The themes of redemption and religion appear multiple times throughout Mean Streets. These overarching themes start to appear as early as the opening scene! The very first line of the film addresses both topics, redemption AND religion. "You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets." is the most famous line from Mean Streets. Charlie, one of the main characters, is also the most religious. He opens up the film with that line and a dark screen. Suddenly, the scene cuts to a shot of Charlie abruptly waking up from a dream. The silver cross hanging around his neck shines in the light. The camera follows Charlie, and as it pans across the room, a large crucifix can be seen hanging on his wall. The room is dark, but Charlie and the crucifix can be seen clearly. This is significant to show Charlie's beliefs. But his first line in the film proves he is nontraditional. Charlie makes up for his sins during his day to day life. While other Christians make up for their sins in church. He redeems himself in the streets. Even if it does involve violence and illegal activity. Redemption and Religion go hand in hand from the start of this film. The opening credits begin to roll and more evidence of redemption/religion begin to show. They start with sirens and flashing lights of police cars. And it cuts to a shot of Charlie's face, as if he committed the crime, or was cause of the police cars. Then Charlie begins doing good deeds. He is shaking hands and hugging people on the street. Essentially, he is redeeming himself of any wrong he has done towards these people. Religious sacraments, such as baptism, are also shown on screen. Charlie is shaking hands with the priest, and a shot of the church ends the credits. The themes of redemption and religion are present all throughout the film, but they are presented strongly within the first few minutes.
Redemption especially, as well as religion are prevailing themes in Mean Streets. In the first bar scene, these themes are clear. In this scene, Johnny Boy enters, with two young women on his arms. In terms of religion, the bar is presented as a sort of Dante’s inferno, a place of the devil. The bar is forever the place of action and chaos. A murder takes place there. People are constantly drinking (as it is a bar) and womanizing. The lighting over the entire bar is tinted red, an opposite of purity and innocence represented by the gold, brown, and pearly natural tones of the church scene. The church is more natural looking. The bar is artificial and distorted, in presentation and content. The characters found at the bar are vivid caricatures. The costume of Johnny characterizing him as one who could need redemption, and that conception begins to be established in this scene. His shirt collar is exaggerated and pointy, his hat is unique to him, his tie is wide and his jacket is unbuttoned. This is in contrast to Charlie’s slimmer tie, less exaggerated tie, more trim and buttoned jacket. The first interaction seen involving Johnny is the discussion of his debt, and questioning of the origin of the women he brought. He is jovial, and Charlie is serious. The music in the entrance prevails over all the bar sounds, it makes the entrance of Johnny Boy substantial. It associates him the with bar and makes it his domain. If Charlie is the religious force in the movie, associated with the church, then Johnny is the anti-religious force.
Religion and redemption show up often in Scorcese's Mean Streets. The most obvious of this occurs relatively close to the beginning. The sequence begins with Johnny blowing up a mailbox allowing us to see the almost playful ruthlessness that he possesses. There is an immediate cut to Charlie walking up the aisle of a church (with a rather appropriate sound bridge of a siren to facilitate the jump). We are introduced to him for the first time and the camera follows him as it transforms into a low-angle shot of the altar and religious statues above it. We then cut to a high angle shot, as if we are in the position of the religious figures. We move from a high to low angle shot as we hear a voice-over of a derivative of "I am not worthy to eat your flesh, not worthy to drink your blood." After that completes, there are two shots in very quick succession of the religious statues above the altar. This gives the feeling of Charlie being intimidated by religion and that the figures, while he's very powerful, somehow control him. Several shots later, the camera moves around Charlie as he stands among more statues and candles on the left side of the church. He examines all the religion around him as a voice-over declares his feelings towards given confessions. Within the voice-over, he tells someone (and in turn, the audience) that he does his own penance for his own sins, which involves holding his finger above a flame so he can feel the pain and pay for his actions. This is an interesting concept brought up several times in the film, firstly in the beginning with the famous voice-over regarding paying for sins on the streets. In a sense, Charlie believes in making up for his wrong doings so much that he wants to physically suffer for what he's done. He believes in religion condoning physical suffering and by doing so, he is doing what God really desires for him (rather than what the church has declared a way to make up for sins). In his films, Scorcese often portrays religion as an essential element in one's life but is often masked by what people must do to maintain a living or appease a friend, which is essentially what Mean Streets examines.
