There's no such thing as simple. Simple is
hard. July, 1990. “GoodFellas” is poised to
win the hearts of critics and moviegoers alike. But Martin Scorsese is already three months
into a project that he had been putting off for seven years. In 1983, Universal Pictures
purchased the film rights to “Schindler’s Ark”, a novel about a German businessman
who saved more than a thousand Polish Jews from certain death. Riding a wave of success
following the release of “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial”, the studio had given the nod to Steven Spielberg,
but the director felt that he wasn’t mature enough for such a serious undertaking. Sydney
Pollack and Roman Polanksi also turned down the offer. The fourth candidate to be asked,
however, accepted. Scorsese found the script enthralling, but a tight schedule and difficult
preparations were delaying production. The window of opportunity finally opened during
post-production of “GoodFellas”, but by that time, the director had lost the desire
to pursue the Schindler project. Challenges that the director had faced upon the release
of “The Last Temptation of Christ” were his primary deterrent. He didn’t want to
relive the boycotts, bodyguards, and threats that had been the fallout of his previous
film. This was compounded by the fact that he couldn’t find the actors to fill the
starring roles. Meanwhile, Spielberg had by that time already directed two installments
of “Indiana Jones”, “Empire of the Sun”, and “Jurassic Park”. The feeling of immaturity
he once had was now gone, and he desperately wanted another shot at the director’s chair
for the film. In exchange, Steven offered Martin the opportunity to direct a remake
of the thriller, “Cape Fear”, a project that Steven had spent a decade pursuing. The
film had already been greenlit by the studio and had a thirty-five million dollar budget.
Was this the greatest decision in cinematic history, or a missed opportunity? Doesn’t
matter. The trade was made. Scorsese immediately took to rewriting the
script. Screenwriter Wesley Strick had meticulously thought through every detail of the narrative
with Spielberg, but the author had to write another twenty-four different versions of
the story before Martin was satisfied. The final script was then shown to Robert De Niro.
The actor was attracted by the idea of stepping outside his typical roles to play psychopath
Max Cady. He spent seven months in the gym getting in shape for the role, with shirtless
scenes being moved to the end of filming so that De Niro could be in peak physical condition.
Robert’s tattoos in the movie are real, but they were made from a vegetable-based
ink that wore off after three months. The actor also voluntarily paid a dentist five
thousand dollars to ruin his teeth. It ended up costing De Niro five times that amount
to have them restored. Scorsese wanted to land Harrison Ford for
the role of Sam Bowden, but neither he nor Robert De Niro were able to convince the actor
to take the part. Upon learning of the role’s vacancy, actor Nick Nolte jumped on the opportunity.
He had been dreaming of working with Scorsese again after their collaboration on “New
York Stories”, so the actor hounded him for three weeks until Martin finally broke
down and gave Nolte the leading role. The casting of Juliette Lewis was De Niro’s
idea. Martin was looking for an unknown teenaged actress, among whom the likes of Reese Witherspoon
and Drew Barrymore were touted as options, but Robert suggested that character be more
mature. The first and only contender for the role was Juliette. She showed up for the casting
call without her parents and was found to be a perfect fit for the role after reading
just one line. By the way, the actress had received full legal emancipation from her
parents at the age of fourteen in order to join the Screen Actors Guild and work independently.
Legally speaking, she was an adult. Last to join the ensemble were Jessica Lange
and the leading actors from the original film, Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum, and Martin Balsam.
Scorsese had to find a replacement for cinematographer Michael Ballhaus, who had previously agreed
to film “Dracula” for Francis Ford Coppola. The primary candidate was Robert Richardson,
who had been working in tandem with Oliver Stone for six years. At the last minute, however,
horror film veteran Freddie Francis agreed to get behind the camera. Not wanting to miss the opportunity
to work with the master, Scorsese promised Richardson a spot on one of his upcoming projects. Filming began in November of 1990 and lasted
four months. As with all of his films, the director welcomed improvisation. In addition
to the scripted dialogues, there is an entire scene that was born on set. According to the
script, the scene at school is supposed to be a chase, but Lewis and De Niro decided
to play it out as a seduction. The very first take was included in the final cut. By the
way, Scorsese was so impressed by the portrayal of Cady that he was seriously intimidated
by De Niro's accent. Robert took advantage of this and would leave threatening messages
on Martin's answering machine a couple of times a week. There were plenty of trials, as well. Lori’s
torture scene was shot over two fifteen-hour days, and the actress spent half of that time
in handcuffs. ILLEANA DOUGLAS I could barely walk, and my arms were all
cut up from thrashing around, and then De Niro complimented me. He said that Charles
Grodin was a p*ssy, because he couldn’t take the handcuffs when they did Midnight
Run. I thought that was a supreme compliment. The culminating scene of the fight between
the Bowden family and Max Cady was shot in a specially designed thirty-meter water tank.
A real houseboat, as well as artificial rain and wind machines, were installed inside the
cistern. Amazingly, Martin had thought out and drawn each frame before a location was
even built. Minimal adaptation was needed for Freddie Francis to capture Martin’s
drawings on camera. Once post-production on the film had been
completed, the director for the first time in his career listened to the opinions of
test screening audiences. Viewers found several scenes to be confusing, so Scorsese again
gathered the film crew for a few more shots. These details helped preserve the integrity
of the narrative. For example, in the original version, Cady is never shown grabbing the
rope, so audiences had no idea how he had gotten back on the boat. These corrections must have helped, because
“Cape Fear” became the eighth most lucrative film of 1991, raking in over one hundred and
eighty million dollars at the box office. At the Academy Awards Ceremony, both Robert
De Niro and Juliette Lewis received Oscar nominations. Martin was surrounded by success,
except in his personal life. With the release of his new film came his fourth divorce, and
although his relationship with Barbara De Fina remained amicable, that brought him little
comfort. How can a director express his pain? Simple. Shoot a costumed melodrama. While still on the set of “Raging Bull”,
Martin’s friend and film critic, Jay Cocks, introduced him to “The Age of Innocence”. JAY COCKS When you do that romantic piece, this one
is you Scorsese read the novel seven years later,
but his desire to turn it into a movie didn’t appear until after “Cape Fear”. The project
got the attention of Twentieth Century Fox, so the director agreed to work on a screenplay
adaptation, provided that he could write it with Jay. Fox had approved a thirty-million
dollar budget for the film. Martin hired production designer Dante Ferreti, who had become famous
for the scenery in Federico Fellini films, and also offered the leading roles to the
actors he saw in the first days of preparation: Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Winona
Ryder. Lines were being rehearsed, scenes were being
rewritten, and costumes were being sewn. Not the best time to cancel a deal, but nevertheless,
that’s exactly what the studio did. Scorsese was fortunate enough to be rescued by Columbia
Pictures' Mark Canton, with whom the director had created “GoodFellas”. Mark provided
the budget and took over negotiations with the owners of the old houses, where they had
been planning to shoot most of the scenes. The film’s hallmark is its attention to
detail. Among the numerous paintings shown in the film can be seen surprises like, “The
Last of the Mohicans”. Daniel Day-Lewis had just starred in a film of the same name.
No less impressive were the costume design, which received an Oscar, and of course, the
script. Scorsese once called “The Age of Innocence” his most violent film, with its
opposing moral and physical pain. But the Motion Picture Association must be okay with
that kind of pain, because for the second time in his career, they gave the film a PG
rating. Editing turned out to be the greatest challenge
in creating the film. The new genre presented some difficult obstacles. "The Age of Innocence"
contains few L cuts, while jump cuts and dissolves abound. Stylistically, the film is unlike
any other, and it took Scorsese and Thelma Schoonmaker a year to get it right. However,
the main reason for the delay was the death of Martin's father, Charles, to whom the movie
is dedicated. "The Age of Innocence" flopped at the box
office, but earned five Oscar nominations. Gabriella Pescucci brought home the trophy
for Best Costume Design. Winona Ryder was nominated for Best Supporting Actress, while
Daniel Day-Lewis wasn’t in the running for an award only because he was already being
considered for his role in the drama, “In the Name of the Father”. Only Mr. Day-Lewis
could find himself in such a predicament. Per usual, the director’s schedule was packed
tight. Having barely finished editing his previous film, Martin began writing the screenplay
for the novel, “Clockers”. He quickly found some old acquaintances to fill the leading
roles, John Turturro from “The Color of Money”, and Harvey Keitel, who had featured
in most of Scorsese’s films. Universal put their faith in Martin once again, approving
a budget of twenty-five million dollars. At the same time, Nicholas Pileggi, co-writer
of the “GoodFellas” screenplay, came to the director with the idea of writing a book,
and subsequently a script about the life of Frank Rosenthal. Frank was a famous Las Vegas
casino manager and sports betting genius whose ties to the Chicago mob were a mystery to
no one except the police. Scorsese was fascinated with the idea, and Nicholas, like a true master
of diplomacy, convinced Rosenthal to agree to the book because he would be played by
Robert De Niro in the subsequent film. One month before shooting began on “The
Clockers”, Martin lost interest in the film, instead becoming a producer and handing the
director’s reins over to friend and protege from New York, Spike Lee. Martin suddenly
saw an opening in his schedule, and he decided to fill it with “Casino”. But Pileggi
hadn’t even begun a rough draft of the book yet. Scorsese, not wanting to wait, convinced
the writer to work on the novel and the screenplay at the same time. Universal was the first to see the film’s
potential and bought the rights with a fifty million-dollar budget. It was an incredible
leap of faith for a project with no script and no primary source. Although Universal
was most likely motivated by the fact that, of all the big Hollywood studios, they were
the only one that had never worked with Scorsese before. Their only obstacle was potential
legal troubles. The sensitive topic of Las Vegas gambling institutions was enough to
make the production company’s lawyers sweat. One wrong move, and the project would be thrown
into lawsuit hell. Consultants convinced the director to change the names of the main characters.
