A mob story from Barry Levinson starring Robert De Niro misses the target. But a drama starring scandal-scarred Jonathan Majors is a solid effort.

We review each here.

“The Alto Knights” >> Barry Levinson’s new film operates in fits and starts, as if it were an antique Studebaker hitting the road after a long sabbatical. Worse yet, it speeds up when it should be slowing down and occasionally stalls out due to some scratch-your-head choices.

One of its dubious decisions is that it double casts Robert De Niro. While the venerable actor remains one of our greats, his toggling back and forth between playing New York mob kingpin Frank Costello and portraying gone-rogue former buddy Vito Genovese ultimately proves distracting and is wholly unnecessary.

The moments when both characters appear on screen should pop and crackle with electricity and energy, akin to when De Niro squared off with Al Pacino in Michael Mann’s “Heat.” As is, “Knights” is like watching someone shadow boxing in a broken mirror.

Worse yet, Levinson and screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi (“Goodfellas”) make the odd choice to skim over Frank and Vito’s buddy-buddy years, choosing instead to haul out flashy quick edits that rocket us through the essential part of their lives. The scenes come at us so rapidly they leave us hungering for the freneticism to wind down so the film could take some time to add context and better character development. To see it done right, rewatch Sergio Leone’s “Once Upon a Time in America” or Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather” mob saga. Those films engaged us, in part, because the directors took the time to build characters and relationships. So when things happened to people, we felt it. Here, we don’t.

What “The Alto Knights” nails is its opulent production design. Levinson obviously relishes bringing all that history to nostalgic life and robustly cycles us through the various eras, especially the ‘50s: from the music, the clothing, the cars, and the details of the homes where Frank and his wife, Bobbie (Debra Messing) live. (The Alto Knights referenced in the title was a social club in Little Italy where mobster figures hung out).

Those elements shine brighter and create a bigger impression than the rather one-note supporting characters, including Bobbie, played well by Messing even if she doesn’t get enough to do but smoke cigs, watch TV, look concerned and play with her pipsqueak dogs. As Vincent Gigante, Cosmo Jarvis (“Shogun”) gets one juicy chance to show off his comedic chops when Gigante and Genovese get into a argument during a car ride. It’s one of those hilarious classic wise-guy interactions that is both welcome and disheartening since it reveals what this movie could have been. The most entertaining performance comes from Kathrine Narducci, who plays the larger-than-life character of Vito’s queer bar-owning girlfriend/wife. She perks up “The Alto Knights” in every scene.

But too often, “The Alto Knights” doesn’t trust its own true story or its characters, resorting to filling in blanks by having De Niro’s Frank jarringly speak into the camera, sometimes speeding up and then slowing down, as if simulating an interval training workout. Too bad, as there is obviously enough talent in front of and behind the camera to get the job done.

Details >> 1½ stars out of 4; opens in theaters Friday.

“Magazine Dreams” >> Killian Maddox (Jonathan Majors) is that one guy you avoid at the gym. You know the one, the unapproachable chiseled god with that leave-me-alone glare who repeatedly unleashes excessively loud guttural grunts, groans and screams as he bench presses the weight of a Prius. Killian is a ‘roid ragin’ machine and has become obsessed about perfecting his tapered body so he can land bodybuilding competition titles. He’s equally focused about meeting his idol, title champ Brad Vanderhorn (played by actor and body-lifter Mike Vanderhorn). He writes to Brad all the time, but doesn’t get a response.

He’s also a ticking time bomb.

Majors (“The Last Black Man in San Francisco”) scalds the screen by pumping Killian up with a raw volatility and coarse intensity that borders on the scary, but he also makes his man-child a vulnerable and even tragic figure — a socially maladjusted brickhouse who’s caring for his grandfather and is in dire need of hours of therapy for a childhood trauma inflicted. As some know, director/screenwriter Elijah Bynum’s harrowing feature has been collecting dust on the shelf for two years due mostly to Majors’ problems, including his conviction of misdemeanor assaults against Grace Jabbari.

There’s no doubt it’s hard to separate that from what you see Major accomplish up on screen. No matter how you feel about Majors, it’s undeniable that this is an incredible physical and emotional performance.

But what prevents “Magazine Dreams” from taking full advantage of Majors is it’s fever dream-like surrealness, which makes it illogical at times.

When Bynum turns away from that and turns to the unsettling exchanges Killian has, “Magazine Dreams” delivers one gut punch after another. One of the best, most impactful moments comes when the very single Killian — who can’t stand to be touched — goes on a date with a kind-hearted grocery clerk (Haley Bennett) he works with. He arrives way overdressed and is nervous and awkward throughout. While that approximates the innocent and charming initially, it flips into something far more disturbing and primordial as Killian relates memories from his past and reveals his anger and rigidness. It’s a squirm-in-your-seat sequence that only escalates, with Majors and Bennett handling it dexterously, with no over-acting.

You won’t be able to shake “Magazine Dreams,” especially Majors’ volcanic, transformative performance.

Details >> 3 stars; in theaters Friday.