James Toback - Fingers (1978) Harvey Keitel, Tisa Farrow, Jim Brown [director's commentary on 2nd audio track]

Written and directed by James Toback. There is a second audio track with commentary by the writer/director. Cinematography by Michael Chapman. Standout performance by Michael V. Gazzo as Harvey Keitel's father. Danny Aiello has a bit part.

Jimmy "Fingers" Angelelli (Harvey Keitel) is a brilliant young pianist who also works as a collector for his father Ben (Michael V. Gazzo), a powerful loan shark. Wherever Jimmy goes, he always carries a stereo with him, playing classic rock from the '50's and '60's. While trying to concentrate on an up-coming recital interview at Carnegie Hall, Jimmy loses focus when he falls for a woman named Carol (Tisa Farrow). He gets further side-tracked with collecting a large debt from a mafioso named Riccamonza (Tony Sirico), who eventually threatens Ben's life. This forces Jimmy to seek retribution.

James Toback said he originally wanted Robert de Niro to play the lead but then decided to use de Niro's best friend, Harvey Keitel. "Harvey agreed to play Jimmy and quickly began to astonish me by taking the character into dimensions of darkness well beyond my original imagining," wrote Toback.

Two notable pieces from the film are "Angel of the Morning" by Merrilee Rush and "Summertime, Summertime" by The Jamies. Director Toback, initially wanted to use the song "Summertime" because the movie had "a summertime feel to it," and they wanted to shoot it during the summer months. It wasn't to be however, yet he thought it appropriate enough to leave the song in there. The whole film, however, is framed by the music of Johann Sebastian Bach's Toccata in E minor (BWV 914), which Keitel's character plays throughout the film, including during his audition at Carnegie Hall.

Two interviews with the director are of interest.

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