For example, Frank Rosenthal became Sam Rothstein. The surname was borrowed from a gangster from
the 1930s named Arnold Rothstein, who was also known for gambling and sports betting.
This didn’t satisfy lawyers, so the inscription “Based on a True Story” was changed to
“Based on Real Events”, and just in case, any references to Chicago or the Chicago Mafia
were cut from the script. But the most significant change was the name of the casino itself.
The story of the “Stardust Casino” was now that of the fictional “Tangiers Casino”.
However, there were a few clues scattered throughout the film for the observant viewer.
The song “Stardust” can be heard on the film’s soundtrack three times: the instrumental
version (at Ace and Ginger’s wedding), the vocal version (during the scene where Nicky
and Ginger are asked whether they’re having sex), and at the end of the closing credits.
Another problem arose when crooks refused to consult the film crew regarding how to
swindle a casino. But Martin’s ex-wife, Barbara De Fina, found a way around this by
suggesting that they hire ex-convicts and retired FBI agents who had caught the best
crooks in the US. Martin began casting. Leading roles went to
De Niro and Pesci, a classic combination for Scorsese. This time was no exception. The
dialogue between these two characters is totally improvised. Paradoxically, the
movie about a “Casino” involved paying off a lot of debts. Scorsese had saved the
role of Ginger for Sharon Stone, who had left an impression on him fifteen years prior.
The actress had almost landed the role of Vikki LaMotta in “Raging Bull”. The director’s
instincts turned out to be correct, because Stone received the only Oscar nomination of
her career, and also won a Golden Globe, but more on that later. After Sharon, Martin called
Robert Richardson, whom he had promised to work with back in 1991. Together they created
the visual concept for the film, taking examples from the best films-noir of John Alton, such
as: “T-Men”, “Raw Deal”, and “Slightly Scarlet”. Another allusion to the noir was
the title sequence by Saul Bass, the most famous graphic designer in cinematic history,
who had worked on films by Hitchcock, Kubrick, and now, for the fourth time, Martin Scorsese.
Unfortunately, the artist passed away three months after the premier. On September 14th, 1994, Martin said “Action!”
for the first time in Las Vegas, where he would spend the following four months. Shooting
was done inside a real casino. Actual guests can be seen in the background of wide shots,
and real employees of the establishment played the croupiers. The Riviera management allowed
filming from 10pm to 4am, so as not to disturb the main stream of visitors during peak hours.
Nevertheless, there was a large sign out front that read: Come and see the shooting of the
new film, “Casino”, starring Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Sharon Stone. The bosses
also refused to allow any cameras into the accounting wing, so a separate set had to
be built for that long sequence. The only artificial setting in
the film. A large portion of the budget went towards wardrobe, the cost of which exceeded
a million dollars. De Niro had seventy wardrobe changes in the film. Stone - forty. After
filming had wrapped, the main characters were allowed to keep what they wanted. Robert personally
selected each element of his appearance, based on his experience of speaking with the real
person behind his character. His serious approach started with his glasses and watches down
to the way he spoke, smiled, and held a cigarette. By the way, cigarettes are a nightmare for
an editing director. They can change length from frame to frame, or worse, switch hands.
Robert kept Thelma Schoonmaker in mind while shooting. Sam doesn’t light up a cigarette
for half the film to make it easier on editing, and De Niro made sure to note the cigarette’s
distance from the filter, and verified it for every take and scene in the movie. Joe Pesci's ability to transform into his
character backfired. Las Vegas bigwigs mistook the actor for the real Tony "The Ant" Spilotro.
He wasn’t allowed into certain establishments on a couple of occasions, but when Joe nevertheless
entered the gambling hall, some people crossed themselves, and others nearly fainted. Pesci
frightened people, but it worked in his favor. The actor broke another rib on set, just as
he had done in “Raging Bull”. Scorsese was elated to be working with such
a skilled cast. But even Robert and Joe’s talent couldn’t build the relationship between
the main characters, which turned out to be the film’s most challenging aspect. But
Sharon simply shined. The director's favorite scene is when Ginger throws the chips in the
air. But this was her more light-hearted and easy-going side of her character. Stone showed
her true talent later. Her method-acting and intense dedication to the role took its emotional
toll on the actress. While shooting the phone booth scene, Martin would hold Sharon’s
hand in between takes to help calm the actress, as she seemed to be teetering on
the verge of hysteria. Filming wrapped in January and Martin immediately
began the editing process. "Casino" is the first film in Thelma Schoonmaker's career
to be edited on a computer. Experience suggested that an abundance of violent scenes would
lead to a battle with the American Film Association, so the director got clever. He added a scene
with someone’s head in a vice for the sole purpose of getting the censors to demand its
removal. This made the rest of the violence in the film suddenly seem less brutal compared
to scenes of outright torture. Surprisingly, they let the scene remain but demanded that
a couple of shots be cut from the bloodiest takes, after which "Casino" received its coveted
"R" rating. The book and the film came out at the same
time and supported each other's financial success. The movie grossed more than a hundred
and fifteen million dollars at the box office, but critics ignored it. “Casino” was considered
a less impressive version of “GoodFellas”, and use of the same two lead actors confused
audiences. Moviegoers debated whether it was a sequel or a standalone movie. The film also
disappointed when it came to awards. Only Sharon Stone was nominated for an Oscar. Scorsese
himself described the film as a three-hour story full of action and events, but absolutely
devoid of a plot, so he didn’t blame any of his colleagues for their lackluster reviews.
He continued to work. The four-hour documentary, "A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through
American Movies," is perhaps the best exploration of films from the forties and fifties of the
twentieth century. The narrative even seems like a spontaneous interview,
but it brings to life the legends of his incredible cinematic knowledge. Martin was planning to make another film based
on a book. A copy of Shusaku Endo's novel “Silence” fell into his hands while on
the set of “The Last Temptation of Christ”. Of course, after the challenges he faced with
this religious film, shooting another raised doubts among studios. Plus, there was a Japanese
version made in 1971. The screenplay he and Jay Cocks had written didn’t help either.
The same journalist who had introduced Martin to Cassavetes and given him "The Age of Innocence".
Negotiations with Italian studio Cecchi Gori Pictures, who owned the rights to the book,
led to an agreement, but the project fell into “development hell” until either Scorsese
or the studio could find funding. Towards the end of 1996, Harrison Ford's wife,
Melissa Mathison, approached Martin and asked him to read her screenplay. "Kundun" was a
biography based on an interview with the 14th Dalai Lama, and covers thirty years of Tibetan
history. Not a single producer believed that the director would take on this film. His
experiences with "The Last Temptation of Christ" and his own rejection of "Schindler's List"
led to some uncertainty, but nevertheless, he agreed. The loss of his mother, to whom
the film is dedicated, was the director’s motivation this time. Catherine had succumbed
to Alzheimer’s on January 6th, 1997. This was very painful for Martin. The love and
reverence for his parents could be seen throughout his career. MARTIN SCORSESE The Dalai Lama represents unconditional love.
And, to me, my mother was the closest person with that kind of love. Universal Pictures was the first to take an
interest in the film, but no sooner had they signed the contract than their troubles started.
The Chinese government opposed the film because it discussed the annexation of Tibet, and
the production company got cold feet. Surprisingly, the project was picked up by Disney subsidiary
Touchstone Pictures, who provided a thirty million dollar budget. This earned the company
a two-year ban in China. Not a single Disney production was broadcast on the territory
of the PRC. Not wanting to lose the market, the studio officially apologized, signed a
dozen unprofitable film distribution contracts, and built Disneyland Shanghai at its own expense,
the profits of which the Chinese government owns a percentage. But in 1997, optimistic
producers were hoping for a positive outcome to this story. It was of course a little scary
that the production only had four professional actors in its cast, and those only played
cameos. A young Dalai-Lama was played by his distant relatives, and in order for the novice
actors to seem organic, Martin brought in Roger Deakins. The director wasn’t so much
attracted to the cinematographer’s outstanding credentials as he was his history of working
with documentary films, where one’s ability to work with people with no acting experience
is essential for success. The military occupation of Tibet meant that
shooting there would be impossible, so outdoor shots were filmed in Morocco, where the director
had already filmed “The Last Temptation of Christ”, while interior shots of temples
were filmed in a Buddhist monastery near Woodstock, also somewhere he had worked before. For scenes involving children, the crew had
to build a clown house in order to get the children to look in the right direction when
needed. “Kundun” was a rare example of one of Scorsese’s movies
receiving a “PG” rating, but that did nothing to help its success at the box office.
