Scorsese famously called Marvel films and other superhero films as ‘not cinema’.

Martin Scorsese is one of the most acclaimed filmmakers in Hollywood, and even at the age of 81 is churning out pieces of art. The filmmaker last helmed the crime-Western Killers of the Flower Moon, and is already gearing up for his next project. He remains one of the few individual voices still making films today.

Scorsese’s statements about cinema and the way superhero films were taking over the medium had drawn a lot of flack from fans. The director’s comparison of Marvel movies to theme parks sparked outrage as well as a popular meme template. However, even he would agree to one scene from Henry Cavill’s Man of Steel as cinema.

Beau DeMayo Exhibits Man of Steel Scene To Prove Superhero Films Can Be Cinema

Martin Scorsese | Credits: Criterion Channel

Martin Scorsese has often discussed, publicly, his disdain towards the superhero genre of films, especially Marvel films. He famously compared the franchise to a theme park ride and drew flack from fans of the franchise who defended their favorite movies. Marvel directors such as James Gunn too responded to the remarks with disappointment.

While Scorsese referred to the commodification of Hollywood more than the films themselves, the ‘Cinema’ meme has since become a popular social media joke among cinephiles. George Lucas, a friend of Scorsese and the creator of Star Wars recently mentioned that Scorsese might have eased up his opinion on the matter (via Brut 9).

However, even Scorsese would agree that the DCEU film Man of Steel, which starred Henry Cavill as Superman, stands apart from the usual superhero films. Despite having some traits of the genre, the Zack Snyder directorial had many moments that were magical and could only be described as cinema.

Henry Cavill in Man of Steel | Credits: Warner Bros. Pictures/Legendary Pictures/DC Entertainment/Syncopy/Peters Entertainment

X-Men ‘97 creator Beau DeMayo took the ‘flight scene’ from Man of Steel to prove his point in his X (formerly Twitter) post.

The scene sees Henry Cavill’s Clark Kent fly for the first time as Superman in his suit, which he has just received from an abandoned Kryptonian ship. As he stumbles and falls during multiple tries, he is given hope by a message from his father Jor-El (Russell Crowe), which encourages him to try again. Coupled with Hans Zimmer’s incredible score, the scene stands out as one of the most exhilarating cinematic experiences.

Martin Scorsese Rallied Young Filmmakers To Stand Against Superhero Films

Martin Scorsese in Hugo | Credits: GK Films/Infinitum Nihil
The flight scene from Man of Steel may prove that in the hands of a visionary director, any genre can be made into something more than the blockbuster it intends to be. Zack Snyder’s opening film for the DCEU established the tone that the films would take but the franchise eventually became victim of what Martin Scorsese was warning all along.

Scorsese famously disregarded the current crop of excessive superhero films made by Hollywood. While he received flack from some filmmakers and fans, many others such as Francis Ford Coppola and Quentin Tarantino echoed his sentiments about the art of cinema dying. Scorsese mentioned in an interview with GQ about how young filmmakers should push against this norm.

The danger there is what it’s doing to our culture. Because there are going to be generations now that think movies are only those—that’s what movies are. They already think that which means that we have to then fight back stronger. And it’s got to come from the grassroots level. It’s gotta come from the filmmakers themselves. 

The filmmaker also mentioned how directors such as Christopher Nolan and the Safdie Brothers were a product of such rebellions and how they managed to retain individual voices in the mainstream despite an industry that groups such originality among indies. He continued,

And you’ll have, you know, the Safdie brothers, and you’ll have Chris Nolan, you know what I mean? And hit ’em from all sides. Hit ’em from all sides, and don’t give up. Let’s see what you got. Go out there and do it. Go reinvent. Don’t complain about it. But it’s true because we’ve got to save cinema.

The filmmaker went on to talk about how he was against manufactured content more than anything and not exactly the genre of the films.

Man of Steel is available to stream on Max.