‘The most personal is the most creative…’
Martin Scorsese is undoubtedly one of the most successful and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Whether it be Raging Bull or Taxi Driver, Goodfellas or Casino, or any of his many incredible projects, Scorsese has been a huge net positive for the film industry. Aside from his own output, he has also been a great champion of cinema generally having personally presided over several restorations and curated collections. Mr. Scorsese, Rebecca Miller’s five-part documentary for Apple TV, is utterly absorbing whilst also, somehow, only scratching the surface of Scorsese’s innate genius…
Filmed over several years, Mr. Scorsese covers the period from Scorsese’s humble beginnings in the Queens, New York, through his enrolment in film school, his early forays into student cinema to mainstream success, canonisation and eventual elder statesmanship. Miller had incredible access to Scorsese himself (who, luckily, is a natural orator), his family and a roster of A list stars included Robert De Niro, Leonardo Di Caprio and Mick Jagger, as well as fellow directors Steven Spielberg and Brian De Palma.
It’s mad to think that a five-hour documentary could still feel like a whistle stop tour, but the only criticism I could level at Mr. Scorsese is that it isn’t long enough. The latter part of the master director’s career feels particularly neglected. For example, Raging Bull has half an episode devoted to it, while Scorsese’s last few films too often feel like an afterthought. That being said, it’s genuinely wonderful to hear the man himself dissect his own work – his passion for cinema is both legendary and utterly infectious – and it is clear from the way that his peers talk about him that he is pretty much beloved by everyone.
Mr. Scorsese is essential viewing, not just for Scorsese fans, but for fans of cinema in general. There is a strong argument that nobody has done more for the artform than Marty, and while there is a nagging feeling that there is still a definitive Scorsese doc yet to be made, this one is a pretty great start.
