Spielberg calls Killers of the Flower Moon Scorsese’s “masterpiece”

While the Movie Brats of the New Hollywood have either been long gone or become shells of their peak in the 1970s, two that are consistently putting out acclaimed films are Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg. Still championing one another more than 50 years since they first had movies released in the same year, the two recently sat down for an intimate conversation at, appropriately enough, the DGA Theatre in Los Angeles, where Spielberg crowned Scorsese’s latest, Killers of the Flower Moon, as his masterpiece.

As per The Hollywood Reporter (who exclusively presents the must-watch video), Spielberg confirmed to Scorsese that he has a new pick for what he considers his friend’s greatest achievement. “You are the master of our medium, and this is your masterpiece, Marty.” Just last year said that 1990’s Goodfellas was Scorsese’s best film, so we could assume he’s held that position for quite some time. Funnily enough he said it was “no longer a guilty pleasure  to sit for 2 hours and 26 minutes”, a runtime that is a full hour less than Killers of the Flower Moon’s.

Elaborating on his love of Scorsese’s film – which is poised to be a major awards contender – Spielberg said, “For me, this is just an exceptional experience, watching your film. You know how I feel about all of your films, but this one stands out in a way for me that’s so impactful. It’s an epic journey, but it’s not a Hollywood epic, for me; it’s a humanitarian epic.”

A number of Scorsese’s films could qualify as his “masterpiece”, including Spielberg’s past pick Goodfellas and reigning champ Killers of the Flower Moon. For me, I’m going with Taxi Driver (and doing my best not to name runners-up), while I would pick Jaws as Spielberg’s greatest piece of cinema.

Spielberg, Scorsese and Paul Thomas Anderson (whose masterpiece is Magnolia, for what it’s worth) recently took on creative roles at Turner Classic Movies, where you can see plenty of other essential works.

What do you consider Martin Scorsese’s masterpiece? What about Steven Spielberg’s? Give us one pick for each in the comments section below!