Martin Scorsese Quotes & Sayings
Enjoy the top 100 famous quotes, sayings and quotations by Martin Scorsese.
Famous Quotes By Martin Scorsese
Basically, you make another movie, and another, and hopefully you feel good about every picture you make. And you say, 'My name is on that. I did that. It's OK.' But don't get me wrong, I still get excited by it all. That, I hope, will never disappear. — Martin Scorsese
If Kubrick had lived to see the opening of his final film, he obviously would have been disappointed by the hostile reactions. But I'm sure that in the end he would have taken it with a grain of salt and moved on. That's the lot of all true visionaries, who don't see the use of working in the same vein as everyone else. Artists like Kubrick have minds expansive and dynamic enough to picture the world in motion, to comprehend not just where its been, but where it's going. — Martin Scorsese
I've been extremely lucky to work with Elmer Bernstein, Howard Shore over the years, but I've always imagined films with my own scores, because I don't come from that world or that period of filmmaking. And so how could I make up my own score on a film like this where it isn't necessarily made up of popular music from the radio or the period; it isn't necessarily classical music. But what if it's modern symphonic music? — Martin Scorsese
There was always a part of me that wanted to be an old-time director. But I couldn't do that. I'm not a pro. — Martin Scorsese
Being a father at a later age is different from when I had my other two daughters when I was in my 20s and 30s. If you're in your 60s and you're with the kid every day, you're dealing with the mind of a child, so it opens up that childishness in you again. — Martin Scorsese
I go through periods, usually when I'm editing and shooting, of seeing only old films. — Martin Scorsese
It did remind me of something out of Greek mythology - the richest king who gets everything he wants, but ultimately his family has a curse on it from the Gods. — Martin Scorsese
The most interesting of the classic movie genres to me are the indigenous ones: the Western, which was born on the Frontier, the Gangster Film, which originated in the East Coast cities, and the Musical, which was spawned by Broadway. They remind me of jazz: they allowed for endless, increasingly complex, sometimes perverse variations. When these variations were played by the masters, they reflected the changing times; they gave you fascinating insights into American culture and the American psyche. — Martin Scorsese
Now more than ever we need to talk to each other, to listen to each other and understand how we see the world, and cinema is the best medium for doing this. — Martin Scorsese
Well, I think in my own work the subject matter usually deals with characters I know, aspects of myself, friends of mine - that sort of thing. — Martin Scorsese
I think all the great studio filmmakers are dead or no longer working. I don't put myself, my friends, and other contemporary filmmakers in their category. I just see us doing some work. — Martin Scorsese
It seems to me that any sensible person must see that violence does not change the world and if it does, then only temporarily. — Martin Scorsese
On the one hand, you're the same person, but as you get older, you change somewhat, and you never know how it's going to affect your work. — Martin Scorsese
I've seen many, many movies over the years, and there are only a few that suddenly inspire you so much that you want to continue to make films. — Martin Scorsese
The creation of the island, or the impression of the island, as it changes in the mind of the character also came in to play ... there was another very important collaborator, Rob Legato, on special visual effects. And then ultimately there's Thelma Schoonmaker, who keeps me focused during the editing of the picture. — Martin Scorsese
I was born in 1942, so I was mainly aware of Howard Hughes' name on RKO Radio Pictures. — Martin Scorsese
You have to put yourself in a situation, a lifestyle, that makes you do the work. Even if it's a monastery. — Martin Scorsese
The most important thing is, how can I move forward towards something that I can't articulate, that is new in storytelling with moving images and sound? — Martin Scorsese
The tone of the picture and the atmosphere was in my head and in my blood in a way once I'd decided to make the picture. I had to find my way through that to choose, select, emphasise certain visual elements and sound. — Martin Scorsese
Sometimes God picks you up and tells you, "You've been messing around now. You're going to have to stop this, stop that, but I'll give you another chance." And you wonder why you're given another chance. It must be for something; it must be to celebrate life. — Martin Scorsese
