A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies 

Martin Scorsese describes his initial and growing obsession with films from the 1940s and 50s as the art form developed and grew with clips from classics and cult classics.

Directors:

Martin Scorsese, Michael Henry Wilson

Writers:

Martin Scorsese, Michael Henry Wilson

Stars:

Martin Scorsese, Allison Anders, Kathryn Bigelow

Cast

Episode credited cast:
Martin Scorsese	...	Himself - Narrator / Host
Allison Anders	...	Herself
Kathryn Bigelow	...	Herself
Francis Ford Coppola	...	Himself
Brian De Palma	...	Himself
André De Toth	...	Himself
Clint Eastwood	...	Himself
Jodie Foster	...	Herself
Carl Franklin	...	Himself
George Lucas	...	Himself
Gregory Peck	...	Himself
Arthur Penn	...	Himself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Philippe Collin	...	Récitant / Narrator (French version) (voice)

Storyline

Despite its nearly four-hour running time, this is a uniquely personal look at movies from one of the late 20th century's great directors and film historians. The film consists of head & shoulder shots of Scorsese speaking into the camera for a minute or two, followed by 10-15 minutes of film clips with Scorsese voice-over. Scorsese approaches the films in terms of how they affected him as a director foremost and as a storyteller/film fan second. Segments include "The Director as Smuggler," "The Director as Iconoclast", and so on. The Journey begins with silent masters like D.W. Griffith and ends in 1969 - when Scorsese began to make films; as he says in closing, "I wouldn't feel right commenting on myself or my contemporaries."

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Plot Keywords:

reference to the vietnam war | tv mini series | film history | reference to bing crosby | reference to darryl f. zanuck | 

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Genres:

Documentary

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 May 1995 (UK)

Also Known As:

Historia kina amerykanskiego wedlug Martina Scorsese

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,350, 8 March 1998

Gross USA:

$39,075

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$39,075

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Film Institute (BFI), BFI TV, Channel 4

Technical Specs

Runtime:

225 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Black and White Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The machine gun spray that comes close to hitting James Cagney as he and Edward Woods turn the corner are real bullets fired by a real machine gun.

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Quotes

Martin Scorsese - Narrator: Actually when I was a little younger,there was another journey I wanted to make, It was a relgious one. I wanted to be a priest. However, I soon realized that my real vocation, my real calling, was the movies. I don't really see a conflit between the church and movies - the sacred and the profane. Obviously there are many differences, but I also could see great similarities bwtween a church and a movie house. Both are places for people to come together and share a common experience. and I ...

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Connections

References Blackboard Jungle (1955)

User Reviews

FANTASTIC opportunity

There's a mystical air you get when Martin Scorsese's talking about movies, his passion, especially if it's a shared passion with the viewer. The second his mouth opens you start to slowly realize, he knows what he's talking about.

What a tremendous opportunity to listen to such a brilliant director discuss his inspirations. It was especially magical to watch over and over this three part documentary set for that reason. It's a wonderful gift to be able to find out what your inspiration is inspired by. I especially enjoyed listening to Scorsese directly credit films that effected the way he made some of his films. HIGHLY recommended to any movie buff with the balls to learn something new from a fantastic teacher.