It seems Martin Scorsese isn’t about to change his view of Marvel productions anytime soon.
The world-renowned filmmaker came in for heavy criticism when he compared MCU juggernauts in the vein of Avengers: Endgame and Spider-Man: Far From Home to “theme park” attractions – frivolous, fantastical blockbusters incapable of conveying human emotion. They’re certainly not cinema… not in Scorsese’s eyes, at least.
And while promoting The Irishman (h/t THR), Martin Scorsese doubled down on his critique, claiming that Marvel Studios films – and any blockbuster cut from the same cloth – are “invading” cinemas, and called on theaters chains to “step up.”
It’s not cinema, it’s something else. We shouldn’t be invaded by it. We need cinemas to step up and show films that are narrative films.
These comments come to us from a closing-night screening of The Irishman at the BFI London Film Festival, where Scorsese once again compared such films to “theme parks.” But it’s not just Marvel movies that are to blame, as the director also pointed the finger at movie theaters and how they are “all being taken over” by movies that are decidedly ‘uncinematic.’
Theaters have become amusement parks. That is all fine and good but don’t invade everything else in that sense. That is fine and good for those who enjoy that type of film and, by the way, knowing what goes into them now, I admire what they do. It’s not my kind of thing, it simply is not. It’s creating another kind of audience that thinks cinema is that.
It’s a sweeping statement from a director who was initially attached to produce Warner’s standalone Joker movie, and you don’t have to search too far to find a superhero pic – or any major blockbuster, for that matter – enriched by its character drama. Think of Thor’s gut-wrenching arc in Avengers: Endgame; he essentially endured the five stages of grief in the aftermath of Thanos. To say otherwise would be nothing short of ignorant.
But what say you? Does Martin Scorsese have a point? Or is The Irishman director out of touch when he compares Marvel productions to theme parks? Let us know your thoughts.