Review of Mean Streets (1973) by Ian B — 23 May 2018

Mean Streets remains one of the most important films of the 1970s. It made Hollywood take notice of Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro, it laid the groundwork for the direction both their careers would take, and has a sense of realism that perfectly captures the decade.

Both had made films prior to this, but none were able to show off their talents like Mean Streets did. For me, it falls slightly short of being one of Scorsese's masterpieces due to script and pacing issues.

Harvey Keitel is a small time gangster trying to make a name for himself, and De Niro is his lose cannon buddy who screws up just about everything in his life. De Niro keeps screwing up, Keitel keeps trying to bail him out.

That's about it. But, like I said, what the film lacks in story it more than makes up for with terrific performances, plenty of suspense and the fact it perfectly captures 1970's New York. Mean Streets may not be nearly as good as the collaborations that followed, but it's still a highly entertaining and important piece of filmmaking.