The director was convinced that Touchstone Pictures’ fear of China led to them sabotaging
the film’s ad campaign. Without proper promotion, they had doomed “Kundun” to be a box office
failure. The film brought in a meager five and half million dollars, just one sixth of
its budget. And yet critics consider this film to be the most beautiful of Scorsese’s
career. The project’s Oscar performance confirmed this sentiment, as “Kundun”
received nominations for Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design,
and Best Original Score. And the price for bringing to life such beautiful,
yet horrifying events? Lifelong travel bans to China for Martin, Roger Deakins, Melissa
Mathison, Harrison Ford, and fifty other crew members. But Scorsese wasn’t planning a trip to Asia
anyway. He was on his way to Italy. Following his documentary on American cinema, he directed
a four-hour essay on Italian classics. These two films should be considered textbooks for
every movie-lover. Now, back to the main storyline. He stumbles
across an excellent book, receives the studio’s approval for the screenplay, and gets to work.
“Bringing Out the Dead” was a semi-biographical novel by New York paramedic Joe Connelly,
for which Touchstone, as if to apologize for “Kundun”, allocated fifty-million dollars.
Martin was able to persuade the creator of “Taxi Driver”, “Raging Bull”, and
“The Last Temptation of Christ” to take on the screenplay. Paul Schrader hadn’t
written for Scorsese since their religious drama failure years earlier. What better reason
to get back together than for a story of New York by night, which Schrader was capable
of describing like no one else. A month later, the
script was written. It read something like an eerie cross between the thriller, “After
Hours”, and “Fight Club”, which was also being filmed at the time. While reading
the book, Martin had already determined who would play the roles in the film. For the
protagonist, the crazy eyes of Francis Ford Coppola’s nephew were the first thing to
come to the director’s mind. Nicholas Cage had been introduced to Scorsese a couple years
before by his uncle. The director called up Brian De Palma, who had just worked with Cage
on the film “Snake Eyes”. Brian highly recommended him. Scorsese then offered Cage
the leading role, who didn’t hesitate to accept. Scorsese and Cage prepared for filming by
spending every night in an ambulance for three weeks straight. This was a sad experience
for the director, or rather, a sad reminder. He had frequently found himself in the back
of ambulances over the previous ten years supporting his parents during their difficult
health problems. Martin hadn’t settled on an actress for the female lead, and so Nicholas
recommended his wife, Patricia Arquette. Her very first audition earned her a spot in the
cast, which included Ving Rhames and John Goodman. Filming took place from September of ninety
seven to January of ninety eight. Martin went on to describe it as the worst experience
of his career. Instead of inspiration, nightly rides through the windy winter streets left
everyone with a bad mood and a head cold. This depressing tone can be seen in the film.
The neon lights and gloom of New York City at night were captured by Robert RIchardson,
and accompanied by the music of Elmer Bernstein, who had previously worked on “The Age of
Innocence”. Frank's attempt to save Rose is the essence of the film. The actors performed
all of their movements in reverse so that the snow would ascend into the sky when edited. The film turned out to be a mixture of “Taxi
Driver” and “After Hours”; crazy scenes punctuated by moments of deep despair and
depression, while a couple of sequences look like they’re taken straight out of Travis
Bickle's memories. The director's life somewhat resembled what
he was filming, but producer Helen Morris was there to dispel the darkness. For the
first time in ten years, love had reemerged in Scorsese's life. While the movie was still
in post-production, he proposed to Helen. The wedding was held in the summer of 1999,
and in October of that same year, they had a daughter, Francesca. An event that couldn’t
even be overshadowed by the complete failure of “Bringing Out the Dead”. The film grossed
about seventeen million dollars, making the list of the most unsuccessful films of that
year. The film has gone unremembered by critics and unappreciated by colleagues. Zero nominations
and no festival premieres. The millennium was near. The nineties had brought a lot of
pain, but also made dreams come true. On the eve of the new year, Martin was heavily involved
in caring for his child, never suspecting that he had not yet reached the peak of his
career. Martin Scorsese I have a desire to tell stories. And I'm never
quite satisfied. The 2000s Martin spent the beginning of the millennium
trying to find funding for a project that he had been hatching for more than twenty
years. He had purchased the film adaptation rights to the novel "Gangs of New York" back
in 1979, but no studio was eager to invest in such an ambitious project, given the director's
frequent commercial failures. But in the year 2000, Harvey Weinstein decided to make Scorsese's
dream come true and Miramax Studios approved the film with a budget of eighty-four million
dollars. Martin now had the chance to express his boldest ideas. Production designer Dante
Ferretti, who had worked with the director on "The Age of Innocence," recreated five
blocks of eighteenth century New York, stretching for over half a mile in length. The colossal
structure was erected not far from Rome. George Lucas once came to have a look at the set.
Astonished at what he saw, the special effects master took his friend aside and asked him
whether he knew that these types of things were being done on computers for a couple
of years now. Martin grinned, and Lucas declared the set to be the last of its kind in the
history of cinema. Later on, when no one in Italy was able to find an elephant for filming,
George helped record and subsequently add a 3D model of the animal to a scene; the only
use of CG-graphics in the film. But back to the development stage. By his own admission,
Harvey Weinstein had endured cinematic torture, because the director had him sit through more
than eighty films to determine the project’s visual style. (The Man Who Laughs 1928) HARVEY WEINSTEIN Eighty. Can you imagine? And remember: no
videos, no DVDs. Every movie has to be on the big screen. It was like going to school
with Professor Scorsese. Michael Ballhaus took over the visuals. The
cinematographer had come back to Martin after eight years. Whereas previously Michael had
portrayed a sophisticated Victorian-style New York in "The Age of Innocence", now it
was time to show its other side. Casting followed the usual procedure. Martin
would listen to the advice of friends and invite old acquaintances to join the production.
Seven years earlier, De Niro had acted in a drama called "This Boy's Life" with a young
Leo DiCaprio. While on the set of "Casino", Robert said
that he hadn’t seen such talent since Jodie Foster in "Taxi Driver". A couple of years
later, the world was struck by a wave of Leo-mania, but the actor didn’t let it get to his head.
He fought hard for serious roles that would help him avoid being typecast as a young heartthrob.
After Titanic, Leonardo’s agent met with Scorsese on the set of “Bringing Out the
Dead” and offered his client’s services. Martin put the puzzle together. With DiCaprio
added to the ensemble, the project that he had been sitting on for the last twenty-five
years would finally get the attention of investors. Liam Neeson was next to join the production
and was offered the role of Walter McGinn. However, despite the film’s tight schedule,
the actor wanted to play Priest Vallon on screen. Martin approved the swap, and invited
Brendan Gleeson to play McGinn, instead. As for John C. Riley, he wasn’t interested
in the project at all. John was talked into it by his friend, Paul Thomas Anderson, a
longtime Scorsese fan who had even copied a scene from “GoodFellas” for his film
“Boogie Nights”. There were some difficulties with Cameron Diaz. The actress had signed
a six-week contract, but ended up stuck filming for over six months. Finding Bill The Butcher was a much more difficult
task. The director had his eye on Daniel Day-Lewis for the role, but after the drama "The Boxer"
in 1997, the actor not only announced his retirement, but also disappeared for six months
in Italy, where he worked as a shoemaker. The offer was extended nevertheless. Daniel
was intrigued by the idea of a mirror image of "The Age of Innocence", in which moral
violence would be replaced with physical violence, but the actor only agreed after meeting with
DiCaprio and his friend Tobey Maguire. TOBEY MAGUIRE Y’know, when somebody has a talent like
yours, it’s almost their responsibility to do it, to get back in the saddle. The actor listened to the future Spiderman,
and as usual, went off to develop his character. Daniel worked as a butcher for three months,
studied the New York accent of the late nineteenth century, and hand-picked his own wardrobe.
He stayed in character while on set, in between takes, and even after hours, never removing
his costume. Not to mention he wore a prosthetic glass eye, which, after much practice, he
learned to tap with the tip of a knife without blinking. In Scorsese's opinion, Daniel didn’t
just play Bill the Butcher, he became him. Rude, filthy, and always disgruntled, he would
go to the gym every morning, where he would listen to songs by Eminem at full volume.
The song "The Way I Am" personified this image. Bravado, self-importance, and boastfulness
were integral characteristics of the Butcher. Lewis's obsession rubbed off
on DiCaprio, too. Both actors followed the method approach, so their feud extended beyond
the frame. DiCaprio once accidentally broke Day-Lewis's nose, but Day-Lewis played out
the rest of the scene. And on the day of shooting the final scene, both actors, without breaking
character, fought each other. Their dedication was laudable, but unfortunately, Scorsese
and Ballhaus were busy going over the previous take and had announced a break, so nobody
caught the brawl on camera. The production experienced plenty of difficulties,
but financing was certainly the most problematic. Filming took place from December 2000 to April
2001, but the money ran out halfway through the process. Scorsese and DiCaprio first lowered
their own fees to the minimum allowable level, but that barely covered enough to get them
through a couple of weeks. They had to ask Weinstein for help. Harvey hadn’t liked
the idea from the very beginning. It annoyed him that two Hollywood sex symbols were hidden
behind mud, makeup and greasy hair. By the way, Day-Lewis hated his hairstyle so much
that he immediately shaved his head the day after the final shot. As soon as the budget
had been exceeded, Harvey suddenly had more influence on production and demanded that
the most violent scenes be cut, especially the rat fights and severed ears. Scorsese
defended the ears, but the rat fights had to be taken out. The cherry on top was shooting
the ending. In the middle of the day, the producer called it a wrap and nearly forced
the team to pack up. The desire to save some money led to the team having to come back
two months later to finally get the shots they needed. Weinstein himself, of course,
remembers it all differently. HARVEY WEINSTEIN All the things I asked Marty not to do, he
did, and you know what? I’m totally fine with all of it. Make no mistake, this is Marty’s
movie, top to bottom—completely uncompromising. And I didn’t ask for a compromise. We went
over a few dollars, and so what? I made this movie for Marty. I served him. That’s what
I did as producer on this film. For Marty, hopefully, it will be vindication at the end
of a long, hard, 27-year road. Harvey certainly had his own special way of
serving. Even before the film was released, he decided to shield himself from any financial
failure and sold the international distribution rights for sixty-five million dollars. That’s a serious advance for such a scrupulous
historical drama, especially considering that the director valued authenticity over action.
