A Reel Opinion: The Top 10 Best Films of Martin Scorsese

In 2019, This Blogger did a Top 10 ranking of the best films from famed director Martin Scorsese. With the man’s newest film, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON, making critical and box office waves, the conversation has been renewed: what are his best works, and does KILLERS deserve to be mentioned among his best? Well, as far back as I can remember, I wanted to be a Blogger, so here we go…

 

The 80-year-old, New York City-born filmmaker has shown no signs of slowing down. In the last 20 years he has directed nine (9) feature films that earned high praise, won Oscars, and landed spots in our culture. Starting with his debut WHO’S THAT KNOCKING AT MY DOOR in 1967, he has examined tortured souls, explored American history, played with crime, and deep faith. As one of the major figures of the New Hollywood Era, his name has become synonymous with cinema, and even his misses can be considered marvels. Here now are Reel Speak’s picks for his Top 10 Best: 

 

 

 

 

 

10. CASINO (1995)

 

Making movies based on the lives of real-life gangsters has been Scorsese’s favorite thing to do, and CASINO was one of many. Based the non-fiction book detailing the mob’s involvement at a Las Vegas casino, the film re-united frequent Scorsese collaborators Robert DeNiro and Joe Pesci, and the result is an explosive story of trust and betrayal. Epic in its telling with a powerful punch, it is that cautionary tale of excess that Scorsese loves to tour. 

 

 

9. SILENCE (2015)

 

One of many late-career masterpieces. A long, grueling, and cerebral journey through 17th century Japan where two priests search for their missing comrade, SILENCE is a deep exploration of faith while going up against impossible odds…including death and torture. A slow burner, it takes a long time to unfold, and has the fingerprint of a filmmaker who has learned patience over the years. Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, and Liam Neeson turn in excellent performances. 

 

8. THE AVIATOR (2004)

 

Howard Hughes: filmmaker, aviator, billionaire, playboy, and genius…gets his life story brought to the screen by Scorsese. This is more of a celebration of Hughes than a deep look at what made him tick, but that was probably the whole point. Hughes was a major celebrity in his time, one that Scorsese likely looked up to. Leonardo DiCaprio and Cate Blanchett are electric, and the film also serves as a love letter to a glamorous Hollywood age long gone. An Oscar contender in 2004, it had 11 nominations and won five, including Best Supporting Actress for Blanchett’s dazzling portrayal of Hollywood legend Katharine Hepburn. 

 

7. THE KING OF COMEDY (1982)

 

A journey through the mind of a wanna-be stand-up comic (DeNiro), who often confuses reality with his own fantasies. This film may show its age in places, but it stands as a relevant look at fame and how we treat our idols. DeNiro creates a likeable, yet messed-up character; one of many troubled souls that Scorsese would explore throughout his career. 

 

6. KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON (2023)

 

Scorsese turns his cameras towards the grisly, tragic, and revolting treatment of Native American women in 1920’s Osage Nation as they are murdered by their white husbands for their oil money. It may not seem like it on the surface, but this is a story that was perfect for Scorsese to tackle; it shows a loose organized crime group, uncovers an overlooked area of American history, and it is ripe for tremendous performances. The cast of Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert DeNiro, and most especially, Lily Gladstone, turn some of the best acting in a Scorsese film. It’s one of his longest films, but will have anyone staggering out of the theatre after its breathtaking final shot.

 

 

5. GANGS OF NEW YORK (2002)

 

After making so many movies about organized crime, it perfect made sense that Scorsese would make one about its origins. GANGS OF NEW YORK is a historical epic that looks at early immigration and a very violent America, while serving as a decades-long revenge story. The film is a feat in production design, cinematography, and acting…with Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Cameron Diaz lighting up the screen. This Blogger’s personal favorite. 

 

 

4. TAXI DRIVER (1976)

 

Troubled souls who are one bad day away from causing more trouble has always been a favorite character-type of Scorsese’s, and he found his most iconic one in Travis Bickle…as played by Robert DeNiro. New York City is portrayed as the worst place on Earth, and when Bickle finally has his one bad day, it all comes crashing down in a way that is satisfying because everything that came before it counts, and counts hard. 

