Martin Scorsese on Jane Campion’s “powerful” artistic voice
It doesn’t take a cinephile to recognise the genius of Martin Scorsese, a filmmaker who has successfully achieved both commercial and critical acclaim for decades. The director has mastered the ability to make show-stopping films that appeal to a broad audience while also exploring complex psychological and social themes. From Taxi Driver to Killers of the Flower Moon, Scorsese has proved his cinematic prowess through a strong body of highly celebrated work.
While the director’s first film, the 1967 indie drama Who’s That Knocking on My Door, found moderate praise, it wasn’t until 1973’s Mean Streets that Scorsese began to achieve widespread critical attention. However, with 1976’s Taxi Driver, a stunning portrayal of trauma, obsession, isolation and urban decay, Scorsese cemented himself as one of the most essential cinematic voices of the decade.
Since then, he has released several movies widely heralded as some of the greatest of all time, including Goodfellas and Raging Bull. It is safe to say that, when it comes to cinema, Scorsese knows what he’s talking about. Thus, if he recommends a movie, it’ll most likely be worth your time.
Over the years, Scorsese has discussed many of the movies and filmmakers that have inspired him, including classic pictures by the likes of Powell and Pressburger, Federico Fellini and Stanley Kubrick. However, he also hasn’t shied away from dishing out his opinions on contemporary directors, once discussing his love for Jane Campion.
The New Zealand-born filmmaker emerged in the late 1980s with the movie Sweetie, which won the Independent Spirit Award for ‘Best Foreign Film’. However, Campion received even more acclaim with 1990’s An Angel At My Table, a biographical drama about the author Janet Frame.
In 1993, she released The Piano, which shot Campion to stardom, earning eight Academy Award nominations. She also became the second woman to earn a ‘Best Director’ nomination, a prize she eventually won in 2021 for The Power of the Dog. Scorsese was a particular fan of her Oscar-winning film, discussing it at a ceremony held by the New York Film Critics Circle.
Stating that he first met Campion in 1990, he explained, “My admiration has only increased over the years. I wish you would make more pictures, but every one you do get to make really counts. It’s a precious thing to have an artistic voice as powerful as Jane’s developing over time.”
Expressing his love for The Power of the Dog, Scorsese said, “For me, at first, I saw a still from it, and it had all the trappings of a Western. But the usual expectations I bring to the Western genre, all of this is turned inside out. What is strength and who is strongest? What is the very essence of strength? These questions are at the very heart of the conflict at the core of the picture.”
Watch his full speech below.
