Silence producer says it’s Scorsese’s “best movie”; new runtime announced

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Martin Scorsese has a new movie coming out this year. Just let that sink in. The man has delivered countless classics, and he's still bestowing upon us more and more films that can be added to the list. His newest movie, SILENCE, has been his passion project for years, and we will finally get to see it this holiday season, something I didn’t think I’d be writing just a few months ago. Scorsese is hard at work editing the movie so we can get it just in time for Christmas, and according to producer Irwin Winkler it will be quite a gift indeed.

Speaking with Deadline about the film, Winkler went on to say this is Scorsese’s “best movie,” which is quite the pronouncement considering he's talking about the man who made RAGING BULL, TAXI DRIVER and GOODFELLAS. Not only did he say it’s his best film, but Winkler went on to talk about how the movie is becoming leaner and leaner as the editing process goes on, going from an originally reported three hours (or more) to a more manageable 2 hours and 39 minutes.

This is in line with most epics nowadays, whether they’re dramas or superhero movies, and a far cry from another previously rumored runtime which, according to star Andrew Garfield, had come down to around 2 hours and 50 minutes. The actor, who is also starring in Mel Gibson’s HACKSAW RIDGE went on to talk about what it was like working with the two Oscar-winning directors:

“Mel likes to mess around with different takes. He keeps the set light; he likes to keep everyone light. I like to do more focus, and he pissed me off so much and we’d just laugh about it because he knew what he was doing. Whereas Mr. Scorsese creates this kind of sacred circle on the set always, this invisible circle. He requires absolute silence (no pun), which is gorgeous and also terrifying because then you know there is something sacred happening, there’s like a ritual you are about to perform and anything can happen within this circle. Both methods work.”

Both directors have work coming out this year that will surely be big players in the Oscar race, with Scorsese’s movie having the upper hand because, well, he’s Martin Scorsese. I can’t wait to see both movies, but Scorsese’s has me the most excited because, to reiterate, it’s f@cking Martin Scorsese. And even though I love the man a three hour+ movie would be a little much for me. I think BATMAN VS. SUPERMAN almost ruined immensely long movies for me.

SILENCE with Andrew Garfield, Liam Neeson and Adam Driver arrives December 23, and you can see Garfield in his other movie, HACKSAW RIDGE, November 4.