Editing Mean Streets

{{Short description|1973 film by Martin Scorsese}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Mean Streets
| image          = Mean Streets original 1973 theatrical poster.png
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Martin Scorsese]]
| producer       = [[Jonathan Taplin|Jonathan T. Taplin]]
| screenplay     = {{ubl|Martin Scorsese|[[Mardik Martin]]}}
| story          = Martin Scorsese
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Robert De Niro]]
* [[Harvey Keitel]]
* [[David Proval]]
* [[Amy Robinson]]
* [[Richard Romanus]]
* [[Cesare Danova]]
}}
| cinematography = [[Kent L. Wakeford]]
| editing        = Sidney Levin
| studio         = Taplin-Perry-Scorsese Productions
| distributor    = [[Warner Bros.]]
| released       = {{Film date|1973|10|14}}
| runtime        = 112 minutes
| country        = United States<ref>{{cite web|url=http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b6be8ccf5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120711213745/http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b6be8ccf5 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-07-11 |title=Mean Streets (1973) |publisher=Explore.bfi.org.uk |access-date=2016-10-20}}</ref>
| language       = English, Italian, Neapolitan
| budget         = $650,000
| gross          = $3 million<ref>{{cite magazine | first=Owen | last=Gleiberman | title=Gross Oversights | url=https://ew.com/article/2004/04/23/best-movies-flopped-box-office/ | magazine=Entertainment Weekly | date=April 23, 2004 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070119185758/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,611608,00.html |archive-date=January 19, 2007}}</ref>
}}

'''''Mean Streets''''' is a 1973 American [[crime drama film]] directed by [[Martin Scorsese]], co-written by Scorsese and [[Mardik Martin]], and starring [[Robert De Niro]] and [[Harvey Keitel]]. It is produced by [[Warner Bros.]] The film premiered at the [[New York Film Festival]] on October 2, 1973, and was released on October{{Nbsp}}14.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mean Streets |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/55020#3 |access-date=2023-03-31 |website=Afi. Catalog |at=Details}}</ref> De Niro won the [[National Society of Film Critics]] and the [[New York Film Critics Circle]] award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as "Johnny Boy" Civello.

The film is the first of several [[Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro|collaborations between Scorsese and De Niro]]. It is also Scorsese's first critical and commercial success. In 1997, ''Mean Streets'' was selected for preservation in the United States [[National Film Registry]] by the [[Library of Congress]], who deemed it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".<ref>{{cite press release|title=Librarian of Congress Names 25 New Films to National Film Registry |publisher=[[Library of Congress]] |date=November 18, 1997 |url=https://www.loc.gov/today/pr/1997/97-200.html |access-date=July 22, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090811151201/http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/1997/97-200.html |archive-date=August 11, 2009 }}</ref>

== Plot ==
<!-- Per [[MOS:FILMPLOT]], plot summaries for feature films should be between 400 to 700 words.-->Charlie Cappa, a young Italian-American in the [[Little Italy, Manhattan|Little Italy]] neighborhood of New York City, is hampered by his feeling of responsibility toward his reckless younger friend John "Johnny Boy" Civello, a small-time gambler and degenerate who refuses to work and owes money to many [[loan shark]]s. Charlie is also having a secret affair with Johnny's cousin Teresa, who has [[epilepsy]] and is ostracized because of her condition—especially by Charlie's Uncle Giovanni, a powerful [[American Mafia|mafioso]], and is told to stay away from her. Giovanni also wants Charlie to distance himself from Johnny, saying that "honorable men go with honorable men".

Charlie is torn between his devout [[Catholic Church|Catholicism]] and his illicit Mafia work for Giovanni. Johnny becomes increasingly self-destructive and disrespectful of his Mafia-connected creditors. Failing to receive redemption in the Church, Charlie seeks it through sacrificing himself on Johnny's behalf. At Tony's bar, a loan shark and friend named Michael comes looking for Johnny again to pay his debts; he has been doing so for a few days and is becoming increasingly frustrated, thinking that Johnny is taking advantage of him and that he is not going to pay up, with Charlie promising to convince Johnny.

