like his uncle (Cesare Danova) and his desire to live his life like St. Francis, Charlie (Harvey Keitel) takes on his energetically unhinged friend Johnny Boy (Robert De Niro) as his own personal penance, intervening to get Johnny Boy to pay off a debt to the local loan shark Michael (Richard Romanus). Despite his promises to his epileptic girlfriend Teresa (Amy Robinson) that they will move out of Little Italy once he strengthens his position in his uncle's world, Charlie's involvement with Johnny Boy further ensnares him in the neighborhood. When Johnny Boy decides to mouth off to Michael rather than pay him, Charlie, Johnny Boy, and Teresa try to flee Michael's murderous anger (and an assassin played by Scorsese), forcing Charlie to realize that the rules of the streets do not mesh with absolution. Whereas fellow "film school generation" director Francis Ford Coppola transformed the Hollywood gangster movie into metaphorical epics about the Mafia and capitalism in The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather Part II (1974), Scorsese revised the genre in the opposite direction, focusing on the gritty minutiae of daily life and drawing from personal memory. Combining documentary-style realism (even though most of the film was shot in L.A.); kinetic editing and camera movement; and expressionistic lighting, angles, and film speed, Scorsese presents an intimate picture of the trivial incidents and latent violence of Charlie's and Johnny Boy's world, naturalistically unfolding their experiences rather than simply explaining what motivates them. They lead a claustrophobic, petty existence that Scorsese and screenwriter Mardik Martin witnessed growing up in Little Italy, complete with a soundtrack of hit songs like "Be My Baby" and "Jumping Jack Flash" that had poured out of neighborhood radios. Mean Streets opened at the New York Film Festival to excellent notices and played strongly in New York but failed to duplicate that level of business elsewhere. Even so, Mean Streets established Scorsese and De Niro as formidable young talents and marked the beginning of a long-running and fertile collaboration that continued in such films as Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), The King of Comedy (1983), and Goodfellas (1990). Scorsese's exceptional grasp of the texture of day-to-day life, the rhythm and cadences of street talk, and cinema's visual and aural possibilities makes Mean Streets one of the pivotal films of the 1970s, as well as of Scorsese's career, and an influence on such future filmmakers as Spike Lee and Quentin Tarantino, among many others. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi

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82% liked it

49,221 ratings

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98% liked it

47 critics

R, 1 hr. 52 min.

Directed by: Martin Scorsese

Release Date: January 1, 1973

Keywords: gangster

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DVD Release Date: August 17, 2004

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Stats: 2,241 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (2,241)

  • TheGame90
    November 29, 2011
    TheGame90
    Scorsese shows us early in his career that he is someone you can count on. Exellent begin of a awesome future. Very solid movie. A lot of very good performances. But Harvey Keitel is just wonderful.
  • fb1664868775
    October 28, 2011
    fb1664868775
    Scorsese's first masterpiece, DeNiro in his first great role.
  • blkbomb
    May 1, 2011
    blkbomb
    Scorsese's first masterpiece. Showed a little of what was to come with his crime epics Taxi Driver, Goodfellas and Casino. De Niro and Keitel are great like always, and Amy Robinson is also very good as Johnny's cousin, and Charlie's girlfriend Teresa.
  • fernandorafael
    April 24, 2011
    fernandorafael
    Gritty, realistic urban drama on the Italian-American underground. The camera work and direction by Martin Scorsese are outstanding, a sign of the legend he would become in the years after Mean Streets, his breakthrough. Basically, the film follows no plot, but the stunning perfo... read morermances by Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro make it gripping enough.
  • ajv2688
    December 29, 2010
    ajv2688
    A fantastic drama from Scorsese, the actors are great, the story is great, and I loved this movie. If you're a Scorsese fan, you have to see this one.
  • fb619846742
    September 1, 2010
    fb619846742
    By far one of the most under-seen gangster pictures ever made, featuring tremendous lead performances from both Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro that, through the careful handling by director Martin Scorsese, make this a picture that is a riveting look at friendship, loyalty, and... read more the crime world in general. While Keitel is definitely incredible and is completely believable as a go-getter in the mafia world, as usual, it's De Niro who is so special as a lazy, unmotivated bum who doesn't realize how much trouble he's in. His character is dangerous on so many levels, not really caring about his life or how he affects those closest to him. In Scorsese's bleak, dark take of the underbelly of New York City, redemption is no where to be found even when it appears certain characters think they see a light at the end of the tunnel. Instead, what we have here is yet another crushing look concerning horrendous individuals who don't get along with each other, and the result is something almost unbearably depressing.
  • creepfreak
    July 14, 2010
    creepfreak
    From the director of Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Casino, Gangs of New York, The Aviator, The Departed, and Shutter Island.

