Customer Reviews

Who's That Knocking at My Door?

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4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Who's that knocking at my Door", Martin Scorsese's debut film is almost plotless. J.R. (played by Harvey Keitel, brilliant by the way) is a young Italian American living in Little Italy, who after wooing a WASPish girl (Zina Bethune) with his love of John Wayne westerns, is disgusted by her well intentioned admission that she's not a virgin and consequently their relationship ends...

"Who's that knocking..." has all the excesses of a first feature. It's uneven and episodic, sometimes terribly naïve with some overt religious symbolism. These are minor complaints however as the young Scorsese has created a movie that resonates a manic energy, extraordinary style and a rare sense of eroticism. Very important in the Scorsese cannon, the film looks forward to later films ( "Mean Streets", "Raging Bull" and "Goodfellas") with its anthropological feel for the males codes his later characters would explore.

Equally important, the film shows how American cinema became colonised by the European ethic of film-making. Heavily influenced by the French New Wave, more specifically Jean-Luc Godard, the film also revels in Scorsese's love for American movies. There are references to Howard Hawks, the intense cinema of John Cassavetes (recalling his milestone "Shadows") and the explosive soundtrack reminds one of Kenneth Anger's underground epic "Scorpio Rising". As impressive a debut as you are likely to see...

I've been a fan of Scorsese's work for sometime now, and I never thought I would be as taken off guard by a film as I was when I first saw Mean Streets. Who's That Knocking At My Door? blew me away. It is similar in many ways to Mean Streets in both plot and content, but the style and sponataneity are unmatched here. If you thought Johnny Boy was an incredible character, check out Sally Gaga. Harvey Keitel stars, and seems like an entirely different actor, very innocent and affectionate at times, much more so than in his role as Charlie. Easily one of the most personal and heartfelt films ever made. Buy this if you've admired Scorsese's other work.

Scorsese as everyone reading this review or thinking about buying this item probaly already knows is one the greatest living filmmakers. Maybe its having lived in the Tri-State area my whole life and having close relatives of Italian decent, but I have always found the films of Scorese hitting close to home in many ways. The characters live and breathe on screen in such a way-its unbelievable. Okay that said let me move on to the movie at hand, Scorsese having made most of this in film school-its impressive beyond belief, it has so much raw energy to it, the scenes involving the guys just hanging out seem so real, and also as a director he shows some very stylish stuff-cinema stuff-its not as polished or as great as Mean Streets-but for anyone interest in film or Scorsese i say its a must see...

The second and final reworking of a small picture Martin Scorsese originally directed in 1965 while a student at NYU is technically far from perfect (occasional bad sound or a scene that appears to be from a multi-generational source) and has stretches of inertia or extreme close-ups that go beyond the daring.

WH'OS THAT KNOCKING AT MY DOOR? has merit not only as a directorial first effort of an acknowledged master, but for its germination of two ideas Scorsese explored more fully in MEAN STREETS (1973), GOODFELLAS (1990) and to a lesser extent, RAGING BULL (1980): 1.) that male-bonding always takes precedence over man/woman relationships, and 2.) there are two distinct categories of women, as understood by men with a properly guilt-ridden Roman Catholic upbringing.

Harvey Keitel's J.R. clearly makes these distinctions here. He professes to his sweetheart that there are "girls", the kind of women who are innocent, pure and virginal before marriage, and "broads", those that are like the men's room doorknob (everybody gets a turn), labelled by Italian-American guys (like J.R.) as "hoo-urs". The first type you marry and enshrine safely at home, the second you freely get down and dirty with in cheesy motel rooms and car back seats. This double standard would have immediate repercussions to his love life.

As mentioned above, "WHO'S THAT KNOCKING..." has a bifurcated plotline. There's the wolfpack adventures of J.R. and his pals, which are far separated from his private romantic life. This latter relationship goes awry when Zina Bethune (as the anonoymous "Girl") confesses to boyfriend J.R., after hearing his "girls' vs. "broads" philosophy, that one night another man forced himself upon her, thus she was no longer chaste. The previously affectionate J.R., who with great effort had refrained from "doing it" with "the Girl" before marriage, instantly turns bitter and excoriates her as a "hoo-ur." He cruelly walks away, their friendship broken.