The bottom line is, I tend to be going back to older and older music. — Martin Scorsese
And so you try your best. Sometimes you go in with one thing, with one desire and come out with something else. In the case of The Aviator it was to create a Hollywood spectacle, but by about the second or third week of shooting you just want to literally survive it. Because don't forget, I also go through the editing process too, and when the film is released I have to talk about it. So, I take all of that very seriously. — Martin Scorsese
I'm going to be 60, and I'm almost used to myself. — Martin Scorsese
I wish I could play music. I think I get as closeas possible with the editing of the films. Over the years musichas been an even more important influence than-or as important as-film.There's no doubt about it. Painting, movement, dance, sculpture-it'sall in cinema. — Martin Scorsese
The only thing I really wanted was the freedom to be able to get what I want on film. I've dealt with the MPAA since 1973, so I know how to renegotiate and rework. — Martin Scorsese
If we just sit and exist, and understand that, I think it will be helpful in a world that seems like a record that's going faster and faster, we're spinning off the edge of the universe. — Martin Scorsese
I would have practically done all my films in 3D. There is something that 3D gives to the picture that takes you into another land and you stay there and it's a good place to be. ( ... ) It's like seeing a moving sculpture of the actor and it's almost like a combination of theater and film combined and it immerses you in the story more. I saw audiences care about the people more. The minute it started people wanted three things: color, sound and depth. You want to recreate life. — Martin Scorsese
Some of my films are known for the depiction of violence. I don't have anything to prove with that any more. — Martin Scorsese
I grew up within Italian-American neighborhoods, everybody was coming into the house all the time, kids running around, that sort of stuff, so when I finally got into my own area, so to speak, to make films, I still carried on. — Martin Scorsese
I also saw the Dalai Lama a few times. — Martin Scorsese
There's a way that the force of disappointment can be alchemized into something that will paradoxically renew you. — Martin Scorsese
The vampire thing always works for some reason. Always works. — Martin Scorsese
You can be born-again and believe in Jesus, believe in Jesus' ideas and try to live them out, without becoming totally intolerant of other people. — Martin Scorsese
I know there were many good policemen who died doing their duty. Some of the cops were even friends of ours. But a cop can go both ways. — Martin Scorsese
When I was growing up, I don't remember being told that America was created so that everyone could get rich. I remember being told it was about opportunity and the pursuit of happiness. Not happiness itself, but the pursuit. — Martin Scorsese
If it's a modern-day story dealing with certain ethnic groups, I think I could open up certain scenes for improvisation, while staying within the structure of the script. — Martin Scorsese
You make a deal. You figure out how much sin you can live with. — Martin Scorsese
There is something particularly unique about the films of Hong Sang-soo ... it's got to do with his masterful sense of storytelling ... as the critic Manny Farber once said of Hitchcock's ROPE Hong Sang-soo's pictures unpeel like an orange. — Martin Scorsese
There are two kinds of power you have to fight. The first is the money, and that's just our system. The other is the people close around you, knowing when to accept their criticism, knowing when to say no. — Martin Scorsese
Sam Fuller and Shock Corridor can only be conjured as a mantra. Shock Corridor is a classic work of art - it's unique. It comes from the unique experience of being Sam Fuller and yes, there's always that element of Shock Corridor hovering around the picture, but never specifically. In fact, I didn't even screen it because it's in us. It's in me anyway. It's in me. It was a way of conjuring up support just by saying the name, Shock Corridor, as I was going to shoot. Poor Sam [Fuller] ... — Martin Scorsese
I do prefer doing more takes. There's something very organic that comes from the first take, but certain things come out. More details come out, in the way another actor says something. It's always this investigative process. You come further and further to the truth, the more you escalate. I like to do a lot of takes. I have a hunger for it. I like to see what there is to discover in a scene, that hasn't been thought of. — Martin Scorsese
