Martin Scorseseis one of thegreatest filmmakers of all time, and it’s a testament to his unmatched legacy that even though he began working in the 1960s, he was still making some of his best work in the 2010s. This was a decade when Scorsese continued to explore longstanding themes around the consequences of crime, questions of faith, and broadened his horizons with genres he had never previously tackled. As an artist who has consistently pushed the boundaries of what could be achieved in Hollywood, Scorsese remained one of the industry’s most exciting voices throughout this decade.
Some ofScorsese’s greatest filmswere made during the 2010s, as he continued his longstandingcollaborations with actors like Robert De Niroand Leonardo DiCaprio. While many will be familiar with Scorsese’s feature films, he also made acclaimed documentaries during this time as he delved into the lives and careers of iconic figures like George Harrison and Bob Dylan. As a Hollywood icon in the truest sense of the word,the 2010s were yet another outstanding decade for Martin Scorsese.
While Martin Scorsese’s documentary work isn’t nearly as widely seen as his feature films, they still represent an important contribution to his mark on cinema, and releases like the concert filmThe Last Waltzhave been true cult classics. However, other movies likeThe 50 Year Argumentwere far less impactful and highlight Scorsese following his own passions with a smaller-scale project. Asa catalog of the history of influence of theNew York Review of Books, Scorsese co-directed this HBO television film with David Tedeschi to mark the magazine’s 50-year anniversary.
Scorsese’s work has always been intrinsically linked with New York City, and it’s no surprise that he has a fondness for this literary institution. By leaning into the way the magazine explored political and historical events,The 50 Year Argumenthighlighted the importance of good journalism and how media can shape and influence culture and citizens. While those who only think of Scorsese as a crime and gangster movie filmmaker will likely be disappointed, viewers who understand the true variety of his work and interests will seeThe 50 Year Argumentas yet another enjoyable offshoot in a fascinating career.
The neo-noir psychological mysteryShutter Islandwas yet another enjoyable collaboration between director Martin Scorsese and actor Leonardo DiCaprio. As a thrilling adaptation of the novel of the same name by Dennis Lehane, this fascinating mystery saw DiCaprio play Deputy U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels investigating a missing patient at a facility for the criminally insane on a remote, inhospitable island. As a crime story packed with twists, audiences were forced to question everything they thought they knew as it was revealed that Teddy may not be a law enforcer at all and was, in fact, a patient at the hospital the entire time.
Shutter Islandwas Scorsese playing with genre conventions and having a great time while he was at it. However, the harsh truth was thatShutter Islanddoesn’t quite live up to Scorsese’s reputation for making groundbreaking and transformative films likeRaging BullorGoodfellas. Instead, despite being an engaging thriller that kept viewers on the edge of their seats throughout,Shutter Islandfelt like it could have been made by any competent thriller director and lacked the depth of the filmmaker’s greatest works.
The career of Martin Scorsese has been categorized by variety, as he’s tackled biographical dramas, comedies, crime stories, and thought-provoking explorations of faith, although he’s only had one film aimed explicitly at children, and that’sHugo. This 3D adventure story starred the futureSex Educationstar Asa Butterfield as a 12-year-old boy in 1930s Paris embroiled in a mystery surrounding his late father and the filmmaking pioneer Georges Méliès. As an unabashedly sentimental love letter to the history of cinema,Hugowas an elegant fantasy that showcased how kids’ movies could be both incredibly clever and hugely entertaining.
Hugowas so unlike anything Scorsese had ever previously made that it’s sometimes hard to know where to position it within the filmmaker’s incredible legacy. However, it was a truly compelling piece of cinema that representedone of the most well-executed uses of 3D in the 2010s. WhileHugowas a financial disappointment at the box office, the film remains yet another incredible example that, even when he journeys outside of his comfort zone, Scorsese could still knock it out of the park with a masterful kids’ movie.
One thing that has remained consistent throughout Martin Scorsese’s career is a passionate interest in pop and rock music. While many will think of Scorsese’s revolutionary use of tracks by The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, and Cream in his breakout successMean Streets, Scorsese has only consistently explored music in his documentary work with films likeGeorge Harrison: Living in the Material World. Thisthree-and-a-half-hour exploration of the former Beatle’s legacyexplored Harrison’s contribution to pop culture with a level of depth no other documentary previously had.