    Mean Streets is Martin Scorsese's third feature film about small-time Italian street hustlers who roam the streets of Little Italy, New York Ci... read morety, collecting money, hitting the local bars, and starting all types of trouble. It's easy to tell from the jump that this feature film is by the hands of a masterfully skilled director. I believe this film is a semi-autobiography of Scorsese's younger days, or so I heard. Mean Streets is both funny and sad at the same time. What makes it so emotional is the relationship between Johnny Boy (played by Robert De Niro) - an immature delinquent hooligan who's always in debt, and Charlie (played by Harvey Keitel) - a more experienced hoodlum stepping up in the world of crime and always having to clean up after Johnny Boy's mess. Charlie is also dating Johnny Boy's epileptic cousin Teresa. It's very clear that Charlie loves Johnny Boy like a brother, he's always talking him out of trouble, he pays off Johnny's debts to the best of his ability, and most importantly he listens to Johnny when no one else does. The neighborhood takes Johnny for a fool. No one really trusts him, he's unreliable, and they like pushing his buttons because it's easy. But yet they all still hang with him and consider him part of the crew. There's two reasons why. Because Johnny Boy is close with Charlie, and Charlie preaches Johnny's good intentions to his friends hoping it rubs off on them (which it clearly does for the most part), and also because Johnny Boy is a fighter. He's a tough muscle for the crew who will throw down anytime, even though it's his mouth that besiegingly provokes most the trouble and for the most part getting his ass kicked, nonetheless, he'll always be there for his crew.

    It also seems Charlie feels guilty for dating Johnny Boy's cousin. Like he owes something to Johnny. And he doesn't make his relationship with Teresa publicly known because Charlie feels embarrassed. I can't understand why, she's a pretty girl and she treats him right, but I do know Charlie's full-fledged Mafioso Uncle would be in disagreement with their relationship. The Uncle does seem to take her epilepsy more as a curse and an embarrassment than a disease. And he also thinks what most people think of Johnny Boy - that he's a small-time punk loser. Charlie, being that his intentions are to step up in the family business, doesn't want to disappoint his Uncle. But what would his Uncle do if he found out he was dating Teresa? I highly doubt he would have Charlie killed, there's no way he would. Or maybe it's that Teresa and Johnny would make him look like a bum as well, a lowlife, and affect his chances of becoming a "real man". That's likely the case, but it's never spoken by Charlie. There's just a sign of discomfort and a brief mention of what seems to be a disapproval in his involvement. The truth only lies with the characters but the consequences we understand.

    Another problem is that Johnny Boy borrowed money from the wrong man this time. He owes a lot, but like always, he doesn't have a lot. He just takes, and takes, and takes, but never gives back. It's even mentioned in the film by Johnny Boy himself...

    "You see, I borrow money all over this neighborhood, left and right from everybody, I never pay them back. So, I can't borrow no money from nobody no more, right? So who would that leave me to borrow money from but you? I borrow money from you, because you're the only jerk-off around here who I can borrow money from without payin' back, right? You know, 'cause that's what you are, that's what I think of you: a jerk-off. You're a fucking jerk-off!"

    As you can tell, Johnny Boy likes taking advantage of people. What's going on here is that he always expects Charlie to back him up and save the day. That's what happens sometimes when you're too nice to people and let them get away with certain things. They'll take advantage of you. Just like if you don't yell at your puppy for shitting on the carpet. Eventually the more you let the pup get away with it, it'll always be shitting on your carpet. Johnny Boy is Charlie's little puppy who wasn't trained properly. And when Charlie does finally open his mouth it's an emotional breakdown. Johnny Boy weeps, the sister has an attack, and Charlie's in the middle - frustrated and torn between right and wrong. Charlie wants the best for everybody. Again, as Johnny Boy quotes himself...

    "Charlie loves everybody and everybody loves Charlie."

    It kind of reminds me of this friend I use to have. Always admired by everyone because he always gave people what they wanted, and note that I said "wanted" not "needed". But in reality everyone has a line not to be crossed. We have a bubble of space not be invaded. It's human nature. And like a dog sometimes people need to growl at others, a heads up, and show that your serious about your space. And if the person doesn't respect that, then it's unfriendly. Just like my friend...Charlie never growled. By the end of the film you'll see where that gets you. This guy that Johnny owes money to isn't so friendly himself, a little too unfriendly. But sometimes, even when people don't have any money, they still get stuck paying the price.

    Mean Streets is a remarkable film, but it's not without it's flaws. Some situations (not performances - those are top notch) but some situations are awkward. One good example would be the long fight scene in the bar. It wasn't well choreographed, it just seemed a bit too silly. Another example is the editing. Now I always loved the style of editing in Scorsese films, I think they are some of the best, but being (as you can clearly see in this film) he wasn't as experienced as he soon became later on, and the editing (only in some places) seemed a bit too choppy. Other than that the movie is fantastic. The acting, the direction, believable dialogue, AMAZING soundtrack. It all makes for yet another great Scorsese crime feature. I highly recommend it.