To his surprise, Johnny insults him and tells him that he is not going to pay back the money. Michael lunges at Johnny, who pulls a gun. After a tense standoff, Michael walks away and Charlie convinces Johnny that they should leave town for a brief period. Teresa insists on coming with them. Charlie borrows a car and they drive off, leaving the neighborhood without incident.

A car that has been following them suddenly pulls up with Michael at the wheel and his henchman, Jimmy Shorts, in the backseat. Jimmy fires several shots at Charlie's car, hitting Johnny in the neck and Charlie in the arm, causing Charlie to crash the car into a fire hydrant. Teresa is injured in the crash. Johnny is seen in an alley staggering toward a white light that is revealed to be a police car, and Charlie gets out of the crashed vehicle and kneels in the water spurting from the hydrant, dazed and bleeding. Paramedics take Teresa and Charlie away while Johnny's fate remains unknown.

==Cast==
* [[Robert De Niro]] as John "Johnny Boy" Civello
* [[Harvey Keitel]] as Charlie Cappa
* [[David Proval]] as Tony DeVienazo
* [[Amy Robinson]] as Teresa Ronchelli
* [[Victor Argo]] as Mario
* [[Richard Romanus]] as Michael Longo
* [[Cesare Danova]] as Giovanni Cappa
* [[George Memmoli]] as Joey 
* [[Jean Bell|Jeannie Bell]] as Diane
* [[Harry Northup]] as Soldier
* [[David Carradine]] as Drunk
* [[Martin Scorsese]] as Jimmy Shorts

==Production==
Apart from his first actual feature, ''[[Who's That Knocking at My Door]]'', and a directing project given to him by early independent filmmaker [[Roger Corman]], ''[[Boxcar Bertha]]'', this was Scorsese's first feature film of his own design. Director [[John Cassavetes]] told him after he completed ''Boxcar Bertha'', "You've just spent a year of your life making a piece of shit". This inspired Scorsese to make a film about his own experiences.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmmakersonfilm/7366950/Martin-Scorsese-interview-for-Shutter-Island.html |title=Martin Scorsese interview for Shutter Island |location=London |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |first=Mick |last=Brown |date=March 7, 2010}}</ref> Cassavetes told Scorsese that he should do something like ''Who's That Knocking at My Door'', which Cassavetes had liked. ''Mean Streets'' was based on events that Scorsese saw almost regularly while growing up in New York City's [[Little Italy, Manhattan|Little Italy]].

The screenplay began as a continuation of the characters in ''Who's That Knocking''. Scorsese changed the title from ''Season of the Witch'' to ''Mean Streets'', a reference to [[Raymond Chandler]]'s essay "[[The Simple Art of Murder]]", in which Chandler writes, "But down these mean streets a man must go who is not himself mean, who is neither tarnished nor afraid".

Scorsese sent the script to Corman, who agreed to back the film if all of the characters were [[African Americans|Black]]. Scorsese was anxious to make the film, so he considered this option, but actress [[Verna Bloom]] arranged a meeting with potential financial backer [[Jonathan Taplin]], the road manager for [[The Band]]. Taplin liked the script and was willing to raise the $300,000 that Scorsese wanted if Corman promised, in writing, to distribute the film. The [[blaxploitation]] suggestion came to nothing when funding from [[Warner Bros.]] allowed him to make the film with Italian-American characters.<ref>{{cite web |last=Musto |first=Michael |date=2011-11-01 |title=Mean Streets Was Almost a Blaxploitation Flick! |url=http://blogs.villagevoice.com/dailymusto/2011/11/mean_streets_wa.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130923233146/http://blogs.villagevoice.com/dailymusto/2011/11/mean_streets_wa.php |archive-date=2013-09-23 |access-date=2016-10-20 |work=[[The Village Voice]]}}</ref>

