One of the movies that really speak to me about fathers and sons is “A Bronx Tale.” Directed by Robert De Nero and written by and starring Chazz Palminteri it pretty much sums up how it was to live in Carroll Gardens back in the day.
You know the story. Bus driver Lorenzo lives with his wife and son Calogero in a walk up brownstone apartment in the Bronx which is dominated by the local Mafia social club. The gangsters are admired and emulated by a lot of the kids and the head guy Sonny (Chazz Palminteri) takes a liking to young Calogero after he doesn’t rat him out to the cops after he sees him shoot a guy. He almost tries to adopt him as a surrogate son. Which didn’t sit so well with his parents.
There is a great scene where after the kid lies to the cops he turns to his Dad and says “Did I do a good thing.” And his dad says “You did a good thing for a bad man.”
Now Lorenzo was a genuine tough guy himself. He had to be driving a bus through some tough neighborhoods in the Bronx. But he wasn’t a killer. None the less he confronts Sonny and tells him to stay away from his son. He refuses dirty money and keeps his integrity. That really took balls. Which really didn’t impress his son all that much? The easy assurance and the money and girls and fun of being a gangster is what impressed the kid. He left his Dad and his love of jazz and the Yankees behind to hang out at the club. Right up to the moment Sonny got whacked in the street. Then he finally realized what was what. But it was too late. So much time had passed. So many feelings had been hurt. A big part of growing up had been stunted for him. He could never get it back.
I grew up in a similar milieu. We used to pass Joey Gallo and a lot of other gangster on Columbia Street back in the day. They had clubs and did gambling and drugs and all that good shit. Most of us passed them by to go on and live happy and productive lives. Some drifted into that life. They are all dead now. But this movie shows how it really was.
Catch this movie if you can. It tells a really interesting father and son st
You know the story. Bus driver Lorenzo lives with his wife and son Calogero in a walk up brownstone apartment in the Bronx which is dominated by the local Mafia social club. The gangsters are admired and emulated by a lot of the kids and the head guy Sonny (Chazz Palminteri) takes a liking to young Calogero after he doesn’t rat him out to the cops after he sees him shoot a guy. He almost tries to adopt him as a surrogate son. Which didn’t sit so well with his parents.
There is a great scene where after the kid lies to the cops he turns to his Dad and says “Did I do a good thing.” And his dad says “You did a good thing for a bad man.”
Now Lorenzo was a genuine tough guy himself. He had to be driving a bus through some tough neighborhoods in the Bronx. But he wasn’t a killer. None the less he confronts Sonny and tells him to stay away from his son. He refuses dirty money and keeps his integrity. That really took balls. Which really didn’t impress his son all that much? The easy assurance and the money and girls and fun of being a gangster is what impressed the kid. He left his Dad and his love of jazz and the Yankees behind to hang out at the club. Right up to the moment Sonny got whacked in the street. Then he finally realized what was what. But it was too late. So much time had passed. So many feelings had been hurt. A big part of growing up had been stunted for him. He could never get it back.
I grew up in a similar milieu. We used to pass Joey Gallo and a lot of other gangster on Columbia Street back in the day. They had clubs and did gambling and drugs and all that good shit. Most of us passed them by to go on and live happy and productive lives. Some drifted into that life. They are all dead now. But this movie shows how it really was.
Catch this movie if you can. It tells a really interesting father and son st
8 comments:
--ory.
Ewww, you guys are finishing each other's sentences now.
Jealous.
Your next poll should answer the manly question-
What is your favorite AC/DC song?
I've got big balls.
My Father thinks Little Lover is the bomb.
Saw ya in the front row, movin to the beat.
Was it Coca-Cola?
The mentality of the crime-infested ghetto: Covering up a murder is a good thing. Martha is appalled!
I'll have to check that Troop, I never saw Bronx Tale and I pride myself on seeing everything DeNiro did.
The man is a giant in cinema.
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