Martin Scorsese’s film “Mean Streets” is a film that centers around a group of Italian mobsters and their interactions with each other. Throughout the film, there are many instances where themes of redemption and religion are used, though in a strange way. While they are occasionally separate, it seems that these themes are most of the time woven right into these mobsters’ inappropriate and vulgar lifestyles, almost ironically. The scene I chose to look at is the scene where Charlie confronts Johnt in the back room of a bar. The conversation is one of redemption, as Charlie is grilling Johnny about paying back a man named Michael, whom Johnny owes a small sum of money too. Already, it is obvious that redemption will not be near in the future, as the two almost huddle in a room that is very small and dark, with clutter enclosing them and the dark enclosing them, which is environment counterintuitive to a would be redemption. Also, Johnny does not seem keen on the idea of redemption, as he lies from the very beginning to Johnny about paying back Michael. Not until he is directly in the face of danger does Johnny fess up to his dishonesty, which is a theme evident throughout the film. Not only that but Johnny actively flies in the face of redemption. He tells a story, in which he has enough money to pay back some of the debts he owes people, but instead he bets it on a game. Not only that, but he takes a moment of distraction to steal all the money in the game and run away. Almost karmically, he gets lost and must return to the scene of the crime. He is forced to return the money, and (maybe as a punishment) begins losing the games he was previously winning. Furthermore, a man he already owes money to shows up and demands what money is left on Johnny after he sustains decent loses. Even past that, he threatens that he was to “kill this kid” for putting him in the position of having startled everyone into running, and then Johnny having to return the money, instead of looking at the fact that he was in the wrong all along. However, in a weird way, his next act of dishonesty is somewhat redeeming. He spends more money that he could be paying back on a new shirt and tie. While this money could have been used in a more moral way, the fact that he was using the money in a self bettering way is somewhat redeeming. Also, he could have spent the money in any number of worse and immoral ways, so that is also redeeming in a small way. It’s also against the religion of these mobsters to gamble, but Johnny is doing so in earnest. Also, Charlie asks Johnny is Michael is “his priest,” which is interesting seeing as Michael’s whole character right now is a threat to Johnny, as well as the fact that his presence is a living testimony to Johnny’s own sins. Taking right steps down the road to redemption, Charlie scolds Johnny for what he’s done, even slapping him, and takes the excess money from Johnny in order to hold onto it until he can honestly pay back some of his debtors. Johnny swears on his mother that he has only good intents for that money, though we clearly know he has no such intentions, further skewing his walk to redemption. This can also be viewed as breaking the commandment “honor thy father and mother.” Further, he swears to Christ that he will use the money for good, explicitly bringing religion into the conversation, as well as breaking the commandment “Do not take thy lord’s name in vain,” again as we know he has no such good intent for the money. In the next sentence after mentioning Christ, Johnny talks about his plans to seduce and sleep with some women in the bar,and pushes Charlie to do the same, though this is wrong and Charlie already has a girlfriend, just once more showing the ironic way religion is present in the lives of these men.
The themes of religion especially but also redemption are evident even starting from the first few scenes of the movie. Just after the shot where Johnny Boy is introduced blowing up a mailbox showing what kind of character he is going to be. It is a shot of Charlie in a church walking down the aisle. This is the first time we actually get to meet Charlie as a character, and it opens with religion. The camera then becomes a low angle shot of the altar. The words of an unknown source then speak “I am not worthy to eat your flesh, not worthy to drink your blood.” This shows just how religious this man is and the last thing to note is throughout the whole movie, even when depicted mostly naked, he is wearing a cross around his neck. This further shows just how important religion is to Charlie. The interesting thing about Martin Scorcese’s films are that they are almost all mainly about religion and how the characters usually end up sining to help a friend redeem either a moment in his life or just their entire life as a whole. Just as Charlie sins to try and help Johnny Boy redeem his life.
Religion plays a pivotal part in the scene where Johnny Boy is confronted about his not paying debts owed, but instead gambling it away and going suit shopping. He attempts to convince Charlie that he is being honest, and rambles on about how he will pay the upcoming week. In this scene, cinematic elements rise to the surface to show they underlying themes in this scene. When the two men are talking, lighting is heavily used. In the background, most of both are completely dark, implying possibly that the world surrounding them (especially the mafia/mobster one) is quite a dark one. As well, the lighting on johnny's face seemed to be from below, a common opne done in biblical painting to show the evil lurking under the surface, by the shadows creating a distorted face. On the other side, the camera angle and light on Charlie seemed to be from above, both creating the illusion of helplessness and fear. He is the link between the mobster who lent Johnny money, and if Johhny fails to come through, it's his life on the line. This was often depicted in biblical pictures as well, showing Jesus to be vulnerable and accountable for the actions of others, just as Charlie seems to be now.
