The Best of Martin Scorsese — The Awards Connection

From the moment I first sat down and watched Goodfellas, sometime in my early teens, I was completely mesmerized by the filmmaking of Martin Scorsese. Sure, I had seen Cape Fear beforehand, and that was heaps of fun, but his 1990 picture captivated my attention in a way few films had ever done. For some time, in fact, I considered Goodfellas my favorite picture ever. Then, a few years down the road, I saw Casino, which somehow managed to leave me even more awe-struck.

Over the years to follow, I would catch up on every Scorsese film, from the supremely underrated (After Hours and New York, New York) to the slightly overpraised (sorry, Raging Bull) and, sans the rare exception (like the sleep-inducing The Color of Money), not a moment left me underwhelmed. Scorsese is one of the finest, most compelling directors of not only the past half-century but truly all-time.

So, in honor of his birthday today, I am delighted to present this list of my 10 favorite Scorsese pictures, from the very, very good to the spectacularly awesome. And boy does it pain me to leave The King of Comedy off...