Leading American filmmaker Martin Scorsese's entry in the BFI's "The Century of Cinema" series is three-part, 235-minute odyssey. Showing the same mastery of the documentary form as he has of fictional narratives, he chronicles his self-discovery as a filmmaker, using as touchstones both Hollywood masterworks and unsung B-movies. At the same time, he examines the central conflict in American cinema: the director's need to reconcile his role as a team player with his own personal expression.

Leading American filmmaker Martin Scorsese's entry in the BFI's "The Century of Cinema" series is three-part, 235-minute odyssey. Showing the same mastery of the documentary form as he has of fictional narratives, he chronicles his self-discovery as a filmmaker, using as touchstones both Hollywood masterworks and unsung B-movies. At the same time, he examines the central conflict in American cinema: the director's need to reconcile his role as a team player with his own personal expression.