As we have studied Scorsese, many people put his name down as someone who likes to produce gangster films. Scorsese knows how to keep you off your phones and on the edge of your seat. In my opinion, Scorsese did the complete opposite when he created the Age of Innocence.
This movie wasn’t your usual Scorsese movie. It was a movie based on the high society. I’m not sure about you guys, but I couldn’t even understand what was going on at first. I wasn’t attached from beginning to end. The movie was just a plain, old movie that college students wouldn’t really find interest in now a days. The reason I feel my classmates and I didn’t really like it is because we are used to Scorsese’s other films. We are used to his every shot action, and his ability to have the audience laughing.
Another reason that I feel made this movie boring was the fact that there was always a fight between the rich people and the poor people. Scorsese’s goal in this movie was to help expand other filmmakers ways of thinking of other cultures and to see the universal connection of our shared humanity. To almost define the poor to the rich.
An interesting thing that I found while reading this article was that this movie was actually postponed for awhile. While Scorsese loved the writing of this movie, it was hard for him to even get it going. It was on and off for years, until Colombia Pictures put money in and got together and pretty good crew. This could have been a red flag for Scorsese, but he went through with it.
Turning over to the breakdowns on why the Age of Innocence didn’t click for me. The editing didn’t match the movie. There were shots that were held for way too long, and then there were shots that could have been stretched out. The bad editing led into the way this movie was lit. I felt there wasn’t much natural lighting. I feel like most of the film was staged, and had lighting for every scene. It gave a dull feeling and made me want to not watch anymore of it. Throughout this movie, I kept looking at the clock, and wondering when this movie was going to be over.
The one thing that did catch my eye throughout the movie was the costumes. The main costume that I found stuck out the most was Mrs. Manson’s costumes. Every scene that involved her, she had a new sweater/jacket on. This was well represented for the time of this movie.
This shocked many of us that Scorsese’s name was even apart of this film. If you would have made me watch this film without knowing that it was Martin Scorsese, I would have never guessed that he directed this movie. From his violent gangster, anti-hero films to suddenly this piece that was on the opposite side of the spectrum for him. Would not recommend to friends or family.
Saunders Says 
I agree. This film was a plain film that did not attempt much raw emotion. That alone could have made the film more interesting to watch. However, I also disagree because the film wasn’t based on high society, it was based on love and where it was.
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I agree that the movie was definitely hard to stay engaged, but I don’t think it’s because we, as college students, are used to his other films. I just think Scorsese could’ve done more, and you point this out when talking about how the editing didn’t really match the film. Good read.
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You made a good point about the story of the film. It is so dry and unappealing to the average moviegoer. I also noticed the costumes and thought they were a highlight of the film like you pointed out. I didn’t notice the editing until you mentioned it. Thinking back, I see there were some scenes that dragged on, but I thought it was because the film was generally boring.
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I agree that “Age of Innocence” was definitely far removed from Scorsese’s usual repertoire of styles, and trying to really get attached to the characters and plot was difficult as a college student. The overall look of the movie was indeed beautiful, especially the costumes as you point out, but wasn’t enough to draw my attention in. I like your review of the movie and the way you structured it.
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I believe that although we are college students we are still able to connect and understand a movie from a different age of time. It just did not work out for this film because it was simply boring. The costumes and shots from the film were appealing but it was just hard to keep focus on the film.
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I also would not have guessed that Scorsese filmed this movie if someone hadn’t of told me. It definitely was a twist but hints of Marty were sprinkled all over the film. The shots, movements, lighting, and New York location all had his name written all over it.
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This film was so boring, I agree. But I like how you still managed to point out some of the highlights, such as the costumes. I think the film was alright, but it’s my least favorite film by Scorsese that I’ve seen.
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I agree with you. I didn’t like the film either. Throughout the movie, the acting just seemed uninspired. I realize the story was supposed to be about high society in the late nineteenth century. The only problem was that they were all rich. There was no real reason to care about the characters.
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