[Review] Mr. Scorsese: Five Hours is Not Enough

Can a five-hour documentary adequately tell the life story of a legendary director? The series Mr. Scorsese suggests the answer is no.

Mr. Scorsese traces Martin Scorsese's life from childhood through his fifty-plus-year directing career. In addition to interviews with Scorsese himself, director Rebecca Miller speaks with his daughters, close friends (including Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg), and actors with whom he has collaborated for years. This roster features Oscar winners Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, Jodie Foster, and Cate Blanchett, among others. This may be the most star-studded documentary you’ll ever watch. These interviews give audiences insight into Scorsese’s background, family life, creative process, and professional setbacks. In one episode, the director even seems to spontaneously interview the real-life inspiration for characters in Mean Streets, offering viewers a deeper understanding of the people and events that shaped those classic cinematic figures.

Many films include behind-the-scenes features and interviews when released on disc, so what makes this documentary special? Does it have a unique value? The director refers to the docuseries as a "film portrait," meaning the final subject is not just Martin Scorsese's films, but the man himself. The series attempts to connect Scorsese's childhood experiences and his relationship with the Hollywood film industry to his use of cinematography, character design, and thematic choices in his directed films. This approach allows viewers to not only deepen their understanding of the director but also to gain a richer appreciation for his many classic movies. Fans of Scorsese, and anyone who loves cinema, will certainly be captivated by this series.

Production still of Mr. Scorsese

However, spanning approximately five hours to narrate Scorsese's fifty-year career and over twenty films ultimately feels a bit like a rushed overview. It's understandable that films consistently hailed as some of the best in cinematic history—Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Goodfellas—receive significant screen time. Yet, from the first episode, Scorsese repeatedly mentions that the films he most wanted to make were The Last Temptation of Christ and Gangs of New York. The former caused immense social and political controversy upon its release, and the latter had a famously troubled production, yet the documentary spends surprisingly little time delving into these major works. Furthermore, religion and faith are recurring themes in Scorsese's cinema; he has directed at least three films entirely dedicated to the subject: The Last Temptation of Christ, Kundun, and Silence. Despite this, the documentary fails to explore this deeply personal and complex theme in any significant detail. Finally, as one of the most revered filmmakers working today, Scorsese has devoted many years to film preservation. This essential element of his legacy and his broader views on the medium of cinema are also not explored in depth.

This docuseries was clearly years in the making, and I believe the actual interview footage shot is far more extensive than what we see in the final product. Director Rebecca Miller selected portions to form her film portrait of Scorsese. While the resulting documentary successfully summarizes his directorial career, chronicles his relationship with societal changes over decades, and provides five hours of entertainment, it ultimately proves that five hours is not nearly enough to fully capture the life and cinematic journey of Martin Scorsese. We can only hope that we will gain a deeper understanding of his remarkable stories and perspectives through his future films, as well as more documentaries and books.

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Synopsis:

Mr. Scorsese is a film portrait of a man through the lens of his work, exploring the many facets of a visionary who redefined filmmaking, including his extraordinary career and unique personal history.

With exclusive, unrestricted access to Martin Scorsese’s private archives, the documentary series is anchored by extensive conversations with the filmmaker himself and never-before-seen interviews with friends, family and creative collaborators including Robert De Niro, Daniel Day-Lewis, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mick Jagger, Robbie Robertson, Thelma Schoonmaker, Steven Spielberg, Sharon Stone, Jodie Foster, Paul Schrader, Margot Robbie, Cate Blanchett, Jay Cocks and Rodrigo Prieto, along with his children, wife Helen Morris and close childhood friends.

From acclaimed director Rebecca Miller, Mr. Scorsese examines how his own colorful life experiences informed his artistic vision as each film he made stunned the world with originality. Starting with his New York University student films and continuing to the present day, this documentary explores the themes that have fascinated Scorsese and informed his work, including the place of good and evil in the fundamental nature of humankind.

Photo and Source: Apple TV+