Most of the characters and gangs have real-life counterparts. The "Dead Rabbits" weren’t
just rabbits. This slang term, used by Irish gangs in New York, refers to the Gaelic word
"Raibead". Translated, it means a person to be feared. Bill The Butcher was the moniker
for a man named William Poole. There were also real people called Hell-Cat Maggie, William
Tweed and P.T. Barnum. Professors from the University of Washington have agreed that
the depiction of the Five Points neighborhood matches that of every available historical
document. So, filming had finally finished and that
entire summer was spent editing and arguing with Weinstein. The producer nevertheless
convinced the director to shorten the runtime by an hour, bringing the film to one hundred
and sixty-seven minutes, which still isn’t very short. The premiere was planned for the
fall, but September eleventh changed the plans of every American that year. The film’s
release, of course, was moved. Martin took part in a charity concert in New York. It
had taken Paul McCartney just one month to organize the event, which brought the biggest
celebrities in music, movies, and television together on one stage. Leonardo DiCaprio and
Robert De Niro presented Scorsese's short film “The Neighborhood”. The release of “Gangs of New York” was
first moved to Christmas, two thousand and one, but then pushed back another year. The
official press release said that it was too soon for such a violent movie about the city.
Martin took advantage of the delay. He finished shooting everything that he originally didn’t
have time for, and then re-edited the film twice. The biggest change was the complete
replacement of the film score. Teh work of Elmer Bernstein, who had fourteen Oscar nominations
and two hundred films under his belt, was no longer a fit for the new version. But the
final shot featuring the twin towers was not redone. MARTIN SCORSESE We did the paintings and edited that skyline
sequence before September 11, and afterwards, it was suggested that we should take out the
towers, but I felt…it’s not my job to revise the New York skyline. The people in
the film were part of the creation of that skyline, not the destruction of it. And if
the skyline collapses, ultimately, they will build another one Finally, the release, distribution, and an
acceptable result. “Gangs of New York” fell just short of two hundred million dollars
in ticket sales. The movie’s performance at the Academy Awards ceremony was record-breaking
in Scorsese’s career. The film received ten nominations, including Best Director,
for which Scorsese hadn’t contended in ten years. John C. Riley also had a notable performance.
The actor had starred in four films in the preceding year and each nominated him for
Best Supporting Actor, although he wasn’t selected. Competing against films like the
musical "Chicago", the dramas "The Pianist" and "The Hours", as well as the fantasy "The
Lord of the Rings", "Gangs of New York" was in for a crushing defeat. It didn’t bring
home a single trophy. The third time that’s ever happened in the history of the Oscars.
Other films to suffer the same fate were, "The Turning Point" and "The Color Purple." But there was no time to sulk. In the sixty-second
year of his life, Martin picked up the pace to unprecedented levels. In two thousand and
three, he produced and directed an episode of the documentary series "The Blues", where
eminent directors explored the development of the greatest American music genre. He simultaneously
helped The History Channel direct the charity film “Lady by the Sea: The Statue of Liberty”.
In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, New York's greatest monument had been closed
to visitors, and the film raised funds to reopen “Liberty Enlightening the World”.
But of course, his main project was a biopic about Howard Hughes. Bringing the biography of this eccentric millionaire’s
life to the screen had been a director’s dream for the last forty years. Steven Spielberg
was the first to attempt it. In the late eighties, he persuaded Warren Beatty to star in a “Citizen
Kane”-style film about Hughes, but the project never found funding. Later, dozens of versions
of scripts made the rounds in the various studios, but none were successful in reaching
the hearts of producers. In the late nineties, Michael Mann decided to take up the project
and chose Leonardo DiCaprio for the leading role, but after completing two biographies
in a row, namely, "The Insider" and "Ali", the director lost his desire to do another.
In two thousand and two, two directors immediately jumped on the opportunity. The first was Christopher
Nolan, who had just finished filming "Insomnia" and was planning to shoot a story about Howard
starring Jim Carrey. They were already six months into production when Nolan found out
that a similar project had already been approved by Miramax with Martin Scorsese at the helm.
The director had to abandon the idea and begin working on "Batman". That’s right. Scorsese got the script from
Mann and DiCaprio was immediately interested. Author John Logan had already conquered the
world with "Gladiator" and adapted the less popular "Time Machine". But "The Aviator"
was of an entirely different nature. It was a deep story about an eccentric figure in
the Golden Age of Hollywood. Martin was intrigued by the topic, the script, and of course, the
chance to work with his favorite young talent. Leonardo had been dreaming of the role for
five years at that point, even going so far as to attach his own recently opened studio,
"Appian Way Productions", to the film. The plot was based on the book “Howard Hughes:
The Untold Story”, but underwent some significant changes. Logan wrote eighteen versions of
the script. The budget was again provided by Weinstein. One hundred and ten million
dollars. Sure, previous collaboration with the producer hadn’t exactly been smooth
sailing, but Harvey was the only one who had agreed to finance the expensive film, which
carried no guarantee of success at the box office. His only condition was that the project’s
timeline could not be exceeded. Scorsese signed the contract, but ultimately didn’t keep
his word and personally paid out five hundred thousand dollars for the violation. The director was especially interested in
the story’s visual aspect, so selecting the right cinematographer was critical. The
first candidate was Janusz Kaminski, Steven Spielberg's permanent companion. But Kaminski
was already preparing to work on “The Terminal”, so Scorsese turned to his old acquaintance,
Robert Richardson, with whom he had filmed “Casino” and “Bringing Out the Dead”.
Together, they came up with a unique video sequence. Each year in the film corresponded
to the coloring possibilities of films in those times. The film's first scenes mimic
Cinecolor, an early technology of color cinematography. Then came two-tone Technicolor. Its distortion
can be seen in shots of the golf course and on the table where there appear to be light
blue and purple peas. Moving on to auditions, Martin recognized
that the famous actresses who constantly surrounded Hughes were key characters. Gwyneth Paltrow
had agreed to play Ava Gardner, but for unknown reasons, she dropped out of the project and
was replaced by Kate Beckinsale, who had to gain twenty pounds for the role. Gwen Stefani’s
big screen debut came by complete accident. Scorsese happened to see the actress on the
cover of Vogue magazine on the wall of a bus stop. Gwen was posed as Marilyn Monroe. Martin
immediately saw his casting match for Jean Harlow and invited her to join the ensemble
without even auditioning. However, casting Cate Blanchett as Katharine
Hepburn was always Martin’s first and only choice. Although the actress initially turned
down the role due her parts in the final installment of "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Life Aquatic"
by Wes Anderson. Martin was planning to replace Cate with Nicole Kidman, but in October of
two thousand and three, wildfires hit California and burnt down part of “The Aviator” set.
Filming was postponed and Blanchett was able to join the cast. Scorsese made Cate watch
Hepburn’s first fifteen films, play tennis, golf, and take ice-cold baths, which Katharine
had made fashionable at the time. The scope of “The Aviator" was astounding.
Over two million dollars were spent on costumes alone, and Scorsese's long-time collaborator,
Dante Feretti, rebuilt all of the sets that had burned down. The producers were granted
access to Hughes' real mansion, and the New Dial special effects studio designed miniature
models of most of the planes used in the film. Small-scale buildings were also made for the
scene where the XF-11 crashes into some houses. Of course, DiCaprio did a deep dive to prepare
for his role. He took piloting classes and met with the star of “The Outlaw”, Jane
Russell. Hughes had been the director of that western film and the actress was one of the
last people to remember the man when he was alive. Leonardo also studied patients with
obsessive-compulsive disorder, from which Howard also suffered. The attention to detail, visual aesthetics,
and breathtaking performances by actors earned “The Aviator” worldwide critical acclaim,
but once again, it underperformed at the box office. The two hundred million dollars it
raked in was hardly enough to pay off the film, despite its success at award ceremonies.
It received three Golden Globes, including Best Actor and Best Motion Picture, not to
mention eleven Oscar nominations. Thankfully, the mistakes of the past were not to be repeated.
