Even the greatest directors have their off days. Martin Scorsese’s lesser films, however, are still far better than most of his peers’ best efforts. This is largely due to the extremely high standard he has set for himself. With masterpieces like Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The King of Comedy, Goodfellas, and Casino, anything that doesn’t reach that level can still be very good without matching his finest work.
Movies such as Gangs of New York, The Color of Money, Cape Fear, and The Aviator are generally well-received, though they tend to polarize audiences when compared to his most iconic titles. While opinions vary, they often don’t reach the legendary status of his best films.
Despite every Scorsese film being at least decent, Mel Brooks has a clear favorite for the lowest-ranked movie in the director’s career. Brooks, an EGOT-winning legend and creator of The Producers and Blazing Saddles, shared his thoughts in a conversation with The AV Club.
“The only reason I won two consecutive ‘Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series’ Emmys for my guest role on the sitcom Mad About You was because ‘I’m Mel Brooks.’”
Brooks recognizes the quality of Scorsese’s work but knows which film he considers the weakest, though he never harshly criticized any of them.
Mel Brooks respects Martin Scorsese's films overall but identifies one as his weakest, acknowledging the director’s high standards and consistent quality.
Would you like me to highlight which specific Scorsese film Brooks considered the worst, if that information is available?