The themes of redemption and religion appear multiple times throughout Mean Streets. These overarching themes start to appear as early as the opening scene! The very first line of the film addresses both topics, redemption AND religion. "You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets." is the most famous line from Mean Streets. Charlie, one of the main characters, is also the most religious. He opens up the film with that line and a dark screen. Suddenly, the scene cuts to a shot of Charlie abruptly waking up from a dream. The silver cross hanging around his neck shines in the light. The camera follows Charlie, and as it pans across the room, a large crucifix can be seen hanging on his wall. The room is dark, but Charlie and the crucifix can be seen clearly. This is significant to show Charlie's beliefs. But his first line in the film proves he is nontraditional. Charlie makes up for his sins during his day to day life. While other Christians make up for their sins in church. He redeems himself in the streets. Even if it does involve violence and illegal activity. Redemption and Religion go hand in hand from the start of this film. The opening credits begin to roll and more evidence of redemption/religion begin to show. They start with sirens and flashing lights of police cars. And it cuts to a shot of Charlie's face, as if he committed the crime, or was cause of the police cars. Then Charlie begins doing good deeds. He is shaking hands and hugging people on the street. Essentially, he is redeeming himself of any wrong he has done towards these people. Religious sacraments, such as baptism, are also shown on screen. Charlie is shaking hands with the priest, and a shot of the church ends the credits. The themes of redemption and religion are present all throughout the film, but they are presented strongly within the first few minutes.
ReplyDeleteRedemption especially, as well as religion are prevailing themes in Mean Streets. In the first bar scene, these themes are clear. In this scene, Johnny Boy enters, with two young women on his arms. In terms of religion, the bar is presented as a sort of Dante’s inferno, a place of the devil. The bar is forever the place of action and chaos. A murder takes place there. People are constantly drinking (as it is a bar) and womanizing. The lighting over the entire bar is tinted red, an opposite of purity and innocence represented by the gold, brown, and pearly natural tones of the church scene. The church is more natural looking. The bar is artificial and distorted, in presentation and content. The characters found at the bar are vivid caricatures. The costume of Johnny characterizing him as one who could need redemption, and that conception begins to be established in this scene. His shirt collar is exaggerated and pointy, his hat is unique to him, his tie is wide and his jacket is unbuttoned. This is in contrast to Charlie’s slimmer tie, less exaggerated tie, more trim and buttoned jacket. The first interaction seen involving Johnny is the discussion of his debt, and questioning of the origin of the women he brought. He is jovial, and Charlie is serious. The music in the entrance prevails over all the bar sounds, it makes the entrance of Johnny Boy substantial. It associates him the with bar and makes it his domain. If Charlie is the religious force in the movie, associated with the church, then Johnny is the anti-religious force.
ReplyDeleteReligion and redemption show up often in Scorcese's Mean Streets. The most obvious of this occurs relatively close to the beginning. The sequence begins with Johnny blowing up a mailbox allowing us to see the almost playful ruthlessness that he possesses. There is an immediate cut to Charlie walking up the aisle of a church (with a rather appropriate sound bridge of a siren to facilitate the jump). We are introduced to him for the first time and the camera follows him as it transforms into a low-angle shot of the altar and religious statues above it. We then cut to a high angle shot, as if we are in the position of the religious figures. We move from a high to low angle shot as we hear a voice-over of a derivative of "I am not worthy to eat your flesh, not worthy to drink your blood." After that completes, there are two shots in very quick succession of the religious statues above the altar. This gives the feeling of Charlie being intimidated by religion and that the figures, while he's very powerful, somehow control him. Several shots later, the camera moves around Charlie as he stands among more statues and candles on the left side of the church. He examines all the religion around him as a voice-over declares his feelings towards given confessions. Within the voice-over, he tells someone (and in turn, the audience) that he does his own penance for his own sins, which involves holding his finger above a flame so he can feel the pain and pay for his actions. This is an interesting concept brought up several times in the film, firstly in the beginning with the famous voice-over regarding paying for sins on the streets. In a sense, Charlie believes in making up for his wrong doings so much that he wants to physically suffer for what he's done. He believes in religion condoning physical suffering and by doing so, he is doing what God really desires for him (rather than what the church has declared a way to make up for sins). In his films, Scorcese often portrays religion as an essential element in one's life but is often masked by what people must do to maintain a living or appease a friend, which is essentially what Mean Streets examines.