But the top prize went to "Million Dollar Baby" by Clint Eastwood, who received more
nominations than Martin for Best Director. A fifth defeat for Scorsese. But "The Aviator"
grabbed five trophies that night. The Academy gave due praise to the visual aspects of the film. Robert Richardson won the award
for Best Cinematography while Dante Feretti and Sandy Powell each won for Best Art Direction
and Best Costume Design, respectively. After twenty-five years, Thelma Schoonmaker also
got to celebrate victory once again, and Cate Blanchett received the first Oscar of her
career. That same year, Scorsese told the story of
another genius. The documentary “No Direction Home: Bob Dylan” peers into a five-year
period of the musician's life, from the time he moved to New York, to a motorcycle accident
that caused the artist to go on an eight-year hiatus. And even though the film went unnoticed,
it revealed a truthful and heartfelt biography of Dylan’s life. But the time has come to return to the genre,
of which Martin is rightfully considered the king. Work on a remake of the crime thriller
"Internal Affairs" began while "The Aviator" was still in the final stages of being edited. In two thousand and three, production company
Plan B Entertainment bought the rights to remake the Asian box office hit from Hong
Kong for one and a half million dollars. Company owner Brad Pitt had originally planned to
star in the film with Tom Cruise, but Tom declined because of delays, and William Monahan's
script got Scorsese's attention. “The Departed” reminded him of his favorite film with a similar
plot, the film noir drama “White Heat”. He was also intrigued by the challenge of
making a film set in the present day; a rare experience in his career. It was only after
he had agreed to participate that Martin found out it was a remake. This was upsetting for
him. He decided not to watch the original film until after he had filmed his own, primarily
to minimize stylistic similarities. The director invited DiCaprio to join the
project right away. By that time, Brad Pitt had already agreed to star in “Babel”,
but he stayed on the project as a producer. Pitt also believed that Leonardo was bringing
some much-needed youth to a story for which he considered himself a bit too old. Warner
Brothers allocated forty million dollars to the production and demanded that filming begin
immediately. Casting suddenly became a race against time. The setting was moved to Boston,
and so selecting a talented actor who had grown up on her streets presented an obvious
choice. Matt Damon was given a chance to audition, where he proved that he would fill an irreplaceable
role in the film. But then the director faced nothing but challenges. The role of Dignam
was rejected by Ray Liotta, so Scorsese turned to his second choice, Mark Wahlberg. But the
actor declined the offer for about a month, possibly in an effort to avoid working with
DiCaprio after "The Basketball Diaries”, but in the end, the director's experience
and charisma prevailed. Mark based his character on the police who had arrested him in his
youth more than twenty times, as well as on his parents’ subsequent reactions. Frank Costello is the antihero and central
character of the film. Martin had initially invited De Niro to play the role, but Robert
was in the middle of shooting his own film, "The Good Shepherd". Al Pacino also declined.
Option three seemed like a total long shot. Jack Nicholson, who very rarely appeared in
films, rejected the offer outright. But Scorsese didn’t give up. With DiCaprio and screenwriter
William Monahan in tow, he went to meet with the actor personally in hopes of persuading
him. They must have left the right impression, because Nicholson agreed, albeit on his own
terms. Filming comedies was exhausting, and Jack longed to embody pure evil on screen.
Monahan was tasked with rewriting and expanding the role. The screenwriter found inspiration
in the real leader of the Boston mob, Whitey Bulger. Former undercover detective Tom Duffy,
who spent more than thirty years with the Boston police, assisted in recreating the
crime boss's image and providing advice regarding authenticity on the set. The final touch that
convinced Jack to star in the film was total freedom to improvise. Scorsese agreed to support
the actor no matter how crazy the stunt, because it would only highlight the character's unpredictability.
Three of the best examples of Nicholson's insanity: throwing cocaine at prostitutes,
the strap-on in the porn theater, and using a real pistol in a scene with DiCaprio, which
Leonardo later said was one of the most memorable moments of his life. Auditions had all but dried up, but it wasn’t
over. Mel Gibson turned down the role of Ellerby. If Alec Baldwin, who had impressed the director
on the set of “The Aviator”, had not come to the rescue, Martin would not have met his
deadline. The last additions to the cast were Vera Farmiga and Martin Sheen, who agreed
without even reading the script because he had been dreaming of working with Scorsese
for thirty years. Despite the challenges along the way, a solid
cast had finally been assembled. But top notch actors require decent pay, and this had an
effect on the project’s budget, which had now grown to ninety million dollars. Half
of that went toward the actors’ fees. “The Departed” was the last collaboration
between Scorsese and Michael Ballhaus. The film was the cinematographer’s swan song,
bringing an end to his career in Hollywood. By the way, the director always cared about
Michael’s opinion. Considering that Ballhaus had filmed both Damon and Nicholson over the
previous decade, perhaps it was on his recommendation that Martin had invited these actors to join
the film. Filming lasted from April to August of two
thousand and five. The incredibly steep taxes on filmmaking in Massachusetts meant that
the team had just a couple of weeks to get the material they needed in Boston. The most
crucial scene was filmed in the subway. It took DiCaprio and Sheen fifty trips and two
days of shooting for a one-minute sequence in the final cut. A hallmark of the film is its memorable places
and details. The X’s that mark characters for death. The Rolling Stones song "Gimme
Shelter", which had previously featured in “GoodFellas” and “Casino”. And some
even subtler hints. Costello and Sullivan struck up their friendship in a convenience
store, and Billy's fight in that same store led to him meeting Frank. The
contents of the groceries in the first and final scenes are almost identical. This may
be the most intricate detail of the movie. It was Frank who had filled the bag, and working
for him is what led to this particular incident. And here’s a noteworthy line for you: "Do
you have any suits at home, or do you like going to work looking like you're going to
invade Poland?", Because the Nazis designed their uniforms based on the design and patterns
of the Massachusetts State Police. As was the case in “Gangs of New York”,
the animals were computer generated, and although making a fake rat look real was a much easier
task, it’s appearance was much more significant to the plot. Filming wore Martin out. At each stage of
production, the impending finale of the film was morally exhausting. Try as one might,
a director can’t help but feel close to their characters and experience sincere feelings
towards them. Scorsese did admit that the film was good, especially since he considered
“The Departed” to be his first film with a real plot, but it drained him of his vitality. MARTIN SCORSESE I mean, I like the picture but the process
of making it, particularly in the post-production, was highly unpleasant. I said, ‘I don’t
care how much I’m being paid, it’ll kill me. I’ll die. Very simply. The film premiered September twenty-sixth,
two thousand and six. Opening weekend showed that the production team’s sacrifices had
not been in vain. Audiences appreciated the film and it grossed three hundred million
dollars at the box office. Four months later, Martin won the Golden Globe for Best Director,
and the Academy presented the film with nominations in five categories. Leonardo DiCaprio was
not nominated for Best Actor only because Warner Brothers didn’t want to distinguish
him from the other cast members. Instead, the studio promoted Leo’s candidacy for
“Blood Diamond”. And to increase his colleagues’ chances of winning for "The Departed", Leonardo
turned down the nomination for Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role. As a result, Mark Wahlberg
was selected from among the group of actors, but ultimately lost to Alan Arkin. This was
the only nomination that “The Departed” didn’t win at the Oscars. Thelma Schoonmaker
emerged victorious for a third time, and William Monahan took home the trophy for Best Adapted
Screenplay. And of course, the main awards of the evening. For the first time in his
career, at sixty-four years of age, Martin Scorsese’s film won the Academy Award for
Best Picture, and he himself finally won Best Director after six attempts. This was the first remake in history to receive
the top prize. It was the triumph that Scorsese had been longing for for twenty-five years.
Ironically, winning awards for "The Departed" never even occurred to Scorsese, because he
thought that such a dirty, crude, and violent movie would scare the Academy away. It's a
good reminder that you only get what you want when you stop asking for it. It seemed like things would finally settle
down, but that same year, Martin released two more films. The first was an amazing short
mockumentary called "The Key to Reserva." The plot describes how Martin finds an unproduced
screenplay by Alfred Hitchcock, which he then decides to film. It’s a sort of an ode to
Hitchcock’s work and that of composer Bernard Herrmann. The second project was a documentary-style
portrayal of a Rolling Stones concert, whose music had accompanied his career over the
past twenty years. Mick Jagger and the rest of the band put on an outstanding show at
the Beacon Theater, which Scorsese and Robert Richardson then turned into a captivating
film. "Shine a Light" was released in two thousand and eight and earned fifteen million
dollars at the box office. Meanwhile, a pair of recent collaborators
on “The Departed” had started a war; a bidding war, that is. Producer Brad Pitt and
leading man Leo DiCaprio both wanted to buy the film rights to the memoirs of Jordan Belfort.
"The Wolf of Wall Street" ultimately went to Leonardo, who had forked out a million
dollars for it and immediately sent it to Martin. The director was intrigued by the
project, and the duo went around offering it to every Hollywood studio. But the story,
full of drugs, sex, and obscenities, not to mention a very dubious protagonist, failed
to attract an investment. The search for a buyer dragged on, and when Scorsese was sent
a script based on another novel, the time had come to make a decision. The story was
fascinating, and Martin immediately sent it to DiCaprio. The actor happened to be familiar
with the author’s work and had seen the film adaptations of "Mystic River" and "Gone,
Baby, Gone". The rights to Dennis Lehane's “Shutter Island” belonged to Phoenix Pictures,
a tiny film studio that did have a couple of hits to its name: David Fincher's “Zodiac”
and Terrence Malick's “The Thin Red Line”. The company's producers were looking for well-known
directors and serious stories. The prospect of having a noir thriller by the likes of
this dynamic duo gave the project an almost automatic green light. Plus, in the coming
months, Max Von Sydow, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams and Emily Mortimer would join the
cast. But there was a toss-up for the role of Teddy Daniels' partner between Robert Downey
Jr. and Josh Brolin. But the director’s mind was changed by a letter from a fan who
admired Martin's genius and offered his services whenever he could and at any price. This fan
was Mark Ruffalo, and although his methods were unconventional, they landed him the role
of Chuck Aule. As usual, before heading out to the shooting locations, Scorsese conducted
a two-week rehearsal, where he encouraged improvisation and rewrote the script. This
is where the last line of the film was born. The novel’s original ending had come a minute
earlier. "Shutter Island" is one of the few films in
cinematic history that was created with the intention that it be watched more than once. LEONARDO DICAPRIO
- The
main characters, supporting characters, and even the guards, played two different roles.
