Martin Scorsese
“We have to save cinema” – He’s dealing against Marvel again
Martin Scorsese fights for cinema.
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Martin Scorsese speaks out against superhero films – and cites Christopher Nolan as a positive counterexample.
Martin Scorsese (80) follows up with his criticism of superhero films. “The danger here is what they do to our culture,” he said in one Interview with “GQ”. There will be generations who only see Marvel and Co. as films and don’t know anything else. Already in 2019 the director compared the inflationary superhero spectacles to theme parks. In any case, they are not cinema, as he understands it. So films “about people trying to convey emotional and psychological experiences to another person.”
What does Martin Scorsese have to do now to recapture the cinema for “real” films as he sees it? “We have to defend ourselves more strongly,” he told GQ. The countermovement must come from the grassroots, from filmmakers themselves.
The Oscar winner cites the indie filmmaker brothers Joshua (39) and Benny Safdie (37), who thrilled critics with their feverish crook films “Good Times” and “Uncut Gems”, as positive examples. Scorsese also mentions Christopher Nolan (53). He also directed superhero films with his Batman trilogy, but they were outside of the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the DC Extended Universe.
“Go out and reinvent yourself”: Scorsese’s appeal to filmmakers
Scorsese’s martial appeal to his colleagues in the fight against the dominance of the superhero franchise: “Hit them from all sides and don’t give up. “Show what you can do. Go out there and do it. Go out and reinvent yourself. Don’t complain about it.” The situation is serious after all. “We have to save the cinema.”
Even films that are designed straight from the drawing board for streaming services are not real cinema for Martin Scorsese. “It’s almost like AI making a movie,” said the veteran. There are good directors and special effects people there too, but “what do these films do for us? Apart from the fact that you consume something and then eliminate it from your head, from your whole body.”
Martin Scorsese’s new film “Killers of the Flower Moon” opens in German cinemas on October 19, 2023. The work is produced by, of all things, the streaming service Apple TV+.