Mean Streets

Robert De Niro and Harvey Keitel excel in Scorsese’s seminal tale of the conflict between Catholicism and crime in New York’s Little Italy.

Revisiting and refining the themes of his debut (Who's That Knocking at My Door?), Scorsese explores the various conflicting emotions of the anxiously Catholic Charlie (Keitel), working for his uncle’s somewhat dubious business while trying to control his friend Johnny Boy (De Niro), his girlfriend’s near-psychopathic cousin. The bracing mix of music, movie references and breathless energy made this a major step in the director’s development.