One of my favorite coffee table books in a while is now available in stores: Martin Scorsese: All the Movies by Olivier Bousquet, Arnaud Devillard, and Nicolas Schaller. I admit, I’m biased due to my undying love of Martin Scorsese’s films, especially the latest ones post-Oscar films, which I think are the most underrated and among the best of the new century. With Criterion releasing “Killers of the Flower Moon” later this month and the book hitting stores, it feels like the perfect time to revisit the entire Scorsese run, from the earliest shorts (you indeed you need to see “Italianamerican” if you haven’t) to his latest masterpiece. Scorsese is currently in production on another film. They will have to revise this excellent volume.
All Movies it includes 26 features, 17 documentaries, 7 shorts, and 4 television episodes, and it does so one at a time, treating each in equal detail. It’s one of the most remarkable things about the book that the production and legacy of films like “Taxi Driver” and “GoodFellas” have been fully covered over the years, but certainly not as much has been written about shows like Scorsese’s HBO show “Vinyl” or one of his many musical documentaries, “George Harrison: Living in the Material.”
The layout of the book opens each project with what might be called an information page, including cast, runtime, and release date, as well as more detailed information such as production dates, budget, and box office. It gives the volume an almost encyclopedic quality, which can be used as a research tool if people are doing that kind of thing in the Internet age. As silly as it may sound, that kind of detailed work really puts the book on a footing that includes both information and criticism. Those looking for an in-depth analysis may want to look elsewhere, but anyone looking for information about the production of this amazing film will find no better place.
Although the core of the book is a chronological coverage of Martin Scorsese’s films, the authors sometimes cut essays, interviews, and other elements chronologically. While that may sound counterintuitive, it serves to remind the reader how much of Scorsese’s work is a commentary on itself, moving back and forth in time. So going from an episode of “The Wolf of Wall Street” to a feature about drug use in Scorsese’s films, especially “GoodFellas,” feels natural and instructive.
Of course, the book also includes great production stills and behind-the-scenes photos, as well as plenty of trivia sidebars about every single product.
As the broadcast age continues to flourish, more and more people seem to be marking the end of physical media. I think coffee table books like this have been affected by the spread of information on the internet, but what does it suggest Martin Scorsese: All the Movies that it is more than just a Wikipedia-in-book-form project. Full of insight, passion, and creativity. Just like its title.
Get a copy here.
