THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST

Jonathan Rosenbaum wrote: "Everyone who sees The Last Temptation of Christ will bring his or her own sense of Jesus to match against Scorsese’s version."

Did you?

Roger Ebert wrote: "Among those who do not already have rigid views on the subject, The Last Temptation of Christ is likely to inspire more serious thought on the nature of Jesus than any other ever made."

Did it?

I encourage you to write whatever you'd like about this week's film - one of Scorsese's most controversial - just be sure to do it with as much passion and detail as you can.

I look forward to reading your thoughts, feelings, insights, etc. by no later than midnight Monday April 3.

"THE MARTIN SCORSESE FILM SCHOOL"

Martin Scorsese’s encyclopedic knowledge of - and undying love for – cinema is formidable and inspiring. To know and appreciate this auteur is to study and understand his passion and admiration for the many filmmakers who’ve had such an incredible impact on his own aesthetic. 

I began our first class by showing a clip from A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies (1995), a 225-minute documentary in which Scorsese examines a selection of his favorite American films grouped according to four different types of directors: the director as storyteller; the director as an illusionist; the director as a smuggler; and the director as an iconoclast.

Inspired by this documentary, and based on the 85 films Martin Scorsese said "you need to see to know anything about film" during an interview, Flavorwire put together an amazing video essay of clips and stills from the “Scorsese 85,” using his own words when possible (from A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies and another great documentary celebrating his love of movies, My Voyage to Italy).

You can read this article highlighting the "Scorsese 85" first if you'd like, but your super-sized spring break blog post this week involves you watching "The Martin Scorsese Film School" video essay, choosing one of the films he references that you haven't seen before to screen, and then screening it.

Once you've watched the essay and screened one of the 85 films Scorsese mentioned, please post a response here that includes the following information:

• The title of the film you chose to screen
• Why you chose it
• What you thought of it
• Why you think Scorsese thinks you needed to see it
• And most importantly, how you think your chosen film/director does and/or doesn't relate to and inform Scorsese's work. Please be sure to highlight one film of Scorsese's we've seen to support your answer here.

Have a fun break, and please be sure to post your thoughtful, thorough response here by no later than midnight on Monday, March 27!

THE KING OF COMEDY

Please let me know in as much detail as you can provide what you thought of this week's film - one of my personal favorites.

In particular, identify what it was about The King of Comedy that you liked the most. Be specific. Maybe it's a particular scene, a performance, the script, an aesthetic choice (editing, camerawork, sound, etc.) - whatever the case, just let me know the one aspect of the film you most liked and briefly explain why.

Also, in this past week's reading from Scorsese on Scorsese, the director talks about how he and his friends have a running joke about referring to slow movies (those where the camera doesn't move much) as "mature." Scorsese read in the Village Voice that Jim Jarmusch said something like, "I'm not interested in taking people by the hair and telling them where to look." In response, Scorsese says, "Well, I do want them to see the way I see. Walking down the street, looking quickly about, tracking, panning, zooming, cutting and all that sort of thing. I like it when two images go together and they move."

At the conclusion of your response, let me know whose side you're on - Jarmusch's or Scorsese's? And briefly explain your choice.

I look forward to reading what you write - by no later than midnight on Monday, March 14.