Rebecca Miller's 5 part look at Martin Scorsese is a near perfect look at the man and his movies. The only flaw is that this could have used another episode so the final one doesn't seem rushed (or two more if you insist on covering his music docs, which outside of THE LAST WALTZ, are largely absent).
Literally covering his entire life to date, including marriages and children, this is a look at the man and his films unlike any other portrait you've seen before. Blending his personal life with his narrative films (his later documentary work is largely MIA) this film is a reflection of how the man is his movies. It is focused on the people who are important, his friends, family and collaborators, some of which drift across the categories. Its an arc of a life by the man himself and the people around him.
This film is a full meal. Running just under 5 hours this deep dive into the life of Scorsese, with each episode feeling like a feature film. We are in the trenches with the man as we see his life and not just his films. How detailed is it? I think that unless you are an absolute scary fan with video cameras in his hose there are things here you didn't know before.
I have to say that the end of episode one ends with one of the greatest cliffhanger/needle drops of the year, the meeting of Marty and Robert DeNiro. Episode two begins with a twist I never knew- which was that they already knew each other from the old neighborhood, they just didn't realize it. Each episode then takes us through a few films and the trials of making each one. Until the final episode takes us through "everything" left out from his Oscar to his most recent films.
As I said above the series' only real flaw is the rushed nature of the final episode which tries to cover too many films as well as also shoehorning in his restoration work, work with up and coming filmmakers, and a few other things. This could have used a bit more time to let those films breath, especially SILENCE which ties into Scorsese's spiritual quest which is a huge part of the other four episodes.
I should also say that while the docs/concert films on Dylan, the Stones, Cinema History ect. are not mentioned, their absence is understandable since they always seemed to be parallel to his narrative work. Actually there is an implication from the talk of THE LAST WALTZ that he does those projects around the narratives.( Additionally it should be stated that neither HUGO, nor his TV work mentioned at all)
I loved this film a great deal. Some of the needle drops and the discussions moved me to tears. This is great filmmaking. See it when it hits Apple TV.
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