They have come not to bury Martin Scorsese, but to praise him, which is a glaring reflection of the sad state of Hollywood values. Poor Marty, snubbed for so many years by the Academy of Motion Pictures, but finally taking home an Oscar for his latest work, The Departed.
I cannot muster much sympathy for Mr. Scorsese. Nor can I revel in his current glory. He is a talented filmmaker, to be sure--an excellent craftsman. But when I stand back and consider his body of work, I am left with the sad conclusion that his legacy is empty, base and degrading, that he has done far more harm than good, and that the real tragedy is that Hollywood is willing to elevate his debauchery into something almost iconic.
Who has seen Taxi Driver that came out a better person? Who really enjoyed this movie? Hardly anyone, I bet. Who thought Casino contributed to society? Or Goodfellas, Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Last Temptation or Gangs of New York? Even most of his tamer work feels morally void to me, including The Color of Money and The Aviator. In fact, only his documentaries have left me feeling the least bit inspired, and I think The Last Waltz (The Band) is one of the great rock-n-roll documentaries, and No Direction Home (Bob Dylan) one of the most interesting.
And now The Departed, with language even more vulgar than its stock of 237 F-words. With more brutal, graphic violence and sex and sacrilege and racism and ... But what is important to the industry is that finally with Oscar in hand, Scorcese is crowned a demigod, and in his now transcendent state will be held above any mere mortal directors who might make films that educate, ennoble and inspire.
Have it your way, Hollywood. But I wouldn't trade one good Frank Capra movie for the whole of his work.
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