A PERSONAL JOURNEY WITH MARTIN SCORSESE THROUGH AMERICAN MOVIES (1995) - Martin Scorsese

Charting the entirety of the history of American film would be an extremely difficult task. Tackling one genre alone would be a mammoth task. The British Film Institute instead asked one of the greatest living directors to discuss American cinema from a personal point of view. So in 1995, Martin Scorsese wrote, directed and introduced his own personal look at the history of American film in A Personal Journey With Martin Scorsese Through American Movies.

We’re all perfectly aware of how good a filmmaker Martin Scorsese is. For the last four decades he has created some of the greatest movies the art form has ever produced. What he gives us in this four hour documentary is a look at the films that have influenced him ever since he first sat down in a cinema. One of the great aspects of the documentary is that Scorsese doesn’t discuss the obvious films (Gone With The Wind for example) that you’d expect to pop up in documentary. Instead, the films that Scorsese chooses range from the very obscure like King Vidor’s 1928 film The Crowd, to the well known, such as Orson Welle’s Citizen Kane.

The film is broken into chapters, which, if you plan on watching it in stages, makes it very easy to follow. In these chapters, Scorsese examines the role the director takes in bringing a movie to the screen. He examines the studio system and how certain directors broke the conventions of the studio system and changed the face of cinema. Scorsese lavishes praise on the pioneers of cinema including D.W. Griffith, Orson Welles and F.W.Murnau and Stanley Kubrick while introducing films by less well known directors such as Delmer Daves and Jacques Tourneur.

In three chapters, Scorsese takes a look at three genres that define American movies. The western, the gangster movie and the musical. Scorsese looks at each of these genres in great detail, exploring the evolution of each of these genres in terms of American movies. One very interesting examination is about the western, focusing on three films by John Ford. Using 1939’s Stagecoach, 1949’s She Wore A Yellow Ribbon and 1956’s The Searchers, Scorsese looks at how the protagonist in each film (all played by John Wayne) changed from optimistic good guy to shady anti-hero with the evolution of the genre. It’s this kind of detail that makes this documentary so compelling.

If there’s one criticism I have of the film is that it’s (despite it’s 225 minute running time) too short! Scorsese ends the film during the 60’s, explaining that it would be unfair of him to dissect the evolution of American cinema during his own career, and the career of his contemporaries and friends. It kind of leaves you wishing for a sequel, which will examine the period of cinema we might be more familiar with. However this is a tiny criticism.

For anyone interested in film in any form, A Personal Journey With Martin Scorsese Through American Movies is essential viewing. Scorsese’s love and enthusiasm for the art form is infectious, and it gives you great ideas for films to hunt down and watch. It’s impossible to cover everything in the documentary, it’s that extensive. Over 100 movies are mentioned in some capacity, so it takes some watching to take it all in. I’ll probably watch the documentary again some time in the future. But it is a fantastic documentary and something for film fans and casual watchers alike.


9/10

Retro Cut!! DR. STRANGELOVE or: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB (1964) - Stanley Kubrick

The early 1960s proved to be turbulent times for the world. The threat of a third world war, indeed, a nuclear war was all too real and a stalemate between the east and west existed. Stanley Kubrick, having just completed Lolita became somewhat obsessed with the subject of nuclear deterrents, and set about approaching the subject for his next film. Kubrick obtained the rights to Peter George's novel 'Red Alert' and set about creating a serious, dark, prophetic thriller about the threat of nuclear war. However, Kubrick realized that all elements of the subject could not be covered in a serious drama, so he set about creating a darkly comic satire of the idea of a nuclear third world war. Out of this idea came Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, one of the finest comedies of the twentieth century.

Set in three locations, the Presidential War Room, the cramped interior of a B-52 Bomber, and the office of US Air Force Brigadier General Jack D. Ripper, Strangelove opens with Ripper ordering an all out nuclear strike on the Soviet Union. Ripper, played by Sterling Hayden is obsessed with the communist threat, and feels the only way to best the Russians is to supersede the politicians in Washington and order the attack himself. Arriving too late to stop Ripper is Group Captain Lionel Mandrake (Peter Sellers), a British officer who must witness first hand, Ripper's lunacy and mad theories.
Meanwhile, in the US Government War Room, President Merkin Muffley (Sellers again) must try to diffuse the situation with the Russians, gain control of his own military, fend off gung-ho General Turgidson (George C. Scott) and deal with mad-cap ex Nazi Dr. Strangelove (Sellers yet again), who's ideas sound like they've been presented to another leader from history, all be it a more sinister leader.
And on a sole B-52 bomber, Major T.J. 'King' Kong (Slim Pickens) is determined to deliver his payload to the 'Ruskies' at any cost.

Kubrick's comedy is first and foremost a satire, a comedic warning of the folly of attacking an enemy without provocation and the consequences of such drastic decisions. The film is such a well written and precise piece of work that it still holds up today as an anti-war film. But along with the message comes some of the finest performances from the ensemble cast. Peter Sellers is at his career best playing three distinct roles. Group Captain Mandrake is the typical British officer, struggling to retain his stiff upper lip as he deals with the insane Brigadier General Ripper. President Muffley is a meek individual, but the only sane man in a room full of lunatics, the epitome being Dr. Strangelove himself. Sellers improvised most of his performances, to such a hilarious degree that you can still spot some individuals struggling to keep a straight face as Strangelove battles with his former Nazi personality that is bursting to take over his body.
Yet this is not a one man show. George C. Scott plays against type in his first comedic role. His General Turgidson is a young boy in a man's body, unbelievably excited at the prospect of attacking the Russians while sulking when scolded by the President. And it is Slim Pickens who provides the classic image from the film. His Major Kong is the Texan pilot whooping and hollering as he rides the nuclear bomb to it's destiny.

Dr. Strangelove comes as close as a film comes to being a perfect comedy. The script, written by Kubrick and Terry Southern is laugh out loud hilarious while still retaining a caustic edge as a response to the nuclear fears of the sixties. Each performance stands out on it's own, with the limelight somewhat stolen by Sellers, who is on top form. Kubrick's direction is as perfect as it ever was, handling a subject that is serious but comedic at the same time. When it comes to classic movies, they don't come more brilliant than this. And as war films go, Dr. Strangelove is one of the greatest anti-war films ever made.