ReplyDeleteMartin Scorsese’s film “Mean Streets” is a film that centers around a group of Italian mobsters and their interactions with each other. Throughout the film, there are many instances where themes of redemption and religion are used, though in a strange way. While they are occasionally separate, it seems that these themes are most of the time woven right into these mobsters’ inappropriate and vulgar lifestyles, almost ironically. The scene I chose to look at is the scene where Charlie confronts Johnt in the back room of a bar. The conversation is one of redemption, as Charlie is grilling Johnny about paying back a man named Michael, whom Johnny owes a small sum of money too. Already, it is obvious that redemption will not be near in the future, as the two almost huddle in a room that is very small and dark, with clutter enclosing them and the dark enclosing them, which is environment counterintuitive to a would be redemption. Also, Johnny does not seem keen on the idea of redemption, as he lies from the very beginning to Johnny about paying back Michael. Not until he is directly in the face of danger does Johnny fess up to his dishonesty, which is a theme evident throughout the film. Not only that but Johnny actively flies in the face of redemption. He tells a story, in which he has enough money to pay back some of the debts he owes people, but instead he bets it on a game. Not only that, but he takes a moment of distraction to steal all the money in the game and run away. Almost karmically, he gets lost and must return to the scene of the crime. He is forced to return the money, and (maybe as a punishment) begins losing the games he was previously winning. Furthermore, a man he already owes money to shows up and demands what money is left on Johnny after he sustains decent loses. Even past that, he threatens that he was to “kill this kid” for putting him in the position of having startled everyone into running, and then Johnny having to return the money, instead of looking at the fact that he was in the wrong all along. However, in a weird way, his next act of dishonesty is somewhat redeeming. He spends more money that he could be paying back on a new shirt and tie. While this money could have been used in a more moral way, the fact that he was using the money in a self bettering way is somewhat redeeming. Also, he could have spent the money in any number of worse and immoral ways, so that is also redeeming in a small way. It’s also against the religion of these mobsters to gamble, but Johnny is doing so in earnest. Also, Charlie asks Johnny is Michael is “his priest,” which is interesting seeing as Michael’s whole character right now is a threat to Johnny, as well as the fact that his presence is a living testimony to Johnny’s own sins. Taking right steps down the road to redemption, Charlie scolds Johnny for what he’s done, even slapping him, and takes the excess money from Johnny in order to hold onto it until he can honestly pay back some of his debtors. Johnny swears on his mother that he has only good intents for that money, though we clearly know he has no such intentions, further skewing his walk to redemption. This can also be viewed as breaking the commandment “honor thy father and mother.” Further, he swears to Christ that he will use the money for good, explicitly bringing religion into the conversation, as well as breaking the commandment “Do not take thy lord’s name in vain,” again as we know he has no such good intent for the money. In the next sentence after mentioning Christ, Johnny talks about his plans to seduce and sleep with some women in the bar,and pushes Charlie to do the same, though this is wrong and Charlie already has a girlfriend, just once more showing the ironic way religion is present in the lives of these men.
ReplyDeleteThe themes of religion especially but also redemption are evident even starting from the first few scenes of the movie. Just after the shot where Johnny Boy is introduced blowing up a mailbox showing what kind of character he is going to be. It is a shot of Charlie in a church walking down the aisle. This is the first time we actually get to meet Charlie as a character, and it opens with religion. The camera then becomes a low angle shot of the altar. The words of an unknown source then speak “I am not worthy to eat your flesh, not worthy to drink your blood.” This shows just how religious this man is and the last thing to note is throughout the whole movie, even when depicted mostly naked, he is wearing a cross around his neck. This further shows just how important religion is to Charlie. The interesting thing about Martin Scorcese’s films are that they are almost all mainly about religion and how the characters usually end up sining to help a friend redeem either a moment in his life or just their entire life as a whole. Just as Charlie sins to try and help Johnny Boy redeem his life.
ReplyDeleteReligion plays a pivotal part in the scene where Johnny Boy is confronted about his not paying debts owed, but instead gambling it away and going suit shopping. He attempts to convince Charlie that he is being honest, and rambles on about how he will pay the upcoming week. In this scene, cinematic elements rise to the surface to show they underlying themes in this scene. When the two men are talking, lighting is heavily used. In the background, most of both are completely dark, implying possibly that the world surrounding them (especially the mafia/mobster one) is quite a dark one. As well, the lighting on johnny's face seemed to be from below, a common opne done in biblical painting to show the evil lurking under the surface, by the shadows creating a distorted face. On the other side, the camera angle and light on Charlie seemed to be from above, both creating the illusion of helplessness and fear. He is the link between the mobster who lent Johnny money, and if Johhny fails to come through, it's his life on the line. This was often depicted in biblical pictures as well, showing Jesus to be vulnerable and accountable for the actions of others, just as Charlie seems to be now.
ReplyDelete