First, it needs to be said that a lot of time has passed since Martin Scorsese took aim at Marvel Studios and superhero films, basically calling them trash and not real “cinema.” So, perhaps in that time, Scorsese binged all of the MCU films and is anxiously awaiting “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” in September. But he hasn’t said anything about that yet, so when James Gunn was recently asked about those controversial Marvel comments made by the legendary director, he talked openly and honestly about what he thinks motivated them.
READ MORE: Zack Snyder Says Martin Scorsese’s Criticism Of Superhero Movies Is “Fair”
Talking to the Happy. Sad. Confused. podcast, James Gunn was asked about the Martin Scorsese comments. And being a person that has made numerous superhero films (two for Marvel Studios, one for DC Films, and even an indie one with “Super”), Gunn doesn’t fully agree with Scorsese at all.
“I just think it seems awful cynical that he would keep coming out against Marvel and then that is the only thing that would get him press for his movie,” said Gunn. “So he just kept coming out against Marvel so that he could get press for his movie. He’s creating his movie in the shadow of the Marvel films, and so he uses that to get attention for something he wasn’t getting as much attention as he wanted for it.”
But that doesn’t mean James Gunn is the #1 anti-Martin Scorsese person in the world. In fact, he’s a big fan and thinks the legendary filmmaker’s words about blockbusters hold some merit.
“He’s one of the greatest filmmakers who’s ever existed,” explained Gunn. “I love his movies. I can watch his movies with no problem. And he said a lot of things I agree with. There are a lot of things that are true about what he said.”
He added, “There are a lot of heartless, soulless, spectacle films out there that don’t reflect what should be happening. I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve talked to film directors before they went and made a big movie, and said, ‘Hey, we’re in this together, let’s do something different with these big movies. Let’s make them something different than everything that has come before them.’ And then see them cater to every single studio whim and be grossed out, frankly.”
Ultimately, though he agrees with some of what Scorsese said, Gunn admits to the comments being “irritating” because the filmmaker has yet to see any of the “Guardians of the Galaxy” films and can’t really speak to them.
Obviously, the comments made by Scorsese years ago (yes, years ago now) have been debated time after time after time. Many people agree with his thoughts about real cinema versus Hollywood blockbuster garbage. While others, like Gunn, think it was a gross generalization that paints with too wide a brush. Maybe Scorsese can go watch Gunn’s “The Suicide Squad,” when it debuts in theaters and HBO Max on August 6?