``Mean Streets'' Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro's first collaboration reveals the origins of gangster movies

The raw brilliance of the famous actor Robert De Niro

The lead actor is Harvey Keitel, and his subdued performance is not bad, but it's Robert De Niro's Johnny Boy who steals the show. Because the character has no idea what he's going to do, you can't take your eyes off him from beginning to end. There was a madness in his eyes, which became the basis for what would later become `` Taxi Driver .''

When this film was released in 1973, De Niro finally gained attention in Hollywood, but at that time he was already 30 years old. He was a surprisingly late-blooming actor in the film industry. Born into an artistic lineage where both his parents were painters, he was naturally shy and didn't talk much. He decided to become an actor when he was 10 years old, and even played the role of a shy lion in The Wizard of Oz. At the age of 16, he performed in a Chekhov play at his high school and received his first salary. Eventually, he met famous instructors such as Stella Adler and Lee Strasberg, honed his acting skills, and his performances on stage began to be praised.

After that, he began working with Brian De Palma, who was aiming to be the second Godard in the independent film industry at the time, and produced films such as ``The Wedding Party'' (1969) and ``Blue Manhattan I.'' (70) and ``Blue Manhattan II'' (68). ``When he was 19 years old, he came to audition for a movie and his performance was absolutely amazing,'' De Palma recalls.

"Mean Streets" (c)1973, Renewed (c)2001 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All rights reserved.

He then introduced him to Scorsese, who was a friend of De Palma's, and they worked together for the first time on ``Mean Streets'' (De Palma also reportedly helped edit the film). Scorsese and De Niro were said to have known each other before, but after De Palma formally introduced them, they decided to work together. The two seem to have hit it off, as they both hail from the same Little Italy neighborhood.

``Bob (De Niro) has great instincts, and he makes the right choices. He understands the city he's portraying, so I thought he would be a perfect fit for Johnny,'' Scorsese said. "We're both Outsider and we see things the same way."

On the other hand, De Niro seems to think about his own acting style. "For me, acting is about playing a variety of different characters and getting as close as possible to the reality of that character." (De Palma, Scorsese and De Niro are quoted in "Robert De Niro: The Hero Behind from “The Masks” by Keith McKay)

When these two met, ``Mean Streets'', full of sparkling genius, was completed. Pauline Kael, the New Yorker's most famous critic, said, ``This film is a truly original and personal filmmaking success for our time.''

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Text: Sawako Omori

Movie journalist. His books include "Lost Cinema" (Kawade Shobo Shinsha) and other books, and his translations include "Woody" (by D. Evanier, Kinema Junposha). Contributes to magazines such as ``Weekly Women'', ``Music Magazine'', and ``Kinema Junpo''. A research book based on the web series, `` Mini Theater Revisited, '' is also scheduled to be published.

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"Mean Streets"

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(c)1973, Renewed (c)2001 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All rights reserved.