Martin Scorsese is cinema, quality cinema, which he once again confirms in his most recent film Killers of the Flower Moon. With this film, the 80-year-old filmmaker seeks to give voice to the indigenous culture, reliving the tragedy of the Osage nation that occurred in the early 1920s.
To do so, he immersed himself in the customs and traditions of the native people of the United States, to get to know them better and thus be able to capture them in a cinematographic work.
“I wanted to know more about the culture, their cultural behavior, going to funerals, weddings, spending normal time with them. I wanted to know the value of who they are, how they live their lives, and what is the common denominator between them and us,” Scorsese said at a press conference at the Four Season Hotel in Mexico City.
He acknowledged that many projects address this theme, which is why he concentrated on raising the aesthetic level and deepening “in the heart and soul” the essence of the Osage Nation, which is why he focused the story on the love of Ernest and Molly. In addition, members of the community, led by the Osage Nation’s Principal Chief Standing Bear, who also accompanied Scorsese in promoting the film in Mexico, participated in the production.
This allowed the filmmaker to represent them in a dignified way, respecting their essence and vision: “My team began to work closely with them; I wanted to know about the culture; I wanted to add more rituals and their behavior. I wanted to make a kind of documentary about the Osages and the values we have lost as descendants of Europeans.”
The Language in Killers of the Flower Moon
Something that Martin Scorsese emphasized is the communication between the characters and the use of subtitles, which in some scenes was not necessary because the acting was so good that the expressions were enough to understand the context.
“I could still understand the film, and that allowed us to appreciate the language even better. The Osage language is beautiful, and Leonardo (Dicaprio) learned it. Also, Robert De Niro wanted to say everything in Osage; for me, it was a way to invite the audience to get more into the humanity of the characters. You can understand what they’re saying with body language,” he said.
“Subtitles in the ’50s were very different from today. Today, they subtitle everything, but back then, people would talk for hours and just say ‘thank you,'” the filmmaker added.
More from Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon
The film is based on the book of the same name by David Grann, which links the origin of the FBI with the investigation into the numerous deaths of the Osage after the arrival of white men who took advantage of them upon discovering their wealth.
In addition, it should be noted that this film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone, is Martin’s first western, a genre that, he admitted, he has always admired, but “I have been careful” to develop it.
Killers of the Flower Moon will be released on October, 20 in US theaters.
@cc_entretenimiento Martin Scorsese en CDMX… el sueño de todo cinéfilo 💕 Asistimos a la conferencia de prensa de Los Asesinos de la Luna y te contamos detalles de este filme que llega a cines el 19 de octubre. #appletvplus #martinscorsese #losasesinosdelaluna #conferenciadeprensa #entretenews #culturacolectiva
This story was written in Spanish by Nayeli Párraga in Cultura Coleciva