If you’ve tuned into our annual year-end rundown on our official podcast, then you’ve heard us talk about the already-tired misconceptions regarding the glorification of characters when it comes to The Wolf of Wall Street. Martin Scorsese’s latest film even seems to have perturbed certain audiences so much that theaters are even posting signs regarding no refunds being allowed (see below), but today, we have a fantastic 30-minute talk conducted by DP/30 with editor Thelma Schoonmaker, who must, sadly, lay out the intentions of our director.
While the conversation touches on the editing of the film, as well as terrible test screening experience with the Age of Innocence, how Scorsese doesn’t like actors to use their eyebrows, and much more, we’ve pulled out two of the best quotes — one regarding the aforementioned issue, and another on the misguided comparisons to Goodfellas. Check out the excerpts below, the full video (and another with our cast & crew), the “no refunds” posting (via @skeeotonmischa), as well as the A.C.E. Eddie Awards nominations, in which Schoonmaker is nominated.
On the morality of The Wolf of Wall Street:
“I think he wants you to look at and you to make up your mind about what these people are doing, the terrible things these people are doing. And if you don’t get it, when that girl’s head is behind shaved in the middle of the brokers having an orgy in the end-of-their-month celebration, that is saying something very powerful. This is monstrous. And if the audience doesn’t get that, I don’t know what to say. That is very much of a judgement, but you have to make that judgement. [Scorsese] doesn’t want point fingers and make moralistic judgments because he doesn’t think people will listen to them. He wants you to see what that world is like, to immerse you in it and make you understand it, and then you make up your mind about it.”
On the comparisons to Goodfellas:
“I don’t see it at all as another Goodfellas and it disturbs me when I read that. I wish people would let go of that movie. Marty and I say, ‘we should burn that movie, because everybody’s always trying to make us make it again.’ So at the end of our movies they always say, ‘You know the last twenty minutes of Goodfellas? Could you make the last twenty minutes of this movie like that?’ Well, you know, Shutter Island, The Departed, and a movie about the Dalai Lama, Kundun — they’re not on coke. The Dalai Lama is not on coke at the end of that movie. So, no, we can’t do that. So we keep saying, ‘let’s burn it.’ We’re so tired of the comparison. Roberto Rossellini, the great Italian director, made a movie called Paisan, a great movie. And everybody wanted him to remake that movie for the rest of his life. It drove him nuts. So I don’t buy the comparison between Goodfellas and this movie. I don’t think it’s valid.”
NOMINEES FOR 64th ANNUAL ACE EDDIE AWARDS
BEST EDITED FEATURE FILM (DRAMATIC):
12 Years a Slave, Joe Walker
Captain Phillips, Chris Rouse, A.C.E.
Gravity, Alfonso Cuarón & Mark Sanger
Her, Eric Zumbrunnen, A.C.E. & Jeff Buchanan
Saving Mr. Banks, Mark Livolsi, A.C.E.
BEST EDITED FEATURE FILM (COMEDY OR MUSICAL):
American Hustle, Jay Cassidy, A.C.E., Crispin Struthers & Alan Baumgarten, A.C.E.
August: Osage County, Stephen Mirrione, A.C.E.
Inside Llewyn Davis, Roderick Jaynes
Nebraska, Kevin Tent, A.C.E.
The Wolf of Wall Street, Thelma Schoonmaker, A.C.E.
BEST EDITED ANIMATED FEATURE FILM:
Despicable Me 2, Gregory Perler, A.C.E.
Frozen, Jeff Draheim
Monsters University, Greg Snyder
BEST EDITED DOCUMENTARY (FEATURE):
20 Feet from Stardom, Douglas Blush, Kevin Klauber & Jason Zeldes
Blackfish, Eli Despres
Tim’s Vermeer, Patrick Sheffield
A.C.E. Eddie Awards will be given out on January 26th.
What do you think of Schoonmaker’s comments? What’s the best-edited film of the year?