From the play by Chazz Palminteri and the directorial debut of Robert De Niro comes "A Bronx Tale." A young boy who idolizes Sonny (Chazz Palminteri), the local mob boss, gets into Sonny's good graces by not being "a rat." The movie is a first-person narrative from the young boy turned teenager, Calogero aka C. C narrates about life in an Italian section of the Bronx, its ups and downs, and how he had to balance between fidelity to his father, Lorenzo (Robert De Niro), and his idol, Sonny.
The movie takes place in two distinct years, 1960 and 1968. A lot of it is familiar territory for an Italian-American movie: suited gangsters, New York accents, violence, and a disdain for Black people. Though the disdain for Blacks would be challenged in this movie a little. And I emphasize "a little."
The main character Calogero (Lillo Brancato) had a thing for an African-American girl named Jane (Taral Hicks). I suppose that was supposed to show that he didn't have the same racial hang-ups as the other Italians in the neighborhood.
I guess.
I know plenty of people willing to date, sleep with, and even marry a person of a different race while still detesting everyone else of that same race. A relationship with a Black girl, no matter how intimate, doesn't absolve someone of bigotry.
I liked the movie more when I was younger. There are many good aspects to "A Bronx Tale" and it's a solid debut for Chazz Palminteri as a writer.
The movie takes place in two distinct years, 1960 and 1968. A lot of it is familiar territory for an Italian-American movie: suited gangsters, New York accents, violence, and a disdain for Black people. Though the disdain for Blacks would be challenged in this movie a little. And I emphasize "a little."
The main character Calogero (Lillo Brancato) had a thing for an African-American girl named Jane (Taral Hicks). I suppose that was supposed to show that he didn't have the same racial hang-ups as the other Italians in the neighborhood.
I guess.
I know plenty of people willing to date, sleep with, and even marry a person of a different race while still detesting everyone else of that same race. A relationship with a Black girl, no matter how intimate, doesn't absolve someone of bigotry.
I liked the movie more when I was younger. There are many good aspects to "A Bronx Tale" and it's a solid debut for Chazz Palminteri as a writer.