ReelzChannel | Martin Scorsese

Martin Scorsese

25 Nov 2009 00:00:00 CDT

Thu, 26 Nov 2009

The Age of Innocence (Martin Scorsese as Director, Writer (Screenplay) )

1:00 PM ET | STARZ CINEMA PST

10:00 AM ET | STARZ CINEMA EST

Roger Corman to Receive Honorary Oscar

RYAN GOWLAND — 14 Nov 2009 17:45:23 CDT

Even Roger Corman admits that his name was unlikely to be associated with an Academy Award. Yet the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has decided to give Corman an honorary lifetime achievement Oscar, nonetheless. Corman told The Associated Press that he was surprised by the announcement.

I predicted that I would not win because I make low-budget films, and I felt the Academy would not give an award to someone who made low-budget films. I was truly surprised when I got the call.

Corman began his career producing and directing low-budget fare like 1955's Swamp Women and Monsters from the Ocean Floor, Corman quickly found that what he did best was provide opportunities to young director and actors like Martin Scorsese (1972's Boxcar Bertha), Jack Nicholson (1960's Little Shop of Horrors), Robert De Niro (1970's Bloody Mama), Francis Ford Coppola (Dementia 13), and Ron Howard (1977's Grand Theft Auto). Sylvester Stallone starred in two Corman movies, 1975's Death Race 2000 and Capone, and told Entertainment Weekly that he owes his career to Corman.

If I hadn't done those parts I probably wouldn't be here today. He provided a forum for a lot of us to grow. We were the seeds and he owned the farm. If you look at those early movies with Jack Nicholson, you can see it — that he was building his rhythm back then. You can see that he had it. He would allow out-of-the-box people like Scorsese and De Niro to flourish. He didn't go with the status quo. He was a master at spotting talent.

It was his eye for finding talent that Corman is the most proud of.

I know that they all would have achieved the same level if they had never met me, but I think what I was able to do was to give them a start and help them a little bit in their careers, and I take great pride in that.

Corman receives his Honorary Oscar at a ceremony today.

Scorsese to Receive Honorary Golden Globe

RICH Z ZWELLING — 13 Nov 2009 21:21:20 CDT

The Hollywood Foreign Press will bestow its honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award to Martin Scorsese during the Golden Globes on January 17, according to Variety.

Scorsese, who is a few days from his 67th birthday, is responsible for several movies legendary for their gritty, sometimes expressionistic, portrayals of violence. These include Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and GoodFellas.

He also crafted many underrated gems that explored various social and cultural issues. These include The King of Comedy (the obsessions of celebrity culture), The Last Temptation of Christ (a non-Gospel, first-person telling of Jesus's internal struggle), Kundun (the life of the Dalai Lama), and Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (the trials of single-motherhood).

The DeMille Award recognizes the lifetime achievement of various actors and directors. Recent recipients include Steven Spielberg, Robin Williams, and Al Pacino. Earlier recipients include Walt Disney, Fred Astaire, Judy Garland, and Alfred Hitchcock, among others. You can see the complete list of winners here.

During his career, Scorsese twice won the Golden Globe for Best Director (for Gangs of New York and The Departed), so the award thankfully won't seem like a consolation prize. As many of you probably remember, fans were bitterly disappointed when the Oscars did not award Scorsese its directing award for Gangs of New York, going instead with Roman Polanski and The Pianist.

Thank goodness Scorsese finally won for The Departed. Now, any lifetime achievement award he wins at the Academy Awards won't feel like adding insult to injury, some conciliatory gesture that says, "Sorry we never gave you the real thing, but here ya go."

Scorsese's next release is Shutter Island, which arrives on February 19, and he is also at work on Sinatra and The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, both due sometime in 2011.

Harvey Keitel Joins Robert De Niro in Little Fockers

RICH Z ZWELLING — 13 Nov 2009 09:14:31 CDT

Are there no good dramatic roles left in Hollywood? Harvey Keitel has signed on to star in Little Fockers opposite Robert De Niro, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Remember the '70s, when Keitel and DeNiro were starring in edgy, challenging movies like Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver? Now, both seem to be confined to less-than-original comedies. Thankfully, at least DeNiro has a role in Robert Rodriguez's upcoming Machete.

And how about Dustin Hoffman? Is a possible appearance in Little Fockers the best he can expect? We recently overheard the tour-guide of a museum refer to Hoffman as "the guy from Meet the Fockers." Our thoughts: Anyone who knows Hoffman only from that movie should immediately be sent home with copies of The Graduate, Midnight Cowboy, and Little Big Man.