There's no equivalent in J.R.'s interactions with the "guys". At times they quarrel, name-call, wrassle and duke it out, but they always remain buddies. Their fun ranges from just hanging around to getting way too drunk to aimlessly cruising the streets to climbing a forested hill outside a small rural town and enjoying the view from its summit.

J.R. broods for a while over his ex-sweety, remembers the good moments and especially his mean treatment of her the last time they were together. He eventually comes knocking at 6:30 am. Despite the hour, she's happy to see him and invites J.R. in. One element of a story that has seemed plotless gets resolved in this last scene.

Harvey Keitel was a court stenographer and Martin Scorsese was an NYU grad student when they began the film that became "Who's That Knocking at My Door?" It took a good chunk of the 1960s to finish.

Low-budget? "We talking about pennies," says Scorsese's directorial assistant and classmate, Mardik Martin.

The black-and-white film concerns a young man's inner turmoil as he tries to reconcile religion and romance while boozing it up with his pals in Little Italy. Zina Bethune is the seasoned actress on the project, pretty and mysterious. Keitel visibly ages during the film, because it was shot over several years. Scorsese's music collection propels the film, as it would in "Mean Streets" and "GoodFellas."

The new DVD does what it can, but the movie looks like hell, with persistent wear and contrasts that threaten to simply fade to black. Fuggedaboutit. It's a compelling little film, crawling with tension and filled with creativity.

This is something of a made-in-my-garage early effort from Scorsese and accordingly has plenty of rough edges and little in the way of charm or transcendence. I would only recommend this movie to Scorsese obsessives and in particular aficionados of Mean Streets. As Mean Streets is my favorite film, I felt it a duty to watch Knocking which has often been described as a dry run for Streets. Although it has many of the elements that would later blossom into the classic Scorsese style, it doesn't quite come together here. In fact, strip out the curiosity factor and Keitel's maverick performance and it's a thoroughly tedious and self-indulgent affair. But then everyone has to start somewhere and if for nothing else, at least Knocking made me wish I was an Italian living in Lower Manhattan circa 1960.

I'd advise anyone reading this to proceed directly to Mean Streets, a film of kinetic energy, loud neon and operatic brashness that Knocking only hints at.

It's obvious that Scorsese was going places after this low-budget debut. Fans might note that Mean Streeets is omewhat of a remake of Who's That Knocking... as it does again feature Keitel as the street guy torn between two worlds - living wrong and living right can somehow be balanced in the young man's psyche. Much of the same imagery migrated to the '72 film.

Some of the most captivating images ever caught on film are found in this poor man's epic - the lighting, editing, and cinematography will take you away. (Or take you back to Little Italy in the mid-1960s).

I struggled with much of the approximate first half of the film - was "The Girl" a *real* girl? Or a real girl that J.R. could never approach because he sensed a certain worldliness...disturbing to his way of life? Was his time with her in his imagination, something to intermittently preoccupy him while he messed around with his neighborhood pals bent on extending childhood? (Perhaps about ten minutes overlong with the slice of life cavorting about). Yet, even with that slight confusion, I was still reminded of Portrait of Jennie with Joseph Cotten - did Jennifer Jones exist in reality...or in his dreams?

Perhaps a better approach would have been to copy the romantic black and white classic from 1948 - note that Keitel's love has no name! She is "The Girl" - exquisitely played by Zina Bethune. Her dignified mysteriousness is quite mesmerizing. The perfect counterpoint to Harvey Keitel's roughness. He enthuses over John Wayne westerns; she loves to take ferry rides...just for the ride. A point of connection is in a beautiful early scene at the dock when J.R. gets her to admit she does have a fondness for westerns!

Speaking of Keitel, in his film debut he displays his ability to draw the viewer in to his realm by understating, though - NYU Film Scool graduates, help me out - I wonder if this belies some real lack of artistic resourcefulness. Doesn't, however, take away from his stature as a compelling character actor in many good roles.

Overall, a very good film. Naturally, Scorsese fans must own this DVD!

Who's That Knocking at My Door ( 1969 ) attracts viewers
from the 2 punch combination, of being a Martin Scorcese
picture and of headlining Harvey Keitel.