Every scene and every line can be interpreted two different ways. Especially the minute
details of the opening sequence. Nervous security personnel, and unusual holster problems for
a federal marshal. Ruffalo's character was the most distinct example of this kind of
dualism. At first, he plays a strange but devoted partner, only to take on the guise
of a caring physician later on. No wonder the title of the film "Shutter Island" is
an anagram for two phrases at once, "Truths/Denials" and "Truths and Lies." The effect that water
and fire have on the main character is also surprising. Until the end of the film, it’s
not clear why being near water makes Teddy feel sick, and Andrew doesn’t trust fire.
And of course, the seeming errors of continuity cause the audience to question whether they
themselves are losing their minds. The scenery itself was designed to reflect the protagonist’s
inner world. Confused and illogical. Dante Ferretti did a tremendous job. The mental
hospital is based on the recollections of the project's technical consultant Dr. James
Gilligan, who had worked in institutions for the mentally ill for thirty years. Of course,
such a location doesn’t actually exist, so Shutter Island had to be pieced together
from three separate places - Peddocks Island, the city of Nahant, and the Medfield Psychiatric
Hospital. Scenes featuring rocky cliffs were created using CGI. With the exception of digital
cameras, for the first time in the director's career, the film used the latest cinematic
technology. The musical component of the film was a serious
experiment by Martin. There was no original score with a composer. Instead, Scorsese brought
in his friend Robbie Robertson, who also happened to be one of the best guitarists on the planet.
Robbie hand-picked and compiled a selection of unique pieces by contemporary classical
composers to transform what was happening on screen. A month before the October premiere, Paramount
Pictures, who had sold the distribution rights, postponed the film’s release to mid-February
of the following year. This reduced the thriller’s competition to a minimum, allowing it to bring
in forty million dollars on its opening weekend, and almost three hundred million over the
next two months. The highest earnings in the director's career. But everything comes at
a cost, even money. Due to the film’s debut being pushed back, it became ineligible to
compete for awards. The Golden Globes had already passed, and candidates for the Oscars
had to be submitted much more in advance. Of course, the film could have been eligible
for the following year’s ceremonies, but doing so would have been an extremely rare
exception for a studio. Film releases are planned so that they can participate in the
Academy Awards at the end of the year. At least the director could add this project’s
financial success to his list of achievements. Martin Scorsese I didn't realize there are generations who
do not know about the origins of film. THE 2010S At the beginning of the decade, Scorsese took
a serious interest in documentary filmmaking. “A Letter to Elia” is the biography of
Elia Kazan, Martin's favorite director. Fun fact: Kazan’s final film, “The Last Tycoon”,
starring Robert De Niro, was released the same year as “Taxi Driver”. Despite his
brilliant films, Elia was considered a controversial figure among creative circles. In 1952, at
a meeting of the House Committee on Un-American Activities, he identified eight actors as
being members of the Communist Party, of which he himself was a member in the 1930s. The
names he provided were blacklisted in Hollywood, and destroyed the careers of those individuals.
Half a century later, Elia received an Honorary Academy Award, but some of those in attendance
refused to applaud (Nick Nolte, Ed Harris), while others chose not to stand (Steven Spielberg,
Kerry). But Scorsese’s narrative focuses on the director's work, which is filled with
masterpieces of world cinema. That same year, Scorsese got scooped up by
the HBO channel for work in television. He first shot a biopic of the writer Fran Lebowitz,
famous for her poignant, caustic commentary on public life. Martin and Fran quickly became
friends. Both grew up in New York and revelled in the magic of that great city. Well, Lebowitz's
story once again confirmed the director's reputation as an encyclopedia of cinematic
knowledge. But HBO wasn’t going to let Scorsese go.
His next project turned out to be much more difficult. Following the completion of “The
Sopranos”, the show's executive producer, Terence Winter, was looking for an idea for
a new show. The book “Boardwalk Empire” and the rights to it was presented to him
by Mark Wahlberg. The actor told him that if the project interested him, Scorsese had
agreed to become a producer. The director was very interested in the only period of
American crime history that he had not yet portrayed on screen. Winter wrote the screenplay,
and Martin agreed to help cast, produce, and direct the pilot episode. The lead role was
played by Steve Buscemi, with whom Martin had worked on “New York Stories”. The
show features a star-studded cast, but given Scorsese's filmography, Michael Stuhlbarg
deserves special recognition for playing Arnold Rothstein, the gangster after whom the main
character of "Casino" was named. The project’s scope was unprecedented in
the TV world. HBO spent five million dollars building the set for Atlantic City’s main
strip. The director even made sure that the floorboards were consistent with what was
used in that era. Another five million was spent on costumes, not to mention the steep
fees for the lead actors. When the director invited the actors to improvise, the producers
almost had heart attacks. In television, any deviation from the script is considered taboo.
The pilot episode had a budget of over eighteen million dollars. A record which HBO itself
broke while filming the series "The Pacific" and "Westworld". Martin didn’t stop at directing
the first episode. He continued to make edits to the scripts and rough cuts of most of the
episodes. Upon its release, "Boardwalk Empire" became the channel’s biggest overnight success,
but only for a year... The show lasted five full seasons, although Winter said that he
was prepared to shoot until he had chronicled fifty years of American gangster history. Even before filming for “Boardwalk Empire”
began, Scorsese was approached by the widow of George Harrison, lead guitarist of The
Beatles. After watching Martin’s documentary about Bob Dylan, Olivia realized that he was
the only director she could trust to film a biography about her late husband. Moreover,
Martin had actually met George thirty years earlier on the set of "The Last Waltz". To
turn down the opportunity to shoot a biography of such a great musician would have been a
serious mistake, especially since Olivia Harrison was granting access to George's private collection,
which contained memorabilia, letters, unreleased videos, and home movies. The film tells Harrison’s
life story as he pursued spirituality, amateur race car driving, philanthropy, and meaning
as one of the four people who had changed the world forever.
Martin had honored the musical world with a magnificent film, but the time had come
to show his true feelings towards his first love, cinema. Interestingly, the director
was prompted to do this by his youngest daughter. Francesca introduced her father to Brian Selznick's
novel “The Invention of Hugo Cabret” and asked him to make a movie based on it, preferably
in 3D. It only took a couple of minutes for Martin to be won over by the artistic retelling
of the life of cinematic pioneer, Georges Melies. The main character was based on Georges,
who had shot more than five hundred films. The most famous of these was the first ever
sci-fi film called, "A Trip to the Moon". But his business went under, thanks in no
small part to Thomas Edison, who had closed the American movie market to Melies. Having
gone broke, the director burned most of his films and became a toy seller. It wasn’t
until 1932 that his contribution to cinema was finally acknowledged, when the global
film community had managed to find Georges. As the founder of a charity for the recovery
and restoration of rare and old films, Martin had already fallen in love with the plot.
When he found out that the author of the novel was Brian Selznick, a relative of David Selznick,
screenwriter of the first film that he had ever taken his mother to, he no longer had
any doubts as to what project he would work on next. It didn’t hurt that he had finally
found funding to shoot “Silence”. But this new film forced him to postpone the religious
drama, which after ten years was already seeming like a pipe dream. The rights to “Hugo” had been purchased
even before the book was published, and Scorsese's interest significantly accelerated the process.
The story was adapted for the screen by John Logan, a partner in “The Aviator”, while
Robert Richardson again took his seat behind the camera. The film’s new format had both
the director and the cinematographer worried. The colleagues had two options: either shoot
the film the old fashioned way and convert it to 3D in post-production, or shoot it in
compatible 3D format from the very beginning. Martin turned to James Cameron for advice,
who insisted on the second option. To better understand the specifics of how this would
work, Scorsese and Richardson spent two weeks studying modern filming technology at Cameron’s
production company. After a trial screening of the film, James would go on to call it
a masterpiece with the best 3D cinematography in history, including his own films. Casting, for once, turned out to be an enjoyable
experience. They first found two talented kids. While “Hugo” would be Asa Butterfield’s
cinematic debut in a leading role, Chloe Grace Moretz had already won the hearts of movie-goers
in films like "500 Days of Summer" and "Kick-Ass". Next to join the project were “Shutter Island”
actors Ben Kingsley and Emily Mortimer, as well as
the previously mentioned “Boardwalk Empire” hero Michael Stuhlbarg. Sasha Baron Cohen
was called in to play the role of the inspector. Scorsese admired the actor's talent and pictured
him in the role immediately as he read the book. Cohen joined the cast with a dozen ideas,
most of which were thrown out because the jokes were deemed inappropriate for children. Despite the fact that the film is set in Paris,
a significant portion was actually shot in London, so having the British acting elite
involved in the project should come as no surprise. Frances De La Tour, Richard Griffiths
and Helen McCrory are names that have never disappeared from theater posters in England.
