Martin Scorsese says we should support directors like Christopher Nolan, not superhero movies

Why not both? Many film fans will be asking this question after Martin Scorsese has commented on the state of modern cinema. The director is calling for fans to ‘fight back’ against blockbuster franchises and instead support people like Christopher Nolan.

Speaking of superhero films, The Marvels lands this November.

This seems to come from a place where the director believes that younger cinema goers will “think movies are only those – that’s what movies are.” Of course, many have rallied against the comments reminding Scorsese of Nolan’s own back catalogue featuring DC Comics’ Batman, while also noting that millions went out to watch through the 3-hour Oppenheimer.

While urging fans of cinema to ‘fight back’, the Goodfellas director also stated that ‘manufactured content’ wasn’t cinema. While he might have a point in use of the term ‘content’ to suggest that superhero films are an act of checking off a list of tropes, all film in some way is manufactured. Unless you go right down to true indie cinema made on minuscule budgets.

The comments don’t leave much space in the sphere of cinema if we’re to follow Scorsese’s ideas. He states, “It’s gotta come from the filmmakers themselves… and you’ll have, you know, the Safdie brothers, and you’ll have Chris Nolan, you know what I mean? And hit ’em from all sides… because we’ve got to save cinema.”

Again… why not both?