''Mean Streets'' was filmed from April 1973 to June 1973.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070379/locations/ |title=Mean Streets (1973) - Filming & production - IMDb |language=en-US |access-date=2024-08-11 |via=www.imdb.com}}</ref>

==Reception==
''Mean Streets'' received immense critical acclaim on its release. On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an approval rating of 92% based on 78 reviews, with an average rating of 8.7/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "''Mean Streets'' is a powerful tale of urban sin and guilt that marks Scorsese's arrival as an important cinematic voice and features electrifying performances from Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/mean_streets/|title=Mean Streets (1973) |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=November 26, 2024}}</ref> According to [[Metacritic]], which assigns a weighted average of 96 out of 100, based on eleven critics, the film received "universal acclaim".<ref>{{cite Metacritic|id=mean-streets |type=movie|title= Mean Streets Reviews|access-date= August 17, 2021}}</ref>

[[File:Martin_Scorsese_by_David_Shankbone_(2601129680).jpg|thumb|right|alt=Director Martin Scorsese|Director Martin Scorsese]]

[[Pauline Kael]] of ''[[The New Yorker]]'' was among the enthusiastic critics, calling it "a true original, and a triumph of personal filmmaking" and "dizzyingly sensual".<ref>Kael, Pauline (1991). ''5001 Nights at the Movies''. New York: Holt Paperbacks. p. 473. {{ISBN|0-8050-1367-9}}.</ref>

[[Vincent Canby]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' reflected that "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".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Canby |first=Vincent |date=1973-10-03 |title='Mean Streets' at Film Festival |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/10/03/archives/mean-streets-at-film-festival-the-cast.html |access-date=2022-11-29 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

''[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out]]'' magazine called it "one of the best American films of the decade".<ref>{{Cite news |title=Mean Streets (1973) |work=[[Time Out London]] |url=http://www.timeout.com/film/reviews/72996/mean_streets.html |url-status=dead |access-date=2022-11-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607134208/http://www.timeout.com/film/reviews/72996/mean_streets.html |archive-date=2011-06-07}}</ref>

[[David Denby]], writing for ''[[Sight and Sound]]'', praised the film's acting, saying that Scorsese had used improvisation "better than anyone in American movies so far". He concluded by saying, "Scorsese's impulse to express all he feels about life in every scene (a cannier, more prudent director wouldn't have started his film with that great De Niro monologue), and thus to wrench his audience upwards into a new state of consciousness with one prolonged and devastating gesture, infinitely hurting and infinitely tender. ''Mean Streets'' comes close enough to this feverish ideal to warrant our love and much of our respect."<ref>{{cite book |date=2021 |title=Martin Scorsese: A Life of Movies |pages=10–13}}</ref>

Retrospectively, [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' inducted ''Mean Streets'' on his [[The Great Movies|Great Movies list]] and wrote: "In countless ways, right down to the detail of modern TV crime shows, ''Mean Streets'' is one of the source points of modern movies."<ref name="ebert">{{cite web |last=Ebert |first=Roger |date=December 31, 2003 |title=Mean Streets Movie Review & Film Summary (1973) |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-mean-streets-1973 |access-date=November 28, 2022 |website=RogerEbert.com}}</ref>

In 2013, the staff of ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' voted the film the seventh greatest of all time.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=June 27, 2013 |title=Movies: 10 All-Time Greatest - 7. Mean Streets (1973) |url=http://ew.com/gallery/movies-10-all-time-greatest/7-mean-streets-1973 |url-status=dead |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170211080817/http://ew.com/gallery/movies-10-all-time-greatest/7-mean-streets-1973/ |archive-date=2017-02-11 |access-date=February 9, 2017}}</ref> In 2015, it was ranked 93rd on the BBC's list of the 100 greatest American films.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20150720-the-100-greatest-american-films | title=The 100 greatest American films | publisher=BBC | date=July 20, 2015 | access-date=January 19, 2017}}</ref>

