The Cinema of Martin Scorsese - Softcover

Friedman, Lawrence S.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0826410774 ISBN 13: 9780826410771

Publisher: Continuum Intl Pub Group, 1998

Synopsis

From the urban violence and psychosis of MEAN STREETS, TAXI DRIVER, and GOODFELLAS to the romanticism of THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, and from the drama of RAGING BULL to the supremely provocative LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST, this book provides a "lively, informative look at the 'consummate cineast, ' whom Steven Spielberg calls America's best and most honest director" (LIBRARY JOURNAL).

About this title

Review

Is Martin Scorsese the last of the auteur filmmakers? Does his cinematic brilliance put him on a par with John Ford, Orson Welles, Howard Hawks, John Cassavettes, and other major American directors? In The Cinema of Martin Scorsese, Lawrence S. Friedman investigates this question as he takes the reader through the progress of Scorsese's career. Friedman explores Scorsese's influences, his stock company of actors (which includes Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Harvey Keitel), his student films, and all his major works, including the masterpieces Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Goodfellas. The versatility of Scorsese's interests are examined in studies of his musical films New York New York and The Last Waltz, his adaptation of the literary masterpieces The Last Temptation of Christ and The Age of Innocence, his postmodern comedy After Hours, as well as Cape Fear, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, The Color of Money, and Casino. Friedman even offers some speculations about Kundun, which is about the 14th Dalai Lama and the Chinese takeover of Tibet. This well-written and engaging book offers many insights into an artist who believes that "my whole life has been movies and religion. That's it. Nothing else."

From Library Journal

"My whole life has been movies and religion. That's it. Nothing else," admits Martin Scorsese. The director burst on the American film scene in the early Seventies with personal and sometimes violent and disturbing films like Mean Streets and Taxi Driver. Since then, Scorsese has retained his status as an independent filmmaker and was recently given the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award. Friedman (English, Purdue Univ.) offers a timely appraisal of Scorsese's career, covering his student days, apprenticeship with exploitation director Roger Corman, personal and professional excesses, and cinematic controversies. The author also reviews recurrent themes of sexual longing, the Catholic burden of sin and guilt, and a search for the connection between God and humans. Nor does he neglect Scorsese's offbeat films. This is a lively, informative look at the "consummate cineast," whom Steven Spielberg calls America's best and most honest director. Recommended for popular film collections.?Stephen Rees, Levittown Regional Lib., Pa.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Continuum Intl Pub Group
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0826410774
• ISBN 13: 9780826410771
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 200