And then, of course, came Christopher Lee, with whom the director had maintained a cordial
relationship for twenty years, but could never find a project that he felt suited the seasoned
talent. CHRISTOPHER LEE
- Filming lasted three months, a couple weeks
of which were spent in Paris. One of the film’s notable features is its layering of visual
illusions, ranging from high-tech depth effects to magic. Card tricks, sequences from Melies’s
films. Cameos by Martin and Ben Kingsley's son, as well as historical cameos. The king
of the gypsy guitar, Django Reinhardt,can be seen playing in the cafe scene, and among
his audience, the artist Salvador Dali and writer James Joyce. The automaton is the recreation
of a mechanism based on inventions by Jacquet Droz in 1768, which is still capable of drawing
pictures no less complex than those shown in the film. Nevertheless, the lion's share of “Hugo”
relied on computer animation. One opening camera sequence was designed before filming
began, with the final rendering not being ready until a year later. But the one hundred and fifty million dollar
love letter to cinema turned out to be a commercial fiasco, as the payoff for Paramount Pictures
ended up being less than two hundred million. Nevertheless, not only did the film receive
favorable reviews from critics, “Hugo” virtually stole the show at the annual awards
ceremony. Scorsese won the Golden Globe for Best Director, and the film received eleven
Oscar nominations two months later, winning five. The Academy praised the sound, set,
visual effects, and cinematography, earning Robert Richardson his third Oscar. While Scorsese was busy reveling in documentaries
and telling the world about the history of film, Leonardo DiCaprio was in his fifth year
of battling studios for permission to film "The Wolf of Wall Street". In 2010, it almost
worked out. Warner Brothers agreed to finance the film, provided it was directed by Ridley
Scott. Ridley and Leo had been wanting to work together, but a critically limited budget
and strict censorship forced them to abandon the project. Two years later, the screenplay
was bought by independent studio Red Granite Pictures. Producer and co-founder, Riza Aziz,
made DiCaprio an unprecedented offer. A budget of one hundred million dollars, with a quarter
of that total going towards the actor's salary, no censorship, and complete creative control.
Leonardo, who saw “The Wolf” as a modern adaptation of “Caligula”, immediately
signed the contract and called Scorsese. Martin had recently celebrated his seventieth birthday,
hardly an occasion to sign onto the most reckless film in his career. After forty years of battling
over every frame, he had finally been given the opportunity to unleash his full power
on the silver screen. But this meant that he once again had to postpone "Silence", for
which casting had already begun. Daniel Day-Lewis, Benicio Del Toro, Liam Neeson and Gael Garcia
Bernal were in negotiations for the leading roles. This earned Scorsese the ire of Cecchi
Gori Pictures, who promptly sued him. The plaintiffs believed that the director had
deliberately breached their contract for "Wolf". The studio demanded one and a half million
dollars in compensation from the director, as well as forfeiture of claims to the project.
Fortunately, the parties were able to reach a settlement, which stated that “Silence”
would be Martin's very next feature film following Belfort's biography. The screenplay for "The Wolf of Wall Street"
was entrusted to the creator of “Boardwalk Empire”, Terence Winter. As per usual for
a Scorsese film, the script was ignored while shooting. Martin and DiCaprio took charge of casting.
The actor had run into Jonah Hill at a Mexican resort and arranged for him to meet with the
director. Hill preferred auditions to conversations, despite the fact that he hadn't needed an
audition to land a role in six years. Scorsese complied with Jonah's request as a formality,
because after seeing him perform in the drama “Moneyball”, he was already convinced
of Jonah's fit for the part. However, in order to guarantee a spot in the film, Jonah cut
his royalties to sixty thousand, the minimum amount allowed by the Actors Guild. Once on
set, he quickly became known as the king of improv. Jonah not only caught everyone off
guard with his remarks, but also with an artificial penis and dentures. To overcome the lisp they
caused, the actor would put them in and chat with random people on the phone for hours
at a time. By the way, one of his improvs got out of control and Josh Bernthal actually
punched him so hard that his false teeth flew out, but Hill never broke character, a fact
that Martin happily took advantage of. Although the script had plenty of crazy scenes on its
own. Dwarf tossing, parading strippers, and a flight to Vegas. And yes, the goldfish survived.
Animal cruelty laws allowed the actor to put the fish in his mouth for up to three seconds,
and then put it back in its tank. Jonah is also the only actor to be admitted to the
hospital for a vitamin D overdose from the false cocaine. By the way, the creators were
forced to change the names of several of the main characters, especially Danny Porush,
who became Donnie Azoff. Danny had threatened to sue the production, and had every right
to do so. But back to casting. In addition to Matthew
McConaughey, Margot Robbie and Jean Dujardin also joined the ensemble. Three directors
featured in the picture: Rob Reiner, Jon Favreau and Spike Jonze. Another industry professional
helped Martin stage the scene with Steve Madden. Steven Spielberg had come to visit a friend
on the set, but got so carried away by the process that at first he started giving advice
to the actors, and then later even helped choose angles and set up cameras. By the way,
there were real Stratton Oakmont brokers scattered throughout the crowd scenes in the office. Rodrigo Prieto, who had become famous for
his work with Alejandro Gonzalez Iñarittu and Oliver Stone, was brought on as head cinematographer.
It was his collaboration with Stone on “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” that got the
director’s attention. The most difficult scene to film was the quaalude
trip. Falling down the stairs and attempting to open the car with his feet was an improvisation
by Leonardo, which he was only able to perform once due to seriously injuring his back in
the process. The fight in the kitchen took three days to shoot. The bacon sequence alone
required seventy takes. The piece wouldn’t stick to DiCaprio's face until it was lubricated
and launched from a spoon. Another long day of shooting was the nursery scene. Margot
Robbie spent seventeen hours seducing Leo in front of thirty members of the film crew.
In another scene, it was the actress herself who insisted on full nudity, while Scorsese
recommended she use a robe. By the way, this was the first nude scene in Robbie's career,
which she justified through Naomi’s treatment of her body as a commodity. So this scene
was, quite simply, a sale. By the way, the director considers Matthew
McConaughey’s cult-like improv to be the most important element of the first act, because
it sets the tone for the rest of the film. A scene that was just as crazy was the interrogation
sequence. Martin chose to not use the script at all, instead giving the actors one simple
task: don’t say anything important. Several takes lasted over twenty minutes, and according
to Thelma Schoonmaker, were worthy of their own short films. Editing such a film turned out to be a taller
order than shooting it. Sure, the studio let the director's imagination run wild, but the
Motion Picture Association would not be so forgiving. Martin was forced to cut the sex
scenes and either cut or revise the gay orgy. Some furniture was added to the sequence in
post-production to hide the actors' genitals. However, the censors did allow six hundred
and eighty-one curse words. This achievement put “The Wolf” in the Guinness Book of
World Records for most swearing in a motion picture. But this achievement seemed insignificant,
because the previous record belonged to "Casino". Scorsese also used a trick from “Shutter
Island” in post-production. Mistakes are deliberately scattered throughout scenes where
the protagonists are taking drugs. Objects change position, events are out of order,
and even the cutaways themselves look incomplete and out of place. “The Wolf of Wall Street” hit movie theaters
on Christmas Eve, twenty thirteen and immediately dominated the box office. With nearly four
hundred million dollars in ticket sales, it became Martin's highest grossing film and
Red Granite Pictures’ first commercial success. Three years later, the company would find
itself in the midst of a financial scandal. An FBI investigation led to the discovery
that funds stolen from the Malaysian government had been allocated to fund production of “The
Wolf of Wall Street”. The trial would go on to last three years, with Martin and Leonardo
both interrogated and searched. In 2019, producer Riza Aziz would be acquitted of the charges,
but his studio would close its doors. But in the winter of 2014, five Oscar nominations
and a Golden Globe for Best Actor were no cause for concern. The following year, Martin produced more documentaries
and also returned to HBO with his own work, where he proved once again that non-fiction
films can be just as fascinating as anything a screenwriter can come up with. “The 50
Year Argument” follows the story of “The New York Review of Books” and the handful
of radicals that started it. The Independent magazine released a review of the film under
the clever title “Martin Scorsese Reveals the History of a Literary Gang of New York.” And of course, as was tradition, following
the documentary, he decided to create a series. The idea of making a behind-the-scenes biopic
about the music industry was a suggestion by Mick Jagger. In the early stages there
were plans to shoot a film and rough drafts of the script had gotten Paramount Studios’
attention, but it was ultimately a friendly cable channel that approved the project. Terence
Winter was again the writer and showrunner, with Martin and Mick Jagger as producers.
The director also shot the pilot episode for “Vinyl”. The project seemed to have a
bright future and the pop industry of the seventies was a fruitful topic. The episode,
directed by Scorsese, captivated the channel’s viewers and was immediately renewed for a
second season. But at the end of the tenth episode, ratings had dropped to such low levels
that the bosses at Home Box Office closed the project. Scorsese called it a tragic decision,
but took the blame for it because he believed that he should have filmed all of the episodes. In twenty fifteen, the director also created
the world’s most expensive advertisement. The short film, “The Audition” starring
Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Brad Pitt and Scorsese himself was, to put it bluntly,
a joke, the goal of which was to show off the luxury casinos in Macau and the Philippines.
The script was written by Winter and the actors shot the film in a week without ever leaving
New York. The gambling palaces hadn’t been completed yet, so green screens were used
to portray their luxury interiors. The actors’ fees were over ten million dollars for each
participant, which meant they could rest easy regardless of whether the film would ever
get picked up by a network. The buyers limited screenings to just the casino opening and
commercials in Chinese movie theaters. Finally, the time had come to shoot another
film that had been waiting in the wings for over twenty years. Preparations for “Silence”
had been ongoing for four years at that point. The most recent delay had caused all of the
actors to leave the project, except for Liam Neeson. The film had to be recast. Martin
had approved Andrew Garfield for the role in 2013. He was joined by Adam Driver. Preparing
for the roles not only cost the actors their time, but also their health. Driver lost fifty-five
pounds; thirty-five before filming and another twenty during. Garfield turned down other
projects for a full year as he grew out his hair and beard. Together they participated
in a two-week silence retreat and visited dozens of monasteries around the world. Filming took place over three months in Taiwan.