As a film packed with unseen archival footage and new interviews with those closest to Harrison,Living in the Material Worldtapped into not just the phenomenon of Beatlemania but also Harrison’s deep-rooted connection to the Hare Krishna movement and how this influenced his music. As a filmmaker who’s been interested in questions of faith and belief, it’s no surprise that Scorsese was fascinated with Harrison’s spiritual journey. By placing the so-called quiet Beatle front and center, Scorsese’s film illuminated a side of the musician that the average listener would have only been casually familiar with.
Both Martin Scorsese and the iconic folk musician Bob Dylan emerged out of the cultural landscape of New York City in the 1960s, and it makes sense that the pair have a long-standing respect for one another. The two have worked together several times, such as in the Band’s concert film,The Last Waltz, or with the acclaimed documentary filmNo Direction Home. However, the duo’s most fascinating project wasRolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese, a pseudo-documentary that blended fact and fiction to tell a story where nothing was certain.
Rolling Thunder Revuepurported to be an account of Dylan’s 1975 Rolling Thunder Revue concert tour, but the documentary was interspersed with talking heads from some people who weren’t even involved in the tour. Working out the facts from the fiction inRolling Thunder Revuewas part of the fun, as Dylan told bold-faced lies about his white makeup being influenced by Kiss and Sharon Stone pretended she had joined the tour as a teenager. While those unfamiliar with Dylan’s cryptic sense of humor will be left scratching their heads, for those in the know,Rolling Thunder Revuewas incredible.
Silencecontinued Martin Scorsese’s career-long exploration of faith that could be seen in everything from the troubled soul searching ofMean Streetsto the biblical epicThe Last Temptation of Christ. As the story of two 17th-century Jesuit priests traveling to Edo period Japan to locate their missing mentor and spread Christianity,Silencewas about as far away as you could get from the trigger-happy gangster stories of works likeGoodfellas. Yet,Silenceremains one of Scorsese’s most poignant worksand featured standout performances from Adam Driver, Andrew Garfield, and Liam Neeson.
As a thoughtful unpacking of themes surrounding faith, doubt, and the complexities of belief, it’s clear thatSilencewas Scorsese’s reckoning with his own beliefs as he entered old age. By showcasing the clash of cultural imperialism and missionary work as these priests sought to spread the word of God,Silencetapped into the often destructive consequences of religion and the dark side of trying to impose one’s beliefs onto another person. As a challenging, visually stunning, and emotionally resonant film,Silencewas an essential addition to Scorsese’s long-standing legacy.
It’s impressive that, after more than five decades of filmmaking, Martin Scorsese was still assembling outstanding casts the likes of which Hollywood had never seen before. The epic gangster filmThe Irishmannot only fulfilled a long-standing passionate project for Scorsese, but it also signaled the first and only collaboration between the director and Al Pacino, who was joined by gangster movie icons Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci. With an absolutely stacked cast,The Irishmantells the story of the hitman Frank Sheeran over a challenging but rewarding 209-minute runtime.
While much of the discourse aroundThe Irishmanrelates to the use of de-aging technology that allowed Pacino, De Niro, and Pesci to play the young and older versions of their characters, this ignores how wellthe film acted as the summation of Scorsese’s work in the gangster genre. With themes of aging and regret as well as loyalty and betrayal,The Irishmandeconstructed the complex connection between crime and politics through Sheeran’s relationship with the union leader Jimmy Hoffa. As a thrilling true crime story,The Irishmanwas just about everything you could want from a Scorsese movie.
Martin Scorsese perfectly encapsulated the soulless nature of capitalism and greed with his incredible biographical crime storyThe Wolf of Wall Street, a film that represented his most unrestrained and unhinged collaboration with actor Leonardo DiCaprio. As the stockbroker and fraudster Jordan Belfort, DiCaprio embodied the excesses and hedonism of Wall Street and the financial industry throughout the late 1980s and 1990s. With the gluttonous desire for money and power taking precedence over morality and ethics, Scorsese showcasedBelfort as a synecdoche for everything wrong with modern society.
While there were deep themes underpinningThe Wolf of Wall Street, the reason it stands as Scorsese’s greatest achievement in the 2010s was because it balanced this with an incredible sense of humor and non-stop chaotic energy. With DiCaprio giving an outrageous, Oscar-worthy performance, the supporting performances from the likes of Margot Robbie, Jonah Hill, and Matthew McConaughey elevated the film. With an incredible script, impeccable performances, and a thought-provoking point to make,The Wolf of Wall Streetstands alongside the likes ofTaxi Driver,Goodfellas, andThe Departedas one ofMartin Scorsese’scrowning achievements.