 

 

3. RAGING BULL (1980)

This has been a hard movie to love, as it is brutal and uncomfortable to watch…but maybe that’s what makes it so damn good. DeNiro bulks up to play real-life boxer Jake LaMotta, a tortured soul who isn’t happy unless he’s beating someone up or is getting his own brains bashed in. It is intense but stands one of the best dark character studies in cinema, with a monster of a performance by DeNiro and ruthless boxing scenes.

 

2. THE DEPARTED (2005)

Winner of four Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director for Scorsese. Leonardo DiCaprio plays an undercover cop looking to take down Boston’s leading gangster (a fantastic Jack Nicholson), while trying to figure out the identity of a rat (Matt Damon), in the Special Investigations. It’s the ultimate cat-and-mouse game on film, with plenty of twists and the enjoyment of watching cops and robbers go at it. Despite its tragic ending it is endlessly re-watchable and so much fun to take in. 

 

 

1. GOODFELLAS (1990)

 

This may seem like a lazy choice, but it’s hard to ignore a film that has become so absorbed into our culture; from its sharp one-liners (funny how?), the montage of dead bodies set to the back-half of Layla, the famous tracking-shot into the Copacabana Club, and iconic characters as played by DeNiro, Pesci, and Ray Liotta. Not to mention that without this film, there never would have been a SOPRANOS. One of the best mobster pictures ever made, it takes a young man who just wants to be a gangster and turns it into the American dream, and lets us know that some crooks absolutely love the lives that they lead. It would be unfair to say that Scorsese has “glamorized’ organized crime and mobsters over the years, because in GOODFELLAS, just like in all of his mob-films, none of these guys have happy endings. But despite that, Scorsese really makes us want to hang out with them…and he never did it better than here. It’s wildly entertaining, sharply edited, beautifully acted, and not shy to break our hearts when it needs to. This is the film that his name is the most often connected to, and for good reasons.

Reel Speak's Top 10 Best Films of Martin Scorsese 

1. GOODFELLAS
2. THE DEPARTED
3. RAGING BULL
4. TAXI DRIVER
5. GANGS OF NEW YORK
6. KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
7. THE KING OF COMEDY
8. THE AVIATOR
9. SILENCE
10. CASINO

A Reel Review: KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON

Over the years, Famed director Martin Scorsese has brought stories to the big screen centered around obscure, forgotten, somewhat minor or ignored history. GOODFELLAS (1989), hung out with east-coast gangsters, GANGS OF NEW YORK (2002), did battle with the original east-coast gangsters, and WOLF OF WALL STREET (2013), counted the coins of a Wall Street crook. Here in 2023, Scorsese turns his attention to the grisly, tragic, and outrageous treatment of American Indian women in KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON. 

Ernest (Leonardo DiCaprio), returns home from WWI to live with his uncle Hale (Robert DeNiro), on the Osage Nation in Oklahoma…where Native Americans are becoming the richest people in the country thanks to the production of oil on their land. Hale encourages Ernest to marry Mollie (Lily Gladstone), who is heir to an oil fortune…just as other Native American women are mysteriously murdered. 

Directed by Scorsese and based on the book of the same name by David Grann, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON is a film designed to make our skin crawl. Ernest falls in love with Mollie and begins a family, while slowly entering the dark conspiracy at play: white men are marrying Native American women who are heirs to an oil fortune…and after the children are born, murder the wives and inherit the cash and oil rights. The murders range from gunshots to poisoning, and even hired private detectives are powerless against the dark plotters…led by Hale. Greed is the name of the game here, and Ernest is caught in the middle of it all as he has truly fallen in love with Mollie. Scorsese is exploring the moral boundaries of a man set firmly between a chance at lifelong wealth or a life of love. 

There is a commitment to being true to history here, as KILLERS pulls no punches in exposing one of America’s darkest histories. Seeing Native American women killed and their justice denied is hard to watch. This perspective is shown through the Mollie character, which is a surprising shift and leads to the Ernest character kept at a cold distance. There are some mental gymnastics to be taken as the audience needs to realize that the story is not about the white-man lead actor/character. 