    "You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets. You do it at home. The rest is bullshit and you know it."
    - Martin Scorsese (voiceover in beginning of Mean Streets)

    Photobucket

    "One of the best American films of the decade."
    - Time Out

    "Scorsese is exceptionally good at guiding his largely unknown cast to near-flawless recreations of types. Outstanding in this regard is De Niro."
    - Variety

    "One of Scorsese's true classics."
    - eFilmCritic.com

    "No matter how bleak the milieu, no matter how heartbreaking the narrative, some films are so thoroughly, beautifully realized they have a kind of tonic effect that has no relation to the subject matter."
    - New York Times

    "Mean Streets is more than a rambunctious time capsule of Italian American experience, it is groundbreaking film that announces the career of a truly original voice in world cinema."
    - Daily Radar

    "A modern masterpiece where the setting is the star, even among a cast that is highlighted by Robert De Niro and Harvey Keitel."
    - Movie Views

    "It's greatness lies in its leanness, with nary a word, a move, a gesture that's nonessential."
    - Los Angeles Times

    "In countless ways, right down to the detail of modern TV crime shows, Mean Streets is one of the source points of modern movies."
    - Roger Ebert

    Photobucket
  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    March 25, 2010
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets..."

    A small-time hood struggles to succeed on the "mean streets" of Little Italy.

    REVIEW

    Filmmaker Martin Scorsese placed hi... read moremself in the echelon of top directors in his breakthrough movie about small time hoods in the seamier neighborhoods of Manhattan with Keitel as Charlie, a tough guy with some smarts and plenty of Catholic guilt and De Niro in a breakthrough performance as Keitel's loose cannon screw up Johnny Boy who shoots off his mouth more than he should. Funny dialogue (De Niro: `What am I in coffee and cake land, here?'), improvisatory feel throughout and fine camera work mingled with a retro 1960s jukebox soundtrack and always the threat of unsurpressed violence (lotsa fights!). My favorite scene is when Keitel and his boys go to the local bookie in a pool hall and get into not one but two scuffles (`Mook? Pregnant pause: `I'll give ya Mook!') Look sharp for David and Robert Carradine in an unbelievable bar shooting, Scorsese's mother helping Keitel's epileptic girlfriend Robinson and Scorsese himself as an assassin (and yes that's him in the beginning moments as Keitel's voice over'd conscience). Gritty and goofy all at once.
  • FilmFanatik
    December 20, 2009
    FilmFanatik
    Love this early Scorcese classic.
  • ythelastman89
    November 17, 2009
    ythelastman89
    An amazing movie. Everything about it screams perfection. From casting to soundrack, it is flawless. The story is simple, yet fun and emotional. It's Martin Scorsese's semi-autobiographical narrative that is so obviously close to his heart, it overflows into the screen. Harvey Ke... read moreitel and Robert De Niro are great together and make the viewing experience even more enjoyable.

View All Mean Streets Reviews

Critic Reviews

Dave Kehr
March 31, 2008
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

The acting and editing have such an original, tumultuous force that the picture is completely gripping. Full Review

Variety Staff
March 31, 2008
Variety Staff, Variety

Scorsese is exceptionally good at guiding his largely unknown cast to near-flawless recreations of types. Outstanding in this regard is De Niro. Full Review

Vincent Canby
May 20, 2003
Vincent Canby, New York Times

No matter how bleak the milieu, no matter how heartbreaking the narrative, some films are so thoroughly, beautifully realized they have a kind of tonic effect that has no relation to the subject matter. Full Review

Kevin Thomas
February 14, 2001
Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times

Its greatness lies in its leanness, with nary a word, a move, a gesture that's nonessential. Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

In countless ways, right down to the detail of modern TV crime shows, Mean Streets is one of the source points of modern movies. Full Review

Joe Baltake
January 1, 2000
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee

Everyone involved brings a near-dizzying rhythm to this quintessential 'New York movie' and its collection of outsider-characters, all intoxicated on themselves. Full Review

Matthew Pejkovic
March 9, 2011
Matthew Pejkovic, Matt's Movie Reviews

Authentic in feel and immensely personal in subject matter, Mean Streets marked the arrival of one Martin Scorsese and his unique brand of urban filmmaking. Full Review

Jay Antani
August 20, 2010
Jay Antani, Cinema Writer

showcases Scorsese's artistic strengths and weaknesses as they stood at the outset of his career Full Review

Cole Smithey
May 9, 2010
Cole Smithey, Daily Radar

"Mean Streets" is more than a rambunctious time capsule of Italian American experience, it is groundbreaking film that announces the career of a truly original voice in world cinema. Full Review

Sean Axmaker
June 20, 2009
Sean Axmaker, Turner Classic Movies Online

Passionate, energetic, stylistically inventive and personally driven, it is the first mature, full blooded "Martin Scorsese Film." Full Review

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    • Charlie: You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets, you do it at home. The rest is bullshit and you know it.
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  • What music is playing when you first see Robert de Niro in the film Mean Streets?   Answer »
  • Which of these films has not been remade?  Answer »
  • Harvey Keitel plays Robert De Niro's conflicted brother in the brutal Little Italy of 1970s New York.   Answer »
  • ***Scorsese's Mean Streets Begins With Home Cinema Footage of Which Character***  Answer »
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