A Perfect Entrance

Of late this blog has gotten a little travel heavy and that’s because of course, I am travelling. However, I’m acutely conscious that this is not a travel blog. There’s no intent to unseat Lonely Planet in telling you where to go, what to do, or what to think. Instead, the aim is to illicit thought, bring an alternative view, or take a dive into the less talked about.

Whilst staying in the rolling hills of the Sicilian countryside I just had to rewatch the Godfather trilogy and during Godfather II I was reminded how cool Robert De Niro, playing a young Vito Corleone, looks. The baker boy hat, the brown herringbone chore jacket, the wool trousers - it’s almost like a lookbook for Engineered Garments, only cent’anni fa.

Robert De Niro as a young Vito Corleone in Godfather II

But, it’s not The Godfather II I wanted to cover here, it’s Mean Streets and specifically De Niro’s entrance in the film, which incidentally was his first major entrance on the silver screen.

My friend and I often talk about this scene when we’ve had a few beers and it turns to the inevitable conversation of film and tv. 

Johnny Boy enters the bar arm in arm with two girls, already loud, already alive, already impossible to ignore. He is there to meet Charlie, played by Harvey Keitel, but the room belongs to him. The scene unfolds in slow motion, set to the raw opening of “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” by The Rolling Stones. Brian Jones’ bass riff carries him forward as Mick Jagger howls, “I was born in a crossfire hurricane,” and suddenly everything makes sense. This character is going to be trouble. Charlie knows it - you can tell by his expression as Johnny Boy walks through the bar, and so, now does the viewer.

For my money, it is a perfect introduction. The character, the confidence, the absolute command of attention. All eyes are on De Niro, and rightly so. It is one of Scorsese’s finest moments, which is no small claim more than fifty years on.

Robert De Niro as Johnny Boy in Mean Streets