Bronx Tale, A (1993) review

Nine-year-old Calogero (Francis Capra), growing up in the Bronx with his poor father Lorenzo (De Niro) and mother Rosina (Kathrine Narducci), idolizes Mafia boss Sonny (Chazz Palminteri, who adapted his own play) and eventually saves him from the police (because he isn't a rat) - as a teenager (Lillo Brancato, Jr.), he runs errands for Sonny and his crew ... and becomes infatuated with Jane (Taral Hicks), which is a problem since she's African-American and he's Italian-American and their cultures clash.  It makes sense that De Niro, for his directorial debut, would make a Goodfellas-type movie - you have to wonder how much he saw himself in the story, and he even casts himself against type, allowing Palminteri to star as the ferocious mobster.  The pacing may be slightly off in parts, but the performances are enjoyable - Joe Pesci has a memorable scene near the end - and Chazz wrote some fantastic passages for himself ("You're only allowed three great women in your lifetime").  As for The Door Test: he's not wrong.