KILLERS is a gorgeous-looking film, and some of Scorsese’s long-takes are some of the best of his career. The blood and gore is not too bad. The editing is sharp but the film does feel every bit of its massive 206 minute run-time (that’s 3 hours, 26 minutes for you savages). The soundtrack by Robbie Robertson is tremendous. 

Also tremendous is the acting. Leonardo DiCaprio turns in another powerhouse, and he and DeNiro match up well. The show is stolen by Lily Gladstone. Jesse Plemons appears in the third act as the lead Federal investigator and is excellent. The film is laced with great cameos by Jason Isbell, Sturgill Simpson, Jack White, Pete Yorn, John Lithgow, and our reigning Best Actor…Brendan Fraser. 

By the time we get to the third act (at about the third hour), the film curiously resembles GOODFELLAS…as things shift to courtrooms and legal proceedings as the Law finally closes in and the conspirators begin to turn on each other. It’s a very drawn-out conclusion and KILLERS feels like it could have been a lot tighter. Despite this, it ends on a powerful note (including a breathtaking closing shot), and every bit of its weight can be felt. This isn’t just a look at ignored history but a revelation of devasting history. It is eye-opening, it is sobering, and it is colossal. 

BOTTOM LINE: See it 

 

A Reel 100: Walt Disney Animation Studios

This month marks the 100^th anniversary of Walt Disney Animation Studios. 

 

Founded on October 16, 1923, by brothers Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney, it was originally founded as a cartoon studio dedicated to producing animated short films. In 1928 they had their breakthrough when they produced STEAMBOAT WILLIE; their first cartoon with synchronized sound. WILLIE would skyrocket the popularity of its lead character, Mickey Mouse…who would become a worldwide icon and the symbol for Disney for all time. 

 

The Studio would push the boundaries of animation techniques, but recognized the value of classic, simple storytelling. In 1937 they would create SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS, the first feature-length animated film in history. SNOW WHITE was an instant success, and for a time became the highest grossing film of all time before being surpassed by GONE WITH THE WIND two years later. 

 

The 1940’s saw even further advances in animation, while providing short-films which gave Mickey some new pals: Donald Duck and Goofy. Feature films during this time included PINOCCHIO (1940), FANTASIA (1940), DUMBO (1941), BAMBI (1941), SALUDOS AMIGOS (1942), and THE THREE CABALLEROS (1944). CINDERELLA arrived in 1948, and led the Studio into the 1950’s, which gave us ALICE IN WONDERLAND (1951), PETER PAN (1953), LADY AND THE TRAMP (1955), and SLEEPING BEAUTY (1959). This decade also saw Walt move his attentions to live-action films along with the Disneyland theme park. In 1964, Disney would bring animation and live-action together in one of the Studio’s grandest films, MARY POPPINS. 

 

Walt Disney would pass away in 1966. But the Studio would still produce future classics such as ONE HUNDRED AND ONE DALMATIONS (1961), and THE JUNGLE BOOK (1967). Disney World would open in 1971, and with the success of Disneyland, the parks and films began their own circle of life: the parks would promote the films, and the films would promote the parks. In this decade the Studio would deliver ROBIN HOOD (1973), and THE RESCUERS (1977). 

 

By the 1980’s the Disney name and the shape of Mickey Mouse had become international symbols. This alone helped along films such as THE FOX AND THE HOUND (1981), and THE GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE (1986). 

 

The decade would close with THE LITTLE MERMAID in 1989, which would usher in the magnificent era now known as The Disney Renaissance. Films in this period would include THE RESCUERS DOWN UNDER (1990), BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1991), ALADDIN (1992), THE LION KING (1994), POCAHONTAS (1995), THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (1996), HERCULES (1997), MULAN (1998), and TARZAN (1999). 

 

The early part of the new millennium would deliver TREASURE PLANET (2002), and BROTHER BEAR (2003). THE PRINCESS AND FROG would close the decade in 2009. The Studio would make the transition into 3D computer-animation with success, and in 2010 would bring one of their best all-time films to the big screen, TANGLED. 