And as I've gotten older, I've had more of a tendency to look for people who live by kindness, tolerance, compassion, a gentler way of looking at things." ~ Martin Scorsese — Martin Scorsese
I'm re-energized by being around people who mean a lot to me. — Martin Scorsese
I think all of us, under certain circumstances, could be capable of some very despicable acts. And that's why, over the years, in my movies I've had characters who didn't care what people thought about them. We try to be as true to them as possible and maybe see part of ourselves in there that we may not like. — Martin Scorsese
[Action's] a Western thing. We think of the hero going into battle, rebelling against a government or an oppressor, but [in KUNDUN] action is nonaction or what appears to be nonaction. That's a hard concept for Western audiences ... We wanted to show a kind of moral action, a spiritual action, an emotional action. Some people will pick up on it; some won't. — Martin Scorsese
The only way I was able to defend myself was to be able to take punishment. Then I got a lot of respect. They said, "Oh, he's okay, he can take it. Don't hit him." The guys were pretty big, and I had asthma. — Martin Scorsese
Could you double-check the envelope? — Martin Scorsese
[David Lean's] images stay with me forever. But what makes them memorable isn't necessarily their beauty. That's just good photography. It's the emotion behind those images that's meant the most to me over the years. It's the way David Lean can put feeling on film. The way he shows a whole landscape of the spirit. For me, that's the real geography of David Lean country. And that's why, in a David Lean movie, there's no such thing as an empty landscape. — Martin Scorsese
Because of the movies I make, people get nervous. They think of me as difficult and angry. I am difficult and angry, but they don't expect a sense of humor. And the only thing that gets me through is a sense of humor. — Martin Scorsese
Cinema is a matter of what's in the frame and what's out — Martin Scorsese
Oh, the foghorns ... even the foghorns, they're all brass. It's something by Ingrid Marshal called Fog Tropes. It's not a sound effect. It's an actual piece of music. If you listen to what's going on after he has a flashback about his wife you'll hear ... it sounds like the humpback whales in a way. But it's all music. And we use it again later, too. — Martin Scorsese
I'm an older generation. — Martin Scorsese
I make different films now. — Martin Scorsese
Hong Kong cinema is something you can't duplicate anyway. — Martin Scorsese
Our world is so glutted with useless information, images, useless images, sounds, all this sort of thing. It's a cacophony, it's like a madness I think that's been happening in the past twenty-five years. And I think anything that can help a person sit in a room alone and not worry about it is good. — Martin Scorsese
I always say that I've been in a bad mood for maybe 35 years now. I try to lighten it up, but that's what comes out when you get me on camera. — Martin Scorsese
When I'm making a film, I'm the audience. — Martin Scorsese
As you grow older, you change. — Martin Scorsese
Mean Streets dealt with the American Dream, according to which everybody thinks they can get rich quick, and if they can't do it by legal means then they'll do it by illegal ones. — Martin Scorsese
I was saying as a joke the other day that I love film editing, I know how to cut a picture, I think I know how to shoot it, but I don't know how to light it. And I realize it's because I didn't grow up with light. I grew up in tenements. — Martin Scorsese
People want to classify and say, 'OK, this is a gangster film.' 'This is a Western.' 'This is a ... ' You know? It's easy to classify and it makes people feel comfortable, but it doesn't matter, it doesn't really matter. — Martin Scorsese
If your mother cooks Italian food, why should you go to a restaurant? — Martin Scorsese
The storyboard for me is the way to visualise the entire movie in advance, — Martin Scorsese
The Five Points was the toughest street corner in the world. That's how it was known. In fact, Charles Dickens visited it in the 1850s and he said it was worse than anything he'd seen in the East End of London. — Martin Scorsese
It is not the most brilliant that excel in film, but the most patient! — Martin Scorsese
I don't know how else to tell the story except to utilise that vocabulary: the rain, the darkness, the mansions, the framing, etc, the lighting and that sort of thing. — Martin Scorsese
Being independent ... is being innovative out of inspiration as well as necessity. — Martin Scorsese
All my life, I never really felt comfortable anywhere in New York, except maybe in an apartment somewhere. — Martin Scorsese