This film demonstrated and set the standard for world-class
work that both individuals would continue accomplishing
time and again, onwards.

In this particular movie, there's various components, the
main one being an attempt to bridge the gap between making
a professional movie, and what is interesting for the
average man in the street, early to mid 20's, who finished
school or college, but who at present isn't following the
set pattern of the 9 to 5 company man routine.

As such, a large part of the 90 mins shows Keitel and Zina
Bethune establishing a rapport, building a relationship,
gaining intimacy, and finally, addressing spiritual core
issues of morality in terms of how much their relationship
should or would need to evolve and grow, legitimately.

In reality, Keitel and 2 pals all struggle to find meaning
in their lives, (although they may not realize it) not
having a set objective overall of what they want to do with
it, preferring instead to perpetuate an adolescent
(frat-house) lifestyle, of driving in a car, hosting
parties with hired women as entertainment, drinking,
gambling and playing cards, when not managing a snack bar
one of them is managing.

At the same time, Keitel's character is perplexed in
reconciling his libido (which he amply satisfies with a
number of hired women in his flat, throwing cash at them),
with his upper-class, mature Italian family upbringing or
with Catholic traditions also inculcated from early on. He
makes a distinction between the fun he has with those fast
women, as compared with the serious relationship he desired
with a girlfriend he's planning on spending his life with,
originally drawing an impervious line between the two.

The filming is wide-screen, black and white, with crystal
clear images; the only bizarre moments being the lack of
audio in some scenes showing people talking, or the out of
place audio as compared to what is visually shown, or
simply random noises in the background.

A number of popular mainstream American numbers are
selected, such as "The Closer You Are" doo-wop, and others,
allowing youth to (again) better relate to the action as
compared to movies from earlier generations.

Keitel's talent is clear, as he visually expresses with
subtlety, feelings that are simmering below the surface,
bringing a natural presence, or personality, to the
picture, more real to viewers.

The director decided to film all the actors wearing a
sports suit and tie, as a kind of standard uniform, for
stylish reasons.

The technology of the era is somewhat demonstrated, with
multiple floor automobile parking, air conditioning and
electric windows in vehicles, etc.

A questionable decision, are the final moments of the work,
which is the juxtaposition of pop music and sacred
religious objects, not long after Keitel's character is
shown repenting and confessing his sins.

This suggests the protagonist is set in his ways, and can't
reform or correct his character, and suggests also perhaps,
that's what every American is going through in this day and
age (late 1960's.)

The work is time well spent, as the editing is spotless,
and Zina Bethune's soft-spoken, candid, realistic acting is
a match for Harvey Keitel.

Who's That Knocking At My Door is primarily of historical interest, more an exercise in style - in this case a New York 60s spin on nouvelle vague and Italian neo-realism - than a work of substance. Expanded from a film school project, Scorsese's feature debut is typically light on plot, counterpointing Harvey Keitel's Mean Streets-lite time-wasting with the boys from the old neighbourhood with his failed romance with Zina Bethune that offers the possibility something better. There's more energy than insight and the passage of time has dulled it's edge, but it's not without interest, especially in the way that at times Keitel seems to be playing Scorsese, never more so than in the scene where he picks up Bethune by talking about The Searchers after seeing a picture of the Duke in her copy of Cahiers du Cinema.

Warners DVD includes a partial audio commentary from Martin Scorsese and an informative interview featurette with directorial assistant Mardik Martin, but it might have been interesting to have seen the original short film version, Bring On the Dancing Girls, as well. The transfer is much better than expected considering the limitations of the original material.

Martin Scorsese's debut film is one that may not be remembered when looking back over his career, but it is one that should be seen to understand just what a brilliant mind he is.

The movie follos J.R., a catholic man with ties to the mafia. He meets a young girl and the movie is mainly about his time spent with her and his other "family". The dichotic issues Scorsese explored in this movie would be explored in more detail in his future films, including the immaculate Mean Streets (Special Edition).

THe DVD features a commentary with Martin Scorsese, only scene specific but definitely worth a listen, and a Making Of featurettte that definitely should be checked out.

Definitely recommended.