Before Wetting Yourself

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Patrick Frater's 2.1.09 Variety story didn't say Martin Scorsese is 100% locked into shooting an adaptation of Shusaku Endo's Silence -- it said Scorsese is "determined" to make it his next film. It also said he and Graham King's GK Films are negotiating with Daniel Day-Lewis, Benicio Del Toro and Gael Garcia Bernal to star, and that the grim 17th Century drama is expected to begin shooting later this year in New Zealand.

(l. to r.) Martin Scorsese, Daniel Day-Lewis, Benicio del Toro

Obviously this has the earmarks of a high-pedigree historical drama, but before getting too excited consider a synopsis on the Endo/Silence Amazon page, to wit: "The plot centers around a band of Portugese priests who land in Japan in the 1600s to spread the gospel on a culturally and spiritually unfertile soil. Their theology is eventually challenged in ways that only persecution and suffering can do. Can I carry on here? Should I? Can I forgive my tormentors? Should I?

"Ultimately, they wrestle with public apostasy" -- i.e., a renunciation of faith -- "and whether or not they could ever be forgiven if they commit such an act. This is not a feel-good book by any stretch. It deals with failure, defeat, abandonment, pain, and the silence of God through it all."

In other words, it's going to be a grim slide, Catholic guilt suffer-fest in Jesuit robes.

Remember the tragic-downer tone of Scorsese's previous two collaborations with Day-Lewis -- The Age of Innocence and Gangs of New York. Keep in mind the catatonic stupor that enveloped viewers of Kundun, Scorsese's last exploration of spirituality in an exotic culture. If it gets made, Silence will almost certainly be showered with admiration and respect from critics, and lose money hand over fist in commercial theatres. I for one can't wait to suffer through this as I relish the performances, which you just know are going to be kick-ass. Not to mention the photography, sets, costumes, etc.

I was scorned last year for saying Scorsese should restrict himself to goombah gangster films. I didn't exactly mean that. I understand that Scorsese has to do movies like Silence, Kundun and The Age of Innocence in order to expand his range and fortify his artist-auteur cred, and I respect that process. But in the old days the thick-fingered, cigar-chomping studio moguls would have told him to forget the Jesuits and get back to the loan sharks, drug dealers, wayward women, crooked politicians and hitmen. Because that's what sells the friggin' popcorn.

Only the flakiest would-be distributor would ignore the Great Depression 2.0 factor. With everyone terrified of losing their jobs and being unable to house and feed their families, who's going to pay to see this thing besides dweeb cineastes who read Scott Foundas? I'm just asking.

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on February 2, 2009 at 8:21 AM

comment #1

Chase Kahn says ...

Yeah, I don't know if this is in Scorsese's wheel-house, but all the more impressive if he pulls it off (or if he's even directing it).

Posted by Chase Kahn at February 2, 2009 10:40 AM

comment #2

CitizenKanedforChewingGum says ...

Considering your readership is probably about 75% to 85% "dweeb cineastes", I would imagine that the overwhelming majority of people here that you're "just asking" would be interested in seeing this.

I dunno...I worry about someone who considers him/herself a film buff and isn't automatically interested in the latest Scorsese, regardless of the subject matter.

There's nothing wrong with Kundun, and AoI is a goddamn masterpiece.

Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum at February 2, 2009 10:47 AM

comment #3

actionman says ...

Kundun is great. One of Scorsese's most purely gorgeous films (Deakins was DoP, shocker!)

Posted by actionman at February 2, 2009 10:51 AM

comment #4

Jeffrey Wells says ...

Kundun hurled me into one of the gloomiest depressions I've ever experienced before a movie screen. Don't even think of trying that "Kundun was fine" stuff with me. The cinematography was breathtaking, but otherwise it was absolute utter hell. It was like sinking into quicksand. Why do you think David Chase wrote that scene in The Sopranos' first season (or was it the second?) with Michael Imperioli (i.e., "Christophah") calling out to Scorsese in the street, "Marty! Kundun! I liked it!"

Posted by Jeffrey Wells at February 2, 2009 11:00 AM

comment #5

Sabina E says ...

Kundun was awesome, i concur.

but damn, Benicio del Toro's hair looks BAD in that photo.

Posted by Sabina E at February 2, 2009 11:01 AM

comment #6

Rich S. says ...

That cast reminds me of the old Gilbert Gottfried bit.

"Death to the two-name boy!"

Posted by Rich S. at February 2, 2009 11:03 AM

comment #7

the400blows says ...

Loved After Hours. One of the best films Scorsese ever made. I look forward to any film starring Day-Lewis and directed by Scorsese.

Posted by the400blows at February 2, 2009 11:03 AM

comment #8

actionman says ...

"Kundun hurled me into one of the gloomiest depressions I've ever experienced before a movie screen."

Really, Wells? I might have to watch it again. It didn't have that effect on me at all when I saw it on opening day in NYC (I skipped school and forced my father to drive me to the city to see it). But that's the only time I have seen the film in its entirety, but strangely enough, I remember almost everything from the film.

Posted by actionman at February 2, 2009 11:12 AM

comment #9

CitizenKanedforChewingGum says ...

Also, Variety has the plot summary as:

"The drama is set in the 17th century as two Jesuit priests face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity."

If you don't think that subject matter is vintage Scorsese, yeah (I'll say it) even moreso thanGoodfellas, then you know less about Scorsese's early life than I expected.

