This week, I thought I’d step away from comedy and add some violence to the Rainy Sunday list.  When I was a kid, watching movies was altogether different. In those days, renting movies was considered a treat and wasn’t as easy as Rogers On Demand is today.

Although, I still remember how awesome those month long TMN previews were.  A whole month’s worth of movies for free. Sweet.

Seeing a new release at home usually meant waiting for network premieres.  These were massively promoted events back then.  Not so much now.

The only other option was to grab the ol’ TV Guide and look ahead. This is how I discovered A Bronx Tale.

My dad had scanned the Guide one day and found this movie. He had seen it and knew I would love it.   I had never heard of the movie before but my dad’s recommendations were usually pretty reliable. We got a blank VHS ready to tape it.

What an awesome gangster movie. I rank it extremely high with the Scorsese classics like Goodfellas and Casino. It’s just plain awesome.

For those who aren’t aware of this magnificent flick it’s about a kid who witnesses a brutal crime and keeps his mouth shut. This impresses the local mob boss Sonny and he takes the kid, Calogero under his wing.  As Calogero grows up, he gets deeper and deeper into Sonny’s world.  Did I mention this movie was directed by Robert Di Niro?  He also plays the kid’s father who struggles to keep his son away from Sonny and on a better path.

What blows my mind about this movie is how good Chazz Palminteri is in the role of Sonny.   I suppose it makes sense as he wrote the play and the screenplay.  He’s incredible in this movie.  Especially in the scenes he has with Di Niro.   It really is a kick ass movie.

I watched that old VHS copy right up until the magical day I found the DVD. Since then, I’ve watched it at least once a year.  It’s another classic movie in my collection and a worthy addition to the list.  All the credit goes to my dad who introduced me to one of my all time favorites.

PS: Old school trailers are awesome.  I love watching them.