The movie that inspired Daniel Day-Lewis most as a young actor
Following his lead role in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Phantom Thread in 2017, for which he earned an Oscar nomination, British actor Daniel Day-Lewis announced his retirement at age 60. The much-mourned hole left in the world of cinema is only partly filled by Day-Lewis’ towering oeuvre, which includes notable moments like The Last of the Mohicans, My Left Foot, In the Name of the Father, Gangs of New York, and There Will Be Blood, to name but a few.
The devout method actor is one of the most celebrated talents of his generation and has swiped three competitive Academy Awards, four British Academy Film Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for his trouble. During his time studying at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and beyond, Day-Lewis was deeply inspired by the movies he saw at the cinema.
With such talent comes many a knock, and hence, Day-Lewis’ door has undoubtedly worn thin from incessant pounding over the years. Over the past half-century, the actor has been fortunate – or talented – enough to work under the direction of Steven Spielberg, Paul Thomas Anderson, Martin Scorsese, Richard Attenborough and Michael Mann, among other titans.
Although Day-Lewis was never type-cast in any capacity, he formed a close association with intense leading men. For this reason, Scorsese had no trouble at all when casting for the loathsome Bill the Butcher for 2002’s Gangs of New York.
Although their bond couldn’t rival the decorated Robert De Niro partnership, Day-Lewis and Scorsese had become well-acquainted in the early 1990s when the former appeared in the lead role of the latter’s historical romantic drama, The Age of Innocence. The role marked a significant career milestone for Day-Lewis, who had been transfixed by Scorsese’s work over the previous two decades.
In an interview with Cindy Pearlman for the 2007 book You Gotta See This, Day-Lewis discussed some of his favourite movies of all time. Among his choices was Scorsese’s 1973 movie Mean Streets, his first collaboration with De Niro.
“I must mention my good friend, Martin Scorsese,” Day-Lewis began. “What can I say about Mean Streets? It’s one of my favourite films of all time and the first film I ever saw of Martin’s. It was the beginning of my discovery of the whole world of possibilities on the streets of America. I can also sit back and realise now how this film led to Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and the De Niro films.”
Day-Lewis added to his praise of the gritty urban thriller in a 2008 interview with Chris Sullivan of The Independent. “When [Martin Scorsese’s] Mean Streets came out, I was 16, and you cannot imagine the effect it had on me, a young and slightly wayward guy from south VC London. It was like a light going on in my head. It was so influential for me as a young person, never mind as a young actor.”
Watch the trailer for Mean Streets below.
