When filmmaker Martin Scorsese talks about cinema, people listen. Some of his interview quotes in recent years on the topics of modern film as an art form, the rise of superhero movies and SVOD platforms, and the evolving film industry itself have generated talk, debate, memes, even news headlines.
There’s also no question he’s an old school cinema lover, a veteran artist of the craft itself and an avid admirer of the various classic masters of cinema’s past.
More recently he has embraced the freedom that comes with working for SVOD services rather than studios, from Netflix with “The Irishman” to the upcoming “Killers of the Flower Moon” for the Apple TV+ service.
Recently he wrote an essay for Harpers reflecting on the overall rise of the word ‘content’ to and how the specificity of the art form of cinema is fading away:
“As recently as fifteen years ago, the term ‘content’ was heard only when people were discussing the cinema on a serious level, and it was contrasted with and measured against ‘form’.
Then, gradually, it was used more and more by the people who took over media companies, most of whom knew nothing about the history of the art form, or even cared enough to think that they should.
‘Content’ became a business term for all moving images: a David Lean movie, a cat video, a Super Bowl commercial, a superhero sequel, a series episode. It was linked, of course, not to the theatrical experience but to home viewing, on the streaming platforms that have come to overtake the moviegoing experience, just as Amazon overtook physical stores.
On the one hand, this has been good for filmmakers, myself included. On the other hand, it has created a situation in which everything is presented to the viewer on a level playing field, which sounds democratic but isn’t.
If further viewing is ‘suggested’ by algorithms based on what you’ve already seen, and the suggestions are based only on subject matter or genre, then what does that do to the art of cinema?”
Scorsese also says there is an answer to this dilemma, and that is curation. Specifically, he cites services such as MUBI and The Criterion Channel as places dedicated to growing a viewer’s knowledge of the art and preserving cinema history because those services carefully curate their libraries.
He adds: “Curating isn’t undemocratic or ‘elitist,’ a term that is now used so often that it’s become meaningless. It’s an act of generosity – you’re sharing what you love and what has inspired you.” That’s just a part of the essay which then has Scorsese exploring the works of Federico Fellini in detail. Click Here for the full essay.