Local director Ang Lee helped with location scouting for Scorsese. "Silence" quickly became
the worst filming experience of Martin’s career. A budget of forty-six million dollars
was nothing to scoff at, but when artificial sets and green screens are replaced with a
natural environment and lighting, costs can skyrocket right before your eyes. This approach
squeezed the budget down to the last cent, so the film crew had to skimp on conveniences,
even when it came to sleeping arrangements. Add to that the unforgiving weather combined
with Martin’s health and age. The kid who wasn’t allowed to go on walks because of
his asthma was here, seventy years later, battling against typhoons to get the shots
he needed. Rodrigo Prieto was able to unleash his full potential as he once again took his
place behind the camera. This was also the first time since “Shutter Island” that
Martin had decided to shoot exclusively on film, resulting in stunningly beautiful shots.
The only exceptions were candlelit scenes. The team didn’t want to use artificial light,
so these sequences were filmed with ultrasensitive digital cameras. This was Liam Neeson’s second time playing
a priest for Scorsese and recalled how the director had turned into somewhat of a tyrant
on set. Martin demanded absolute silence from every member of the film crew, from actors
to administrative assistants. If someone broke the silence, filming would stop and the culprit
was threatened with being fired. Everyone involved in "Silence" had to remain silent. Upon completion of post-production, Martin
held a private screening of the film in the heart of the Catholic world, the Vatican.
Four hundred priests were invited to the premiere, whose opinion mattered more to the director
than anything else. When the film ended, the clergymen had absolutely no editorial suggestions.
However, the MPAA gave the film an "R" rating. This was the second film in Martin’s career
to receive such a rating without any swearing, the first being “The Last Temptation of
Christ”. But
audiences didn’t appreciate the story of the Portuguese missionaries who carried the
word of God to Japan. The film only grossed twenty-three million at the box office. Given
that the film had been financed by independent production companies without any large studios
involved in distribution, this was a painful blow. Disparaging reviews from festivals and
award organizations only dragged out the punishment. "Silence" received just one Oscar nomination
for Best Cinematography, but Rodrigo Prieto lost out to Linus Sandgren and his work in
“La La Land”. Martin and Robert De Niro had been looking
for a project they could do together for several years. They had settled on screenplays a couple
of times, but it wasn’t until 2007 that a concrete idea had finally started to take
shape. Robert had read a book called, “I Heard You Paint Houses” by Charles Brandt
and immediately sent it to Martin. The director was immediately interested, because the novel
looked like the perfect farewell piece to his portrayals of the criminal world, something
Scorsese had been doing his entire life. It took two years to get a screenplay written,
which Steven Zaillian had taken on. Steven had become well-known for his work on “Awakenings”,
“American Gangster” and “Schindler's List”, the latter of which had brought them
together back in the early nineties. Afterwards, Zaillian had helped complete the script for
“Gangs of New York” and by two thousand and nine had finished working on the adaptation
for “The Irishman”. Before casting had begun, Brad Grey, head of Paramount Pictures,
became interested in the project. “Shutter Island” had been a profitable success for
the studio, so providing a one hundred million dollar budget didn't seem like a problem.
But after a couple of years of preparations, and due to a series of unsuccessful investments,
Grey lost his seat at Paramount and the new bosses abandoned the project. According to
the director, no other studio in Los Angeles wanted another De Niro and Scorsese film.
But in 2016, they found one. The CEO of Netflix, Ted Sarandos, offered to take on Martin’s
film with a budget of one hundred and sixty million dollars. It was no secret that Scorsese
was openly opposed to home viewing and didn’t like the philosophy of streaming services.
To agree to this deal meant that there wouldn’t be a theatrical release, because the company's
policy didn’t allow films to be distributed until after a month on Netflix. Large movie
theater chains receive their films ninety days before they hit other services and would
not do business any other way. So an agreement with Netflix meant no deal with theaters.
But Scorsese convinced the company to bend their rules for him and allow a theatrical
release right from the start. The studio decided to make an exception, and “The Irishman”
was given the green light. Much later, in August of 2019, Netflix would rescind this
deal and the film was released according to the company’s standard practices, but it
was too late to do anything about it. The greatest casting challenge they faced
was persuading Joe Pesci to join. Robert presented the book to Joe and told him that they simply
had to make this film. Pesci replied: (table clip). The actor had retired and is rumored
to have turned down about fifty other offers, but how could he say no to such a reunion?
Joe agreed and insisted that he play the role of Tony Pro, but the director wanted to show
a different side of the actor and insisted on an unusual character for Pesci, Russell
Bufalino. Martin also called on Harvey Keitel. They hadn’t worked together since “The
Last Temptation of Christ” thirty years earlier. Harvey's involvement made the film
even more epic. When Al Pacino, who for various reasons had refused to work with Scorsese
throughout his career, agreed to play Jimmy Hoffa, the film acquired a new historical
significance. The director knew most of the supporting actors
from “Boardwalk Empire”. Ten people from that series made it into the film, as well
as a couple from the recent show, “Vinyl”. Ironically, there wasn’t a single Irishman
in “The Irishman”. Even in the early stages of preparation, Martin
was concerned with finding actors to play a young De Niro, Pesci and Al Pacino. This
option was considered, but given that the entire film is riddled with flashbacks, it
didn’t make much sense. Then it was CGI to the rescue. The company Industrial Light
& Magic developed a special motion capture and rejuvenation technology for the film.
This allowed the actors to forego conspicuous makeup and prosthetics that were common in
movies up to that point. To bring this effect to life, scenes were simultaneously shot on
three cameras equipped with special lenses. Test takes with De Niro amazed both the producers
and the director. This experimental innovation, created especially for “The Irishman”,
is the main reason the budget became inflated. By the way, the computer generated rejuvenation
was only used on De Niro, Pesci, and Pacino. The rest of the actors still used makeup. The effect may still be noticeable, but keep
in mind that these types of graphics are still in their infancy, and "The Irishman" will
go down in history as the first film to try it. When filming began at the end of August, 2017,
the director was caught off-guard by another problem. The three main characters were all
over seventy-five years old. Their movements were slower, their postures had changed and
even their speech had become quieter. The first day on set, Martin was satisfied with
Al Pacino’s acting, but cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto asked the director to tell
Al to get out of his chair more energetically. This was Scorsese’s first time working with
Pacino, and he didn’t want to start off on the wrong foot by telling the actor that
his movements were too much like that of an old man. The character of Hoffa was only forty-nine
according to the script. Fortunately, this didn’t cause any contention. In fact, the
actors put as much energy as possible into subsequent scenes, which further highlighted
the technological advances and contrast between the time jumps. Of course, sequences where
the movements didn’t match the actors’ supposed age weren’t avoided. The most obvious
example is the scene with the shopkeeper. De Niro clearly didn’t have enough energy,
especially considering the person behind the character he was playing. The real Frank Sheeran
was about six foot four. And although this scene isn’t a good example, the stature
of five foot, eight inch De Niro was manipulated throughout the film through perspective, scenery,
and camera movements to mimic the dimensions of the real Irishman. Filming lasted one hundred and seven days,
the longest shoot of Martin's career, but considering that each take required at least
nine cameras, and the film consisted of three hundred scenes in one hundred locations, it
wasn’t that long after all. As for the year it took to edit the film, this was fairly
standard for the director. Thankfully, Scorsese wasn’t facing pushback from the producers
or censors, so he got to include all of his favorite shots in the final cut, including
references to his own previous work. The film’s runtime ended up being three and a half hours,
the longest film in his career, as well as the longest big-budget American feature film
in the last twenty years. The last picture to require such stamina was Kenneth Branagh's
“Hamlet”. Netflix turned out to be a sanctuary for Martin,
just as HBO had been, because in that same year, even before the premiere of “The Irishman”,
he shot a semi-documentary film about Bob Dylan, covering the legendary Rolling Thunder
Revue tour. In the film, truth and fiction are intertwined; staged interviews are replaced
with real ones, turning history into legend. The magic that Scorsese possesses is unsurpassed. “The Irishman” premiered on November 27th
and immediately became the most watched film on Netflix. It went on to receive nominations
for five Golden Globes and ten Oscars. Unfortunately, Martin and the crew experienced the same disappointment
as they did with “Gangs of New York”. Not a single award. But director Bong-Joon
Ho let Scorsese know how the global film community felt about him. The director is currently working on three
projects. The Paramount Television series “The Devil in the White City” about a
Chicago serial killer in the late nineteenth century, a biopic about thirty-second US President
Theodore Roosevelt, and the crime drama “Killers of the Flower Moon”, a history of an Indian
tribe that experienced a series of killings after oil was discovered on their land in
the 1920s. Leo DiCaprio is set to play the lead character in all of these productions,
and in "Killers of the Flower Moon", he will star alongside De Niro. Yes, Martin will be
turning eighty in the next couple of years, but it looks like he will never stop confessing
his love for cinema, because he always manages to find new words to express it.
