The biggest and best directors in the world, of course, are privileged enough to wax poetic about the sanctity of watching movies on the big screen … all while they enjoy the unparalleled comforts of fancy private screening rooms. Others, however, actually put their money where their mouth is and that’s where Scorsese comes in. He just does so a little later than most. In addition to confirming that he’s the industry’s greatest Short King, the esteemed director still made sure to emphasize the importance of watching movies in theaters:
“But it’s very important to me to support films while they’re on the big screen. I just wait a while.”
Scorsese’s got the right idea. As much fun as opening weekend premieres can be — and the film gods know that sometimes that can feel like a requirement if one doesn’t want to get spoiled these days — there’s definitely a unique pleasure in filing into a near-empty theater, weeks after release, and taking advantage of the peace and quiet. Now, granted, some might think this is all a little rich coming from the guy who sold his latest movie, “Killers of the Flower Moon,” to a major streaming service that likely had to be forced to include a theatrical rollout at all. But it says a lot about the state of the industry that no other studio would even fund such a brilliant movie in the first place. That’s why it’s so important to see filmmakers like Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve championing movie theaters the way they have, especially with the recent news of re-releases for both “Dune” and “Tenet.”
And who knows? Maybe someday you’ll catch yourself in an empty theater with Mr. Scorsese, quietly enjoying the latest release.