On Monday night, two of the greatest filmmakers, Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese, sat down for a post-screening chat at the DGA after a “Killers of the Flower Moon” showing.
The Playlist’s Gregory Ellwood has a nice recap now posted on the site. It must have been a real treat to witness these two cinematic giants on stage. Spielberg mentioned that John Ford and John Wayne made 14 films together, which means that Scorsese and Robert De Niro, who have collaborated on 11 films, need to collaborate on 3 more to tie that record. It’s a must.
“It’s so amazing to see Bobby D and Leo D in this film together. I just realized Bobby D and Leo D,” Spielberg says after the audience laughs. “But this is your sixth collaboration with Leo. And you’re 11th with Bobby, and you’re only three films shy of tying the record with John Ford, who directed John Wayne 14 times. So, you can’t quit yet with Bobby, with Leo six films.”
Spielberg ended the night by telling his old friend, “You are the master of our medium, and this is your masterpiece.”
I won’t disagree with the notion that Scorsese is the “master” of the medium; he definitely is, as Francis Ford Coppola recently said, the “greatest living director.” It’s not even a competition.
What other legendary filmmaker still alive today matches Scorsese’s towering filmography? I can’t think of any.
Not too far behind are Spielberg, Coppola, Lynch, PTA, Malick, Coen, Eastwood, Allen, Polanski, Almodovar, Haneke. A dying breed of giants.
However, it’s pure hyperbole to call “Killers of the Flower Moon” Scorsese’s masterpiece. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great movie, but he’s made some more revolutionary works like “Goodfellas” and “Taxi Driver.”
Regardless, Oscar campaigning has begun, and Scorsese is most definitely going to be in competitive mode these next few months. He’s in it to win.