There are movies that change the whole way in which films are made, like Klute, where Gordon Willis's photography on the film is so textured, and, they said, too dark. At first this was alarming to people, because they're used to a certain way things are done within the studio system. And the studio is selling a product, so they were wary of people thinking that it's too dark. — Martin Scorsese
DAYS THAT I'LL REMEMBER is a lovingly assembled and beautifully written collection of conversations, observations, and memories of music, friendship, and days gone by. It's good to be back again with John Lennon, his beloved Yoko Ono, and his trusted chronicler and friend Jonathan Cott. — Martin Scorsese
I'd like to do a number of films. Westerns. Genre pieces. Maybe another film about Italian Americans where they're not gangsters, just to prove that not all Italians are gangsters. — Martin Scorsese
Part of making any endeavour is that each one has its own special problems. It's the nature of the process. — Martin Scorsese
An interviewer once asked me to discuss my collaboration with Elmer Bernstein, and precisely why I chose to work with him. My first thought was: How could I not work with Elmer, when I had the chance? Simply put, he's the best there is-the very best. — Martin Scorsese
I think what happened there was just the budget would be too big to build these sets because nothing really exists here in New York of that period; you have to build it all. — Martin Scorsese
The cinema began with a passionate, physical relationship between celluloid and the artists and craftsmen and technicians who handled it, manipulated it, and came to know it the way a lover comes to know every inch of the body of the beloved. No matter where the cinema goes, we cannot afford to lose sight of its beginnings. — Martin Scorsese
The fact that food plays such an important part in my films has everything to do with my family. — Martin Scorsese
More than ninety percent of directing a picture is the right casting — Martin Scorsese
There must be people who remember World War II and the Holocaust who can help us get out of this rut. — Martin Scorsese
Eradicating a religion of kindness is, I think, a terrible thing for the Chinese to attempt. — Martin Scorsese
The first element that I connected with was the emotion. Sorry, that's how it goes. — Martin Scorsese
I always wanted to make a film that had this sort of Chinese-box effect, in which you keep opening it up and opening it up, and finally at the end you're at the beginning. — Martin Scorsese
As a kid I watched the Academy Awards on television and always wanted one - or several - like one of my favorite directions, John Ford. He won six. On the other hand, Orson Welles, who's on the top of my list, didn't win any. Alfred Hitchcock didn't win any. Howard Hawks didn't win any. — Martin Scorsese
I don't really see a conflict between the church and the movies, the sacred and the profane ... there are major differences, but I could also see great similarities ... Both are places for people to come together and share. — Martin Scorsese
Always get to the set or the location early, so that you can be all alone and draw your inspiration for the blocking and the setups in private and quiet. In one sense, it's about protecting yourself; in another sense, it's about always being open to surprise, even from the set, because there may be some detail that you hadn't noticed. I think this is crucial. There are many pictures that seem good in so many ways except one: They lack a sense of surprise, they've never left the page. — Martin Scorsese
I certainly wasn't able to get it when I was a kid growing up on the Lower East Side; it was very hard at that time for me to balance what I really believed was the right way to live with the violence I saw all around me - I saw too much of it among the people I knew. — Martin Scorsese
Food tells you everything about the way people live and who they are. — Martin Scorsese
Well the thing is that the New York of 1846 to 1862 was very different from downtown New York now. Really nothing from that period still exists in New York. — Martin Scorsese
Vic Armstrong is, of course, a legend — Martin Scorsese
You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets. You do it at home. The rest is bullshit and you know it. — Martin Scorsese
I do know that some Buddhists are able to attain peace of mind. — Martin Scorsese
The term 'giant' is used too often to describe artists. But in the case of Akira Kurosawa, we have one of the rare instances where the term fits. — Martin Scorsese
Every scene is a lesson. Every shot is a school. Let the learning continue. — Martin Scorsese
If I'm not complaining, I'm not having a good time, hah hah! — Martin Scorsese
I grew up in the Lower East Side, an Italian American - more Sicilian, actually. — Martin Scorsese