Thelma Schoonmaker names her five favourite movies of all time
It’s no secret that the film industry is incredibly male-centric. Women are rarely given the chance to assert themselves in high-ranking positions in Hollywood, such as directing, which reflects deeply ingrained sexist attitudes embedded within society. With this comes the assumption that men will have executed other behind-the-scenes jobs, yet many of the most successful movies have been edited by women.
Female editors have helped to shape the course of modern cinema for decades, rarely receiving adequate credit and failing to become household names despite their mighty importance. From Sally Menke to Dede Allen and Anne V. Coates, female editors have defined the big screen with movies such as Pulp Fiction, Jaws, and Lawrence of Arabia.
However, perhaps one of the most celebrated editors of all time is Thelma Schoonmaker, who has collaborated with Hollywood legend Martin Scorsese on every movie since 1980’s Raging Bull (although she also edited his debut picture, 1967’s Who’s That Knocking at My Door). Schoonmaker has won three Oscars for her skills, which have moulded Scorsese’s work into the highly influential body it is today.
Naturally, Schoonmaker is a big film fan, and she once picked out her five favourites for A.Frame. Of course, she couldn’t not mention Raging Bull, which won Schoonmaker her first Oscar. “The direction, camera work, acting, and music were pure gold for me to edit,” she explained.
Schoonmaker has elucidated on her love of editing Raging Bull in the past, even if it was often challenging. She told Wide Angle/Close-Up: “There are other times, in heavily improvised scenes like in Raging Bull, where it really was my job to try and pull that out. Marty was sometimes unable to shoot with two cameras because the rooms were too small. Joe Pesci is such a wonderful improviser with Bob [De Niro] because he sparks Bob off, and then he goes all out, we ended up with a real mess – brilliant scenes, but it was a real mess to try to pull it together.”
Elsewhere, Schoonmaker picked out The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, released in 1943. She revealed, “Another original astounding film that is hard to describe – you have to experience it – it is never sentimental, but is packed with emotion and surprises. You never know what is going to happen next.” Her love of Powell and Pressburger doesn’t end there – she also selected The Red Shoes as one of her favourites.
She explained: “It is about how a passionate devotion to art can make the rest of your life very complicated. It reflects the way I feel about the job I love as an editor of Martin Scorsese’s films and how it has at times created strains in my personal life – but I wouldn’t change my devotion to Scorsese’s films for anything.”
The editor is a fan of John Cassavetes’ Faces, starring his regular collaborator Gena Rowlands and John Marley. She called it “an amazing film that defies description,” adding, “never seen anything like it – it is burned into my mind.”
Finally, 1950’s The Flowers of St. Francis by Roberto Rossellini. Schoonmaker stated, “Real Italian monks play the characters in this film. The way the life of St. Francis is evoked with utter simplicity and unexpected events is fantastic. The monks take in and love eccentric characters, and after building such a wonderful community based on love, they separate to go and preach to the world.”
Check out Schoonmaker’s favourite movies below.
Thelma Schoonmaker’s favourite movies:
- Raging Bull (Martin Scorsese, 1980)
- The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, 1943)
- The Red Shoes (Powell and Pressburger, 1948)
- Faces (John Cassavettes, 1968)
- The Flowers of St. Francis (Roberto Rossellini, 1950)
