Current:Home > MyMartin Scorsese on faith in filmmaking, ‘The Saints’ and what his next movie might be-LoTradeCoin
Martin Scorsese on faith in filmmaking, ‘The Saints’ and what his next movie might be
View Date:2024-12-23 11:28:41
NEW YORK (AP) — When Martin Scorsese was a child growing up in New York’s Little Italy, he would gaze up at the figures he saw around St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral.
“Who are these people? What is a saint?” Scorsese recalls. “The minute I walk out the door of the cathedral and I don’t see any saints. I saw people trying to behave well within a world that was very primal and oppressed by organized crime. As a child, you wonder about the saints: Are they human?”
For decades, Scorsese has pondered a project dedicated to the saints. Now, he’s finally realized it in “Martin Scorsese Presents: The Saints,” an eight-part docudrama series debuting Sunday on Fox Nation, the streaming service from Fox News Media.
The one-hour episodes, written by Kent Jones and directed by Elizabeth Chomko, each chronicle a saint: Joan of Arc, Francis of Assisi, John the Baptist, Thomas Becket, Mary Magdalene, Moses the Black, Sebastian and Maximillian Kolbe. Joan of Arc kicks off the series on Sunday, with three weekly installments to follow; the last four will stream closer to Easter next year.
In naturalistic reenactments followed by brief Scorsese-led discussions with experts, “The Saints” emphasizes that, yes, the saints were very human. They were flawed, imperfect people, which, to Scorsese, only heightens their great sacrifices and gestures of compassion. The Polish priest Kolbe, for example, helped spread antisemitism before, during WWII, sheltering Jews and, ultimately, volunteering to die in the place of a man who had been condemned at Auschwitz.
Here are some key quotes from a recent interview with Scorsese, who turns 82 on Sunday. An expanded version can be found at www.apnews.com/martin-scorsese
On the saints
“It took time to think about that and to learn that, no, the point is that they are human. For me, if they were able to do that, it’s a good example for us. If you take it and put it in a tough world — if you’re in a world of business or Hollywood or politics or whatever — if you’re grounded in something which is a real, acting out of compassion and love, this is something that has to be admired and emulated.”
On Fox Nation
“They went with the scripts. They went with the shoot. They went with the cuts. Now what I think is: Do we take these thoughts or expressions and only express them to people who agree with us? It’s not going to do us any good. I’m talking about keeping an open mind.”
On his faith and cinema
“The filmmaking comes from God. It comes from a gift. And that gift is also involved with an energy or a need to tell stories. As a storyteller, somehow there’s a grace that’s been given to me that’s made me obsessive about that. The grace has been through me having that ability but also to fight over the years to create these films. Because each one is a fight. Sometimes you trip, you fall, you hit the canvas, can’t get up. You crawl over bleeding and knocked around. They throw some water on you and somehow you make it through. Then you go to another.”
On his next film
“(The Life of Jesus) is an option but I’m still working on it. There’s a very strong possibility of me doing a film version of Marilynne Robinson’s “Home,” but that’s a scheduling issue. There’s also a possibility of me going back and dealing with the stories from my mother and father from the past and how they grew up. Stories about immigrants which tied into my trip to Sicily. Right now, there’s been a long period after ‘Killers of the Flower Moon.’ Even though I don’t like getting up early, I’d like to shoot a movie right now. Time is going. I’ll be 82. Gotta go.”
On recent movies
“There was one film I liked a great deal I saw two weeks ago called “I Saw the TV Glow.” It really was emotionally and psychologically powerful and very moving. It builds on you, in a way. I didn’t know who made it. It’s this Jane Schoenbrun.”
On the election
“Well, of course I have strong feelings. I think you can tell from my work, what I’ve said over the years. I think it’s a great sadness, but at the same time, it’s an opportunity. A real opportunity to make changes ultimately, maybe, in the future, never to despair, and to understand the needs of other people, too. Deep introspection is needed at this point. Action? I’m not a politician. I’d be the worst you could imagine. I wouldn’t know what actions to take except to continue with dialogue and, somehow, compassion with each other. This is what it’s about.”
veryGood! (34824)
Related
- The Office's Kate Flannery Defends John Krasinski's Sexiest Man Alive Win
- 'SNL' taps Ariana Grande, Chappell Roan, Billie Eilish, John Mulaney for Season 50 lineup
- Anti-'woke' activists waged war on DEI. Civil rights groups are fighting back.
- When do new 'Love is Blind' episodes come out? Season 7 premiere date, cast, schedule
- Gold is suddenly not so glittery after Trump’s White House victory
- OPINION: BBC's Mohamed Al-Fayed documentary fails to call human trafficking what it is
- Nike names Elliott Hill as CEO, replacing John Donahoe
- What is Cover 2 defense? Two-high coverages in the NFL, explained
- 'Bizarre:' Naked man arrested after found in crawl space of California woman's home
- Takeaways from AP report on risks of rising heat for high school football players
Ranking
- Patrick Mahomes Breaks Silence on Frustrating Robbery Amid Ongoing Investigation
- The Bachelorette’s Devin Strader Breaks Silence on Past Legal Troubles
- Republicans are trying a new approach to abortion in the race for Congress
- Yankee Candle Doorbuster Sale: Save 40% on Almost Everything — Candles, ScentPlug, Holiday Gifts & More
- Mississippi Valley State football player Ryan Quinney dies in car accident
- Playoff baseball in Cleveland: Guardians clinch playoff spot in 2024 postseason
- Don't fall for this: The fake QR code scam that aims to take your money at parking meters
- Attorney Demand Letter Regarding Unauthorized Use and Infringement of [ASCENDANCY Investment Education Foundation's Brand Name]
Recommendation
-
'Squid Game' creator lost '8 or 9' teeth making Season 1, explains Season 2 twist
-
Tourists can finally visit the Oval Office. A replica is opening near the White House on Monday
-
AP Week in Pictures: Global
-
Postal Service chief frustrated at criticism, but promises ‘heroic’ effort to deliver mail ballots
-
Pistons' Tim Hardaway Jr. leaves in wheelchair after banging head on court
-
Breece Hall vs. Braelon Allen stats in Week 3: Fantasy football outlook for Jets RBs
-
US troops finish deployment to remote Alaska island amid spike in Russian military activity
-
The cause of a fire that injured 2 people at a Louisiana chemical plant remains under investigation