[[James Gandolfini]], when asked on ''[[Inside the Actors Studio]]'' (season 11, episode two) which films that most influenced him, cited ''Mean Streets'', saying, "I saw that ten times in a row".<ref>{{cite web | first=Scott | last=Collins | title=James Gandolfini dies at 51; actor starred in 'The Sopranos' | url=https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-xpm-2013-jun-20-la-me-james-gandolfini-20130620-story.html | work=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=June 20, 2013 | access-date=February 9, 2017}}</ref>

Likewise, director [[Kathryn Bigelow]] said that ''Mean Streets'' was one of her five favorite movies.<ref>{{Cite web |date=July 8, 2009 |title=Five Favorite Films with Kathryn Bigelow |url=https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/five-favorite-films-with-kathryn-bigelow/ |access-date=November 16, 2020 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]}}</ref>

In an interview with [[GQ Magazine|''GQ'']], [[Spike Lee]] named ''Mean Streets'' as one of his influences, along with ''[[On The Waterfront]]''.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ofiaza |first1=Renz |title=Spike Lee Breaks Down His Film Heroes in New Interview |url=https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/spike-lee-film-heroes/ |access-date=November 7, 2021 |work=Highsnobiety |date=August 19, 2018 |language=en}}</ref>

In 2011, [[Empire (film magazine)|''Empire'']] listed the film as #1 on its "50 Greatest American Independent Films" list.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Toy |first1=Sam |last2=Carty |first2=Stephen |last3=Jolin |first3=Dan |last4=White |first4=James |last5=O'Hara |first5=Helen |last6=Plumb |first6=Ali |last7=De Semlyen |first7=Philip |title=The 50 Greatest American Independent Movies |url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/50-greatest-american-indies/ |access-date=November 7, 2021 |work=Empire |date=June 30, 2011}}</ref>

In 2022, the film appeared on "''Variety'''s 100 Greatest Films of All Time" list.<ref>{{Cite web |last6=Laffly |date=2022-12-21 |title=The 100 Greatest Movies of All Time |url=https://variety.com/lists/best-movies-of-all-time/mean-streets-1973-2/ |access-date=2023-04-15 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Home media==
''Mean Streets'' was released on [[VHS]] and [[Betamax]] in 1985.{{citation needed|date=March 2025}} The film debuted as a [[Letterboxing (filming)|letterboxed]] [[LaserDisc]] on October 7, 1991, in the US.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lddb.com/laserdisc/03483/12241/Mean-Streets |title=Mean Streets (1973) [12241] |publisher=LaserDisc Database |access-date=2017-02-27}}</ref> It was released on [[Blu-ray Disc|Blu-ray]] on April 6, 2011, in France,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Mean-Streets-Blu-ray/20091/ |title=Mean Streets Blu-ray (France) |publisher=Blu-ray.com |access-date=2013-02-28}}</ref> and in America on July 17, 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Mean-Streets-Blu-ray/40809/ |title=Mean Streets Blu-ray |publisher=Blu-ray.com |access-date=2016-10-20}}</ref>

The home media release uses the original [[monaural|mono]] audio track rather than a modern [[Surround sound|surround-sound]] mix, as is common for films that have originally had mono audio. A May 18, 2015, release in the UK alters the color timing, and includes a [[Lossless Audio|lossless]] [[Stereophonic sound|stereo]] audio track.<ref>{{Citation |title=Mean Streets Blu-ray (United Kingdom) |url=https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Mean-Streets-Blu-ray/116473/ |access-date=2023-02-21}}</ref> The film received a [[4K Ultra HD Blu-ray|4K Ultra HD]] and [[Blu-ray]] release from [[The Criterion Collection]] on November 21, 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mean Streets |url=https://www.criterion.com/films/29024-mean-streets |access-date=2023-08-19 |website=The Criterion Collection |language=en}}</ref>