 

More hits in the new 3D era would be on the way: WRECK-IT RALPH (2012), FROZEN (2013), ZOOTOPIA (2016), MOANA (2016), and ENCANTO (2021). 

 

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In the last 100 years, Walt Disney Animation Studios have produced 61 feature films, winning 135 Academy Awards (including 32 by Walt personally), with several of their films sitting as some of the highest grossers of all time. Their name has become synonymous with terms such as magic, fun, adventure, and cinema. Their films may have been made for children, but as adults we can appreciate the effort and beauty of the animations, and deep down the grassroots-style of storytelling makes a deep connection with everyone. 

The success of Walt Disney Animation Studios enabled the company to become the empire that it is today. As a huge entity that seems to own or have a piece of everything, it is easy to lump it in with the Amazon's and the Apple's of the world. But their contributions to cinema, in art and technology, has stood the test of time...while their characters and stories have become parts of our every day lives. There is no other studio that can strike up swelling emotion when their opening logo lightens up the screen.  That’s the way Walt dreamed it in 1923, and that’s the way they will do cinema for the next 100 years. 

 

 

A Reel Review - THE EXORCIST: BELIEVER

Nearly every horror franchise has fallen into the same pattern: A tremendous start, a bunch of decent-to-awful sequels, a remake, and eventually a Legacy Sequel which may or may not ignore everything that came before it. The famed HALLOWEEN franchise just had that treatment, and next on deck, THE EXORCIST. 

 

Two twelve-year-old girls, Angela (Lidya Jewett), and Katherine (Olivia O’Niell), go missing while playing in the woods. When they are found, they bring something evil back with them which eventually takes over their bodies. Angela’s father Victor (Leslie Odom, Jr.), seeks out the assistance of Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn), who had once battled the same evil. 

 

Produced by Blumhouse Productions and directed by David Gordon Green (both of which are coming off the disastrous HALLOWEEN sequel trilogy), THE EXORCIST: BELIEVER follows the familiar path that the most possession films take: the victims enter to bizarre and disturbing behavior which baffles medical science, and the parents give up on their stubborn faithlessness and seek a miracle. While the path is familiar, BELIEVER takes a refreshing turn by including more than one faith in the battle to free the possessed girls. Where the original THE EXORCIST treated Catholic Priests and the Vatican like Jedi, BELIEVER allows other denominations to come in. Opening the door to other cultures and beliefs finally gives us something new.

 

The first two acts of BELIEVER are as good as it can get. Victor and the other bewildered parents are put to the test, and we empathize with them from the moment their kids go missing. Unfortunately, it’s in the third act where everything goes downhill. The themes of different cultures coming together is half-baked and is treated too lightly, and the final showdown to free the two possessed girls is a letdown: devoid of any real scares or shock. 

 

David Gordon Green imitates the directing style of the original THE EXORCIST helmer, the late great William Friedkin. Green copies his style with the transitions and impressive long takes, and there are many sequences that feel like they could have come from Friedkin himself. But again, by the third act all that goes out the window, and the film loses its personality. 

 

Acting is very good. Leslie Odom Jr. plays the role of a troubled parent very well, and we can feel the weight on his shoulders. The two young girls, Lidya Jewett and Oliva O’Niell, are tremendous. Ellen Burstyn, at 90 (!) years old, is an absolute warrior and hasn’t lost any of her bite. Unfortunately, her character amounts to an extended cameo and doesn’t serve much of a purpose…despite the emotional ending that she gets.

 

THE EXORCIST: BELIEVER is yet another Legacy Sequel that chooses to ignore all sequels that have come before it, and serve as a direct follow-up to the 1973 classic. The light involvement of the MacNeil character makes the film feel inconsequential, and there isn’t much that happens here to justify its existence. There’s a lot to like, but a lot that can go to hell. 

