The two essential Martin Scorsese movies Spike Lee recommends to budding filmmakers
There are certain filmmakers whose names are almost guaranteed to feature on any essential watching list: Alfred Hitchcock, Francis Ford Coppola and, of course, Martin Scorsese. Spike Lee’s personal list of essential cinema, which he imparts to students at New York University on their first day of class, is no exception. However, his connection to Scorsese goes beyond admiration from afar.
Before Lee became one of the most important directors in modern cinema himself, before he was at the helm of NYU cohorts of his own, the budding filmmaker discovered his love for the craft through a classic Scorsese feature. In the early 1970s, Lee became his mother’s cinema-going partner by default due to his father’s dislike for films. On one occasion, Lee accompanied her to a screening of Mean Streets, a cinema trip that would change his life forever.
“My mother is responsible for me being a great fan of Martin Scorsese,” Lee explained to GQ, “She took me to see Mean Streets. Whatever year that was, that’s the year we went. At that time, I didn’t want to be a film man. I didn’t even know people made films, you just went to the movie theater, but that film really made and had an impact on me.”
Scorsese’s influence stuck with Lee throughout his education, persisting until he studied a masters at NYU, where he would stumble upon his cinematic hero. Meeting Scorsese at a screening of After Hours, Lee told him about the impact the filmmaker had on him. Since then, the pair have worked together professionally and remained good friends. “He still remembers it,” Lee reminisced.
Perhaps as a result of his personal reaction to the movie and due to the sheer cinematic mastery demonstrated in Mean Streets, Lee considers the film to be essential watching, particularly for budding directors. In the mirror image of Scorsese’s transformative impact on him, Lee now inspires other future filmmakers at NYU, continually paying homage to his hero.
At the start of each class, Lee’s essential watching list implores his students to watch the film, alongside one other Scorsese classic. Though it seems nearly impossible to pick out Scorsese’s best work from such a lucrative filmography, Lee limited his choices to just two. Alongside Mean Streets, Lee names 1980’s Raging Bull as one of the greatest films of all time and a crucial watch for those looking to pursue a job in the industry.
Masterful pieces of cinema that remain close to Lee’s heart, it’s easy to see why he considers them to be so essential.