Add in the fact that it's being adapted by Jay Cocks, who is a great writer and has had fruitful collaborations with Marty, and the fact that it stars two of the greatest living actors, I'm really not feeling this negative slant you're trying very hard to impose on this story. What gives?

Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum at February 2, 2009 11:12 AM

comment #10

Balerion says ...

Is it wrong for me to echo others who really enjoyed Kundun?

Posted by Balerion at February 2, 2009 11:20 AM

comment #11

CitizenKanedforChewingGum says ...

I agree with what you said, actionman. Kundun is a strikingly vivid film. In the sense that it communicates almost entirely through visuals with very little dialogue, it can arguably be said it's as close as Scorsese has ever gotten to pure cinema. I've only seen it once also, but I felt it was spectacular at capturing mood, and the spare dialogue and plot was very much in keeping with subject matter (the reserved spirituality of Buddhism).

I certainly don't personally prefer Kundun to his masterworks (Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, Mean Streets, Last Temptation..., etc.) but it's no slouch, either...I think it accomplishes what it sets out to do better than, say, Cape Fear or The Color of Money.

But then, I'm biased because I love Scorsese. The only film of his that I am not a fan of is New York, New York. And even that has its moments.

Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum at February 2, 2009 11:28 AM

comment #12

btwnproductions says ...

Sounds like THE MISSION PART II.

Posted by btwnproductions at February 2, 2009 11:29 AM

comment #13

erniesouchak says ...

I loved "Kundun," and not just for the photography.

Posted by erniesouchak at February 2, 2009 11:35 AM

comment #14

YRG says ...

@btwn: You took the words right out of my mouth. The first movie I thought of was the Mission, but watching a preview again, it looks like the theme's are different.

Posted by YRG at February 2, 2009 12:35 PM

comment #15

lazarus says ...

Another lover of Kundun here, sadly a film that is often overlooked when talking about Marty. While it may not have the forceful impact of some of his masterpieces, it shows (along with The Age of Innocence) that he's perfectly capable of subtlety when he chooses to use it.

There are a handful of scenes in this film that are up here with his best, and that crane up shot of the dead monks in a pool of blood is just something that astonishes me every time I see it.

Posted by lazarus at February 2, 2009 12:45 PM

comment #16

lazespud says ...

If you check out Box Office Mojo, you'll see that Age of Innocence apparently cost about 35 million and made about 35 million at the Box Office. And this doesn't include all the TV rights and DVD that came later.

Kundun was a flop, yes, but Age of Innocence was at worst an underperformer....

Posted by lazespud at February 2, 2009 1:22 PM

comment #17

TM says ...

Add my kudos for Kundun.

Age of Innocence is like valium with me -- every time I've tried to see that movie, I fall asleep. Not sure what it is -- and I am a big fan of period films. Maybe it's Joanne Woodward's narration. Don't know. But I've never seen the whole film. Tried recently to watch it on cable and same thing -- it put me to sleep.

And whoever said this sounds like THE MISSION -- that was my exact thought when I first heard about this movie. Didn't they already make it? And wasn't it sort of not such a great movie despite Oscar nominations? This will either be a Scorsese masterwork or another noble try.

Posted by TM at February 2, 2009 4:25 PM

comment #18

Glenn Kenny says ...

I love this. Scorsese's been in the commercial salt mines since after the Weinstein-hijacked "Gangs," proving himself as a director who'll play nice with the blockbuster-meisters (in the mode of Mann and Ray with Samuel B.), trying to get his own back, putting up with the indignity of having Manohla D. jeer at you for begging for a "charity f**k" from the Academy, and having proven himself therein. Then he gets an opportunity to make a personal film, one he's nurtured for almost 20 years, and the self-proclaimed Pasolini-worshipper Mr. Wells jeers him for pursuing a project that sounds like a bummer. The guy just can't win, can he? Well, at least the thread hasn't devolved to the "Raging Bull had no likable characters" point, so there's that to be grateful for....

Posted by Glenn Kenny at February 2, 2009 6:40 PM

comment #19

lipranzer says ...

Add me to those who loved KUNDUN. What impressed me most is how Scorsese melded his filmmaking style to the languid way of telling the story.

And I really liked AGE OF INNOCENCE as well, except for Woodward's narration (a little too much of it) and Winona Ryder (I know it's supposed to be a passive character, but I think Ryder went a little too far in that direction). I maintain it would have done better at the box office if it had been set in Britain rather than here - for some reason, we seem to think only British people suppress their emotions.

Posted by lipranzer at February 2, 2009 6:44 PM

comment #20

arturobandini2 says ...

My favorite Scorsese movie is the one he got fired from -- The Honeymoon Killers. Capital-M Masterpiece. Everything he's touched since runs hot and cold, except for After Hours.

Posted by arturobandini2 at February 2, 2009 7:15 PM

comment #21

YND says ...

For my money, AGE OF INNOCENCE comes pretty damn close to Scorsese's universally acknowledged masterpieces. It loses some of its majesty on the small screen, but I still come back to it about once a year and am knocked out by the level of filmmaking.

Need to see KUNDUN again...

Posted by YND at February 2, 2009 7:32 PM

comment #22

Gordon27 says ...

'Kundun' is a wonderful movie. I'm an atheist, and even I found the story of a spiritual man increasingly having to deal with the world around him getting less so fascinating. I assumed I would hate it, but I was completely spellbound.

Posted by Gordon27 at February 3, 2009 12:12 AM

comment #23