Scorsese Finally Taking His Vow of 'Silence'
by Scott Nye
Even though you get used to the ups and downs of the movie industry after following it for years, I was quite astonished when it was announced that legendary director Martin Scorsese wasn't going to be able to direct "Silence."
It's not uncommon for big-name directors to attach themselves to several projects, knowing some will happen while others will vanish due to the difficulties finding and keeping funding, but this story seemed far too personal a thing for Scorsese to take on to simply let it go.
"Silence" is an adaptation of the Shusaku Endo novel of the same name about two Jesuit priests in the 17th century who go to Japan seeking their mentor and spreading Christianity, but instead find only violence and persecution.
The legal rights have been tangled in the court system over the last year, and go back to Scorsese continually putting the project off since the mid-'90s. That must be resolved now, because The Playlist reports, direct from Scorsese's publicist, that the film is back on and will be the director's next project after he finishes "Hugo Cabret."
This is tremendously exciting, as Scorsese has been looking to do this for over a decade and the material is right up his alley.
Raised in a devoutly Catholic environment, which has left a lasting impression on his films, he once considered becoming a priest. Too rare do Scorsese's films feel intensely personal anymore in the way "The Last Temptation of Christ" or "Raging Bull" were, so this could be a huge event.
Daniel Day-Lewis, Gael Garcia Bernal, and Benecio Del Toro were set to star last time pre-production on the film ramped up, but it's unknown if they're still attached. Day-Lewis, known for being choosey about his projects and not one to stay terribly busy, is already signed on to play Abraham Lincoln for Steven Spielberg later this year.
His last collaboration with Scorsese, as Bill the Butcher in 2002's "Gangs of New York," resulted in the kind of performance that goes down as legendary, so here's hoping they can make it work.