 

BOTTOM LINE: Rent it 

A Reel Preview: The Year in Film 2023 - Episode X

The season for ghosts and goblins has arrived. This October has a light amount of horror to roll out on the big screen, along with the return of cinema legend. Here’s what’s coming to theatres this month: 

 

 

THE EXORCIST: BELIEVER – David Gordon Green, who did a shit job in rebooting the HALLOWEEN franchise, helms this legacy sequel to the 1973 classic. Ninety-year-old Ellen Burstyn reprises her EXORCIST role as Chris MacNeil, who assists two families whose daughters have been possessed. Leslie Odom Jr. co-stars. 

 

 

FOE – Saoirse Ronan stars in this sci-fi thriller about a wife who is informed that her husband will be sent into space, while she is left in the company of a robot. It is directed by Garth Davis, who helmed the Oscar-nominated LION from 2016. 

 

 

FREELANCE – In this action comedy, John Cena stars as a Special Forces Op called into service to protect a journalist who gets caught up in a rebellion. 

 

 

 

KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON – Martin Scorsese returns to the big screen with this epic drama about the series of murders in the Osage Nation after the discovery of oil on their land. The all-star cast includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert DeNiro, Lily Gladstone, Jesse Plemons, Brendan Fraser, and John Lithgow. 

 

 

BUTCHER’S CROSSING – Nic Cage stars in this drama about an Ivy League dropout who decides to live in the Colorado wilderness. 

 

 

FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S – The long-awaited supernatural horror film based on the popular video game of the same name. Josh Hutcherson stars as a security guard working at an abandoned family entertainment center, where the animatronic mascots come to life. Matthew Lillard and Mary Stuart Masterson co-star. 

 

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Next month, Reel Speak previews the packed month of November. 

 

 

 

A Reel Review: SAW X

Some backstory is needed before discussing SAW X; the tenth film in the bloody, gory, preachy, yet somewhat philosophical horror series that started way back in 2004. The first film was a horror masterstroke of twists and turns. The first sequel, SAW II (2005), was clever and effective enough. After that, it became a convoluted mess of timeline-hopping and extended flashbacks, with each film presenting deadly traps that got more and more ridiculous. Now for SAW X, they go back to the approach of timeline-hopping for one more slash at it. 

 

Set between the first and second films, John Kramer (Tobin Bell), is suffering from brain cancer and takes on an experimental treatment. After flying to Mexico for surgery, he discovers that he was a victim of a scam…and decides to hold all those behind it responsible. 

 

Directed by Kevin Greutert, SAW X is committed to the theme of the original film that has driven the franchise: people not appreciating the gift of life and eventually paying for it dearly in cruel yet ironic fashion. It is no spoiler to say that Kramer is the Jigsaw killer who (with some help), has been putting his selected victims in his deadly traps to make them pay for their sins. This time, with Kramer a victim himself, the mission is more personal. As a man knocking on death’s door himself, this is the first SAW film where Jigsaw finally feels justified. 

 

Kramer’s illness and falling for the ruse takes up the first half of the film, and it’s a horror film that plays out as a drama for what seems like a very long time. But it’s human, and it works. Eventually Kramer, along with his loyal assistant Amanda (Shawnee Smith), round-up the bastards behind the medical scam into an abandoned factory, where they must play his deadly games of survival. Here the film gets back to its gory roots. The traps this time are as horrifying and bloody as ever, although some of them push the realm of believability and border on impossible. 

 

Tobin Bell puts in one of his best performances not only as Kramer but in his entire career. There’s an emotional weight that he carries that really works. Shawnee Smith is excellent, and the supporting cast of victims also very good. 

 

The question everyone wants answered is, how is the big twist at the end? Well, it’s not so big, can be seen coming from a mile away by anyone who is vaguely familiar with how movies work, and also relies on an insane amount of luck to happen. SAW X seems to exist to give Kramer/Jigsaw more backstory (most of which we were given VI movies ago), but instead it plays out more like a side-quest. On its own it is functional and delivers the promised blood and guts, but in the broader picture (which SAW likes to pride itself on), it’s kinda pointless. That imbalance doesn’t cut it. 

 

BOTTOM LINE: Rent it