Guillermo del Toro comes to Martin Scorsese’s defense after “hostile” criticism

If most level-headed cinephiles were to compile a list of the five greatest filmmakers of all time, one name that would certainly be on the majority would be Martin Scorsese. But not everyone admires Scorsese, as one recent–and controversial–article has attempted to outline just why the Oscar-winning director doesn’t rank and has fallen into self-parody. But Guillermo del Toro has swiftly come to his defense of Martin Scorsese.

Guillermo del Toro took to Twitter to not only praise Scorsese, but point out just how wrong the writer of the piece (titled “Martin Scorsese: rinse and repeat self-indulgence”) is, writing the article was filled with “sloppy [inaccuracies] and hostile adjectives not backed by an actual rationale is offensive, cruel and ill-intentioned.” He also suggested that the article seemed to have been written strictly to garner clicks. Hey, we’re not going to disagree with Guillermo del Toro while he’s heated!

However, for context, the article takes the position that Mean Streets is “badly directed” and that Taxi Driver “lacks momentum or moral”, adding that Martin Scorsese “has lazily settled on Mafia-Picture Director as a main calling.” Perhaps worst of all, the piece calls New York, New York “reasonably entertaining”, which it most certainly is not.

The piece also takes the time to point out Martin Scorsese’s skepticism and criticism of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, saying it’s “not cinema”, which we really all should have gotten over by now.

Martin Scorsese’s next film, Killers of the Flower Moon, will be released next year. He is also slated to direct The Wager, also starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

What do you think of the piece’s perspective on the career of Martin Scorsese? Let us know in the comments below.