Happy 78th Birthday, Martin Scorsese! Born today in 1942 as Martin Charles Scorsese, this American-Italian historian, actor and filmmaker's career spans more than fifty years. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest living American filmmakers.
One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he is widely regarded as one of the most significant and influential directors in film history.
Born in Queens, New York City, New York, Scorsese was raised in a devoutly Catholic environment, Scorsese initially studied to become a priest. Ultimately, however, he opted out of the clergy to enroll in film school at New York University.
While there, he received a bachelor's degree in English literature in 1964, and received a master's degree in fine arts in film from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts in 1966.
Years later, it would be there where Scorsese would teach Oliver Stone ('Salvador', 'Platoon', 'Wall Street', 'JFK', 'Natural Born Killers') and Spike Lee ('She's Gotta Have It', 'Do the Right Thing', 'BlacKkKlansman').
The following year, Scorsese's first feature, the 1967 American black and white independent drama film 'Who's That Knocking at My Door' was released. It was later accepted into the 3rd Chicago Film Festival. The film was also Harvey Keitel's debut as an actor.
It was there where Roger Ebert saw it and called it "a marvelous evocation of American city life, announcing the arrival of an important new director".
Scorsese's later mentors included John Cassavetes ('Shadows', 'Faces', 'A Woman Under the Influence', 'The Killing of a Chinese Bookie'), whose chatty, improvisational style did much to influence Scorsese's scripts and production work, and who told him to "make films about what you know".
In 1970, Scorsese was one of the seven editors credited for Michael Wadleigh's epic 1970 American documentary/music film 'Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music'.
It was also there where he met another co-editor named Thelma Schoonmaker. She would later become Scorsese's editor for every one of his films, starting with 'Raging Bull'.
In 1971, Scorsese moved to Hollywood, where he associated with some of the young directors who defined the decade, including Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, and Brian De Palma.
One year later, Scorsese directed the 1972 American romantic crime/drama film 'Boxcar Bertha'. This was a cut-rate Depression-era film for "The Pope of Pop Cinema" Roger Corman ('The Masque of the Red Death').
Scorsese has established a filmmaking history involving repeat collaborations with actors and film technicians, including nine films made with Robert De Niro.
Throughout his career, Scorsese had virtually defined the state of modern American cinema during the 1970s and 1980s.
In 1990, 'Raging Bull' became the first film to be selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in its first year of eligibility.
After its release, 'Raging Bull' went on to garner a high critical reputation, and is now often considered Scorsese's magnum opus and one of the greatest films ever made.
Also, in 1990, Scorsese founded The Film Foundation. This is an American nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation and the exhibition of restored and classic cinema.
In 1994, 'Taxi Driver' was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant ".
The film has been widely regarded by critics as one of the greatest films of all time.
In 1997, 'Mean Streets' was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
In 2000, 'Goodfellas' was deemed "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant" and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress.
Its content and style have been emulated in numerous other films and television series.
The film is also widely regarded as one of the greatest films ever made, particularly in the gangster genre.
In 2003, Scorsese received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It is located on 6801 Hollywood Boulevard.
Three years later, Scorsese directed the 2006 American/Hong Kong crime/thriller drama film 'The Departed'. It is a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong thriller/crime film 'Mou gaan dou' ('Infernal Affairs').
Upon release, 'The Departed' was a critical and commercial success, and won several awards. On a budget of $90 million, the film grossed $291.5 million at the box office.
The following year, 'The Departed' won four Oscars for Best Picture, Best Directing, Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay), and Best Editing. Mark Wahlberg was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor. This occurred at the 79th Academy Awards in late February 2007.
In July of that same year, Roger Ebert wrote: “Most of Martin Scorsese's films have been about men trying to realize their inner image of themselves.
That's as true of Travis Bickle as of Jake LaMotta, Rupert Pupkin, Howard Hughes, the Dalai Lama, Bob Dylan or, for that matter, Jesus Christ.
"The Departed" is about two men trying to live public lives that are the radical opposites of their inner realities. Their attempts threaten to destroy them, either by implosion or fatal betrayal.
The telling of their stories involves a moral labyrinth, in which good and evil wear each other's masks.”
Also a tireless supporter of film preservation, Scorsese has worked to bridge the gap between cinema's history and future like no other director.
He has an extraordinarily personal and singular vision, remaining perennially positioned at the vanguard of the medium, always pushing the envelope of the film experience with an intensity and courage unmatched by any of his contemporaries.
In 2007, Scorsese founded World Cinema Project, dedicated to preserving and presenting marginalized cinema from around the globe.
Also, in 2007, Scorsese was presented with the Kennedy Center Honor at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for his influence in American culture.
In 2012, Sight & Sound named 'Taxi Driver' the 31st-best film ever in its decennial critics' poll, ranked with 'The Godfather Part II' (1974), and the fifth-greatest film of all time on its directors' poll.
In 2017, Scorsese introduced the African Film Heritage Project (AFHP).
This is a joint initiative between Scorsese’s non-profit Film Foundation, UNESCO, Cineteca di Bologna, and the Pan African Federation of Filmmakers (FEPACI).
It aims to locate and preserve fifty classic African films, some thought lost and others beyond repair, with hopes to make them available to audiences everywhere.
Scorsese's trademarks include making cameos, often beginning his films with segments taken from the middle or end of the story, the use of slow-motion techniques, often using diegetic music and using long tracking shots and freeze frames.
Other trademarks include the frequent using of conspicuously re-dubbed bits of dialogue and often using quick fades in order to jump ahead in shots of routine action (i.e., characters parking and getting out of cars, etc.).
Many of Scorsese's features highlight the fun and glamorous side of immoral behavior while also unflinchingly showing the ultimate cost to both the person and everyone around them.
They have at least one character who is known for being extremely violent, temperamental or generally unpredictable.
Scorsese is the fourth-oldest winner for the Best Director Academy Award (won for 'The Departed' at age 64 years, 100 days).
Among his credits, Scorsese is also known for directing 'The King of Comedy' (1983), 'The Age of Innocence' (1993),'Casino' (1995), 'Kundun' (1997), 'Gangs of New York' (2002), 'The Aviator' (2004)', 'Hugo' (2011), and 'The Wolf of Wall Street' (2013).
With nine nominations for the Academy Award for Best Director, Scorsese is the most-nominated living director and is second only to William Wyler's twelve nominations overall.
Scorsese's impressive body of work was a meditation on the visceral nature of violence and male relationships that often reflected his own personal angst growing up in the violent streets of Manhattan's Lower East Side.
From his trademarks, one can see that Scorsese's body of work explores themes such as Italian-American identity, Catholic concepts of guilt and redemption, faith, machismo, nihilism, crime and tribalism.
Many of Scorsese's films are known for their depiction of violence, and the liberal use of profanity and rock music. He frequently uses The Rolling Stones song "Gimme Shelter".
From the 1970s, Scorsese created a body of work that was ambitious, bold, and brilliant.
But even his most acclaimed films are demanding, sometimes unpleasantly intense dramas that have enjoyed relatively little commercial success.
Thus, Scorsese bears the not totally undeserved reputation as a cult director who works with big budgets and Hollywood’s most desirable stars.
Although Scorsese is known for his harsh, often violent depictions of American culture, in terms of artistry, he is perhaps the most significant American director of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
A consummate storyteller and visual stylist who lived and breathed movies, Scorsese won fame translating his passion and energy into a brand of filmmaking that crackled with kinetic excitement.
Arguably one of the greatest directors of all time, Scorsese has made some of the most daring films in cinematic history.
Nicknamed Marty, Scorsese has been active from 1962–present.
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