==Soundtrack==
Scorsese mainly used vintage pop songs as the movie soundtrack, a revolutionary move at the time. The use of the song "[[Be My Baby]]" by [[the Ronettes]], at the start of the film is considered one of the most memorable moments of Scorsese's career,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Martin Scorsese: a career in 10 songs |url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/lists/martin-scorsese-songs-soundtracks-music |access-date=2023-03-31 |website=BFI |date=January 3, 2017 |language=en}}</ref> and according to critic [[Owen Gleiberman]], "arguably the single greatest use of a pop song in Hollywood history".<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Gleiberman |first1=Owen |date=2010-07-10 |title='The Agony and the Ecstasy of Phil Spector': If you love pop music, you must see this movie |url=https://ew.com/article/2010/07/10/the-agony-and-ecstasy-of-phil-spector/ |access-date=2023-03-31 |website=EW.com |language=en}}</ref>

Other songs that appear on the film are:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mean Streets Soundtrack - Listen to all songs with scene descriptions |url=https://www.soundtrackradar.com/mean-streets-soundtrack/ |access-date=2023-03-31 |website=Soundtrack Radar |date=March 31, 2021 |language=en-US}}</ref>

* "[[Tell Me (Rolling Stones song)|Tell Me]]" by [[The Rolling Stones]]
* "[[I Looked Away]]" by [[Eric Clapton]]
* "[[Jumpin' Jack Flash]]" by The  Rolling Stones
* "Desiree" by [[The Charts (American group)|The Charts]]
* "I Met Him On A Sunday" by [[The Shirelles]]
* "Florence" by [[Winley Records|The Paragons]]
* "[[Those Oldies but Goodies (Remind Me of You)|Those Oldies But Goodies]]" by [[Little Caesar & the Romans|Little Caesar and The Romans]]
* "[[Please Mr. Postman]]" by [[The Marvelettes]]
* "You" by [[The Aquatones]]
* "[[The Shoop Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss)|It's In His Kiss]]" by [[Betty Everett]]
* "I Love You So" by [[The Chantels]]
* "Ship Of Love" by [[The Nutmegs]]
* "[[Rubber Biscuit]]" by [[The Chips]]
* "[[Pledging My Love]]" by [[Johnny Ace]]
* "Baby Oh Baby" by [[The Shells]]
* "[[Mickey's Monkey (song)|Mickey's Monkey]]" by [[The Miracles]]
* "[[Steppin' Out (instrumental)|Stepping Out]]" by [[Cream (band)|Cream]]

No official release of the soundtrack has been published.{{citation needed|date=March 2025}}

== In popular culture ==
In the 2005 novel [[Remainder (novel)|Remainder]], the unnamed narrator venerated the authenticity of De Niro’s character as “natural when he does things,” unlike the narrator himself, and an effort to feel similar ease with himself is the quest that catalyzes the book’s plot.<ref>{{Cite book |last=McCarthy |first=Tom |url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/ocm71173915 |title=Remainder |date=2007 |publisher=Vintage Books |isbn=978-0-307-27835-7 |location=New York |pages=23 |oclc=ocm71173915}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of American films of 1973]]
* [[List of cult films]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|id=0070379|title=Mean Streets}}
* {{TCMDb title|83170|title=Mean Streets}}
* {{AFI film|55020}}

{{Martin Scorsese |state=autocollapse}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1973 films]]
[[Category:1973 crime drama films]]
[[Category:1970s American films]]
[[Category:1970s English-language films]]
[[Category:American crime drama films]]
[[Category:American neo-noir films]]
[[Category:Films about Catholicism]]
[[Category:Films about the American Mafia]]
[[Category:Films directed by Martin Scorsese]]
[[Category:1973 independent films]]
[[Category:Films set in New York City]]
[[Category:Films shot in New York City]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Martin Scorsese]]
[[Category:English-language independent films]]
[[Category:English-language crime drama films]]
[[Category:United States National Film Registry films]]
[[Category:Warner Bros. films]]