Martin Scorsese: Auteurism in Gangs of New York - Movie Review Example

Martin Scorsese: Auteurism in Gangs of New York During the 1950s, the auteur theory was coinedby a group of French critics. This theory holds that a film epitomizes the vision of an individual artist, and that as the writer is the author of a book or a painter the author of a painting, the director is likewise the author of a film (Scott para. 7). Moreover, as any artist has a certain stamp, trademark, or brand noticeable in his works, a director likewise has a pattern in theme, language, and treatment in his films. As this is the case for auteur theory, there is a tendency for directors to be predictable in their work. However, Martin Scorsese, an auteur in practice, despite having a stamp of his own in the world of cinema, has produced movies that are still unique from each other yet similar in theme in style. As such, Scott noted that "it's hard to think of an active director who has produced such an emphatically cross-referenced body of work who seems not so much to repeat himself (though he does some of that) as to make movies by recombining a recognizable and fairly stable set of narrative, thematic, and stylistic elements. In other words, Scorsese is the last living incarnation of la politique des auteurs" (Scott para. 6). Observable in Scorsese's films is his interest in history. In the last two decades, he has made several historical films that challenges the public's interests in history by raising controversial topics such as Catholicism, Vietnam, JFK's assasination, the Holocaust, and D-Day among others (Justice para. 2). With the films Mean Streets, Bringing Out the Dead, Taxi Driver (the movie he is actually most famous for), and eventually Gangs of New York, it is apparent how Scorsese is fascinated with New York settings, loners who are harboring secret demons, violence, and history. In addition to this, in his movie The Last Temptation of Christ, it has been said that Scorsese's religiosity and Catholic upbringing inspired him in the making of the film (Scott para. 9). It has been argued that auteur theory may label a director and just as well make him complacent in his work, aside from being redundant in theme and style. As Mardik Martin stated, "The auteur theory killed all these people. One or two films, the magazines told them they were geniuses, that they could do anything. They went completely bananas. They thought they were God." (qtd. from Scott para. 11) In his 2002 movie Gangs of New York, Scorsese recreates 19th century New York specifically the Five Points District, which at the time was ruled by gangs. The plot revolves around the revenge that Amsterdam Vallon has been seeking for the death of his father against the leader of the nativists, Bill "The Butcher" Cutting. These nativists oppose the influx of immigrants into America and believe that "America is for Americans." With the movie slogan "America was born in the streets", it may be deduced that the movie's main thesis, as Benjamin Justice puts it, is that "before modernity, American civil life was wild, mean, and bloody" (Justice para. 1). And yet again, with reference to history, Scorsese implies that as the true past seems to have been forgotten, the people of America need to be reminded how it once was, as may be evident in the end part of the film, where the main characters portray their conflicts with the 1863 Draft Riots (Sischy para. 6). Scorsese has been repeatedly described as one who likes to emphasize morbid images, bloodshed and violence in his works. The scenes that can be named to strengthen this point is much too numerous, so one must keep in mind the bloodhsed that is depicted in the movie Gangs of New York. This may be associated with Scorsese's status as a Roman Catholic and add to this, his catechism studies with the Irish sisters of Mercy at Old St. Patrick's elementary school (Blake 3). Given these, it seems that Scorsese often relates bloodshed with redemption, that which mirrors Catholic christology that through the death and resurrection of Jesus, God has redeemed us of our sins (Blake 6). First and forever Scorsese will be a filmmaker by heart, and despite being very much interested with the History of New York, Scorsese still needs to paint a more interesting picture for the audience. Hence, the accuracy of the movie's historical background has been questioned along with his motives. However, as Justice states in the same article, "the film aims for super-realism, fight down to the buttons" (Justice para. 2 ). Again, this film is set in New York during a time when murder and violence was a common happening in the streets, with the hero Amsterdam Vallon, a loner, is seeking to avenge his father's death - themes that are common in Scorsese's films. In an interview with Scorsese that Ingrid Sischy conducted, Scorsese was asked from where the inspiration came from in the making of the movie. Scorsese then explained that as a child, he was told stories of the history of Little Italy and lower Manhattan where he used to live, and this was how he became interested with furthering his knowledge on the history of New York city (Sischy para. 2). He further elaborated how as a teenager, he used to write term papers on the history of New York and the church (Sischy para. 2). It was during this period in his life that he began to understand how there were conflicts between Irish immigrants and the nativists, as he portrayed in the movie Gangs of New York. Hence, he has long wanted to make this movie. Evident again in these statements from Scorsese himself is how the vision of a director or in this context, the auteur, is very much influenced by his upbringing, background, and environment. From this, it may be understood how Scorsese's inspirations and ideas have as well come from his own past. Just as well, there are different other factors that has influenced the making and eventually the outcome of the film. Despite being set in New York, the movie was actually shot in Rome, as Scorsese encountered financial limitations with regard to the building of the set in studios in New York (Sischy para. 19). As the auteur theory may have the consequence of labeling a director or giving him utter complacency, Scorsese just as well made movies that somehow made critics scringe, and in relation to what Martin Scorsese himself claims: "cities rise and fall, but they rise up again." (Sischy para. 12). This may be what the award-winning and highly acclaimed director lives by. In reviewing the films that have made him famous, and in outlining how Scorsese came to be what and who he is now in the film industry, it is aparent how he has made efforts to make his own uniqu mark in the world thorugh his films. As Scott puts it: "to look at any Scorsese film is to be reminded that film can touch us urgently and deeply. Scorsese is never on autopilot, never panders, never sells out, always goes for broke; to watch his films is to see a man risking his talent, not simply exercising it. He makes movies as well as they can be made." (Scott para. 2) Works Cited Blake, Ricrard A.S.J. "Redeemed in Blood." Journal of Popular Film and Television. 24.1 (1996): 1-8. Justice, Benjamin. "Historical Fiction to Historical Fact: Gangs of New York and the Whitewashing of History." Social Edcuation 67.4 (2003): 213. Sischy, Ingrid. "Gangs of New York - Martin Scorsese - Interview." December 2002. CNET Networks. 04 May 2008 . Scott, A.O. "Martin Scorsese: The Vicar of Cinema." Slate Magazine. (29 October 1999). 4 May 2008 < http://www.slate.com/default.aspxid=43803>. Read More