Martin Scorsese says streaming services are “devaluing” cinema in powerful essay

[snoop1130]

Martin Scorsese says streaming services are “devaluing” cinema in powerful essay

By Ella Kemp

 

CREDIT: Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Netflix

 

Martin Scorsese has published an essay saying that streaming services are “devaluing” cinema.

 

The filmmaker wrote about Italian director Federico Fellini in a new essay for Harper’s Magazine and shared his thoughts on the impact of streaming services, such as Netflix and Apple TV, on the future of the film industry.

 

Regarding the way such streamers view movies, Scorsese said that “the art of cinema is being systematically devalued, sidelined, demeaned, and reduced to its lowest common denominator” when film is reduced to “content”.

 

“As recently as 15 years ago, the term ‘content’ was heard only when people were discussing the cinema on a serious level, and it was contrasted with and measured against ‘form,’” he continued.

 

Full Story: https://www.nme.com/news/film/martin-scorsese-says-streaming-services-are-devaluing-cinema-in-powerful-essay-2882512

[keith101]

I prefer to stream but pretty much every movie being shown now a B- and just not worth the time to try and watch them .

[Susco]

1 hour ago, snoop1130 said:

Regarding the way such streamers view movies, Scorsese said that “the art of cinema is being systematically devalued, sidelined, demeaned, and reduced to its lowest common denominator” when film is reduced to “content”.

 

And right he is. A movie should be watched in a movie theatre, or if you watch it at home you should have a top-notch sound system.

 

I crinch when people tell me they watch streaming movies on a their smartphone.

[spidermike007]

Well, I do agree the bigger the screen, the more impact a good movie has. And same goes for a great sound system. I do not understand why anyone would watch a good movie on a phone, or an iPad, or tablet. It is a sort of desecration of the movie.

 

However, things are changing fast. I understand why an older guy like Scorcese might be upset at the changes. But, change they will. And especially post Covid, I do not think movie theaters will ever return to their past glory. So, get used to it. Most people who have been able to maintain their success, are very good at dancing on their feet, and adapting to change. I see alot of great movie actors and directors doing TV work now. Because TV is where it is at. Hollywood has been losing steam for decades, and the amusement park ride movies it churns out reflects a great deal of cultural bankruptcy, and such lack of vision and creativity. With the exception of TV these days, which is only getting better and better. 

 

Kudos to you for your body of work Martin, but get with the program, or just retire. You have had the kind of career most can only dream about. And if the Irishman was any indication, retiring now might be a good thing. Even with Masters like Clint Eastwood, who other than Scorcese might be the most consistently great filmmaker out there, has a misfire like the Mule, occasionally. An indication of age? Maybe. 

[jingjai9]

Martin is correct. The same thing can be said about music. It seems to a great extent we have settled for MP3 when listening to music. How much commercial music is trafficked by MP3 or FLAC(lossless?) files? This is a step down from genuine high fidelity music. In the age of the Internet we have sacrificed sound quality for convenience. I think Steve Jobs proved to the world people will make sacrifices (privacy) for convenience  The younger generation perhaps only knows digital music in the the digital age. How many truly know what high quality audio sound like?

 

Martin S. is an artist and has every right to point out when his art is being compromised. Even though he did partner with Netflix for his most recent movie. 

 

The  entertainment industry has not only commodified art to a great degree, they now openly use business nomenclature to refer to movies  - content or to blockbuster movies with sequels and prequels as a  - franchise.  Remember it is show BUSINESS.

[timendres]

Hollywood has been devaluing cinema all on its own for quite some time.

[JeffThorsen777]

Streaming services are easy to use. But I agree with Scorsese. Now there is a flow of films. And in order to choose a worthy film, you have to re-read a lot of movie reviews and not get on a third-rate film. Things were much better 10-20 years ago.

[StellaM]

I agree with him! Streaming services are great, and I watch them often, but they can't be compared with films shown in cinemas

[Bucyf]

That's why I watch movies only on movie theaters and prefer not to use streaming services. Only movie theater can give me a full immersion in a movie and can make me value this art. 

[Bucyf]

But none of my friends understands me

[MAYdq15]

Maestro is absolutely right.

Edited March 31, 2022 by MAYdq15

[Whale]

I am much more happy with streaming than the cinema, suits me better. The raft of simply mediocre films surely cannot be blamed on streaming, they still cost the same to make and the technical quality these days is superb.

 

I also disagree about music, mp3s are better than the quality we got from radio pre DAB. And if you like HiFi sound just pay the extra to your streamer to get quality like AAC lossless or MQA. 

 

Its great to be alive now! (except for Ukraine of course).

Edited April 1, 2022 by Whale

[arithai12]

What he really means is that he and his colleagues are getting less royalties.

As for "quality", let me just say that's a personal opinion.

 

Watching movies in a Thai theater is a torture I experienced early on and have avoided since. Need to dress for the North Pole and suffer the stink of popcorn, while the sound system drives you deaf.

[bamnutsak]

Scorsese was an Executive Producer for HBO's Boardwalk Empire, and he won an emmy for directing the pilot episode.

 

Scorsese's 2019 Film The Irishman had a brief theatrical release and then gained an audience on Netflix.

 

Some thirteen Scorsese films have streamed on Neflix. Four more are currently streaming on that platform. I assume a lot of his films are streaming on other platforms currently.

 

 

In more recent news,

 

‘Gangs Of New York’ TV Series In Works At Miramax With Writer Brett Leonard; Martin Scorsese To Direct

 

https://deadline.com/2022/10/gangs-of-new-york-tv-series-brett-leonard-martin-scorsese-miramax-tv-1235142088/#pagetop

 

 

The real reasons for displeasure are more nuanced, one of which is pointed out in this post...

 

On 10/21/2022 at 3:30 AM, arithai12 said:

What he really means is that he and his colleagues are getting less royalties.

 

[Maha Sarakham]

Covid really helped expedite the downfall of cinemas.  I don't think they will ever come back to their previous popularity.

[MRToMRT]

Being an oldie, I cannot go to the movie house to watch anything mildly weepy. Other oldies will know what I mean.

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

Mmm, Scorsese's from a different time, at a different level. Filmmaking, storytelling, art. Most of the "content" these days? Hardly.

 

Switch the brain off for an hour or two of a visual assault of CGI, flying bullets, car chases. The same old "plots" and "characters" if you can call them that, awkward superheroes, cheesy one liners, sexy eye candy, madmen bent on world domination, and the bad boys who come around. Yeah, I can see how the "content" begins skewing this way when its ultimate purpose is to fill another of the thousands of slots on yet another $10/mo subscription service.

 

Seen any of the recent commercials for AIS and True on Thai TV, and their streaming services? They always feature a deluge of movie titles sliding across the screen, as a family on a couch or people staring into their phones are awestruck. Heh, just what are all those movies, and are any of them good? Doesn't matter. They all put something flashy on the screen, and there are a ton of them.

[JayClay]

On 2/19/2021 at 3:07 PM, jingjai9 said:

 we have settled for MP3 when listening to music. How much commercial music is trafficked by MP3 or FLAC(lossless?) files? This is a step down from genuine high fidelity

Sorry I know this is an old post, but how exactly is a lossless digital format a "step down from genuine high fidelity"?