Martin Scorsese. Movie critic, Roger Ebert, has called him a “directing god”. He has been called the “most influential and best director of their time” by fellow director, George Lucas. Director Martin Scorsese has been an influential director for the past twenty years. In the 60’s class of directors that included, Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, Brian De Palma, and Steven Spielberg. Scorsese ranks with this class of artists, and his movies have changed the film industry of America (Friedman I). The impact of Scorsese can be shown in a number of ways, such as his style of directing, the films that he has made, and also the relationships that he has made in the film industry.The first is his directorial skills, which are second to none. Scorsese doesn’t just set up the scene, he paints images and feelings into our minds by using camera shots that have become his trademark in the film institution. Another reason for his great success is the films that he directs and the actors he uses. He also has picked certain actors (notable Robert DeNiro) to portray his characters (Kelly 25). In the ruthless business of Hollywood, Scorsese has built loyalties to actor, screen writes and editors whom he uses in many of his films (Kelly 26).Martin Scorsese was born on November 17, 1942 in the East Side of Queens, New York, in an area called “Little Italy.” Little Italy consisted of about ten blocks, but as Scorsese talks about it, each block had there own “boundaries” where everyone stayed. He grew up on Elizabeth Street, and he spent much of his time in the movie theater (Scorsese 17). As he was growing up, he had strong Catholic roots in his Italian heritage that would later influence such films as Mean Streets, Goodfellas, etc (Scorsese 18). Growing up, Scorsese was not thinking of becoming a director, but rather a priest. In fact, he went to college to become a priest....
