A Letter to Elia

After a year of having it on my DVR, I finally watched this "American Masters" document just now along with the short Reflections on Kazan which followed it. Martin Scorsese co-wrote, co-directed, and appears telling how much film director Elia Kazan meant to him from childhood on to his first meeting with him when he was a guest speaker at New York University where Marty was a student in 1964. Especially being discussed are On the Waterfront and East of Eden, both of which resonated so personally with him. Quite touching is A Letter to Elia and highly recommended to followers of both. In Reflections on Kazan, actors Alec Baldwin, Al Pacino, Ellen Burstyn, and Robert De Niro who appeared in Elia's The Last Tycoon, among others discuss the director's unique methods and his demeanors and attitudes. Both films touch on his naming names during the Communist witch hunts. Also highly recommend. Makes me want to watch or rewatch many of the movies that were showcased...

Letter to Elia, A (2010)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

This Martin Scorsese directed film isn't so much a documentary but instead, as the title says, a letter from one director to another. Throughout the running time Scorsese makes such comments as Kazan shaped his life in terms of film and even calls him a father figure. Towards the end of the film Scorsese also mentions that even though he became friends with Kazan he was never really able to explain to him what his movies really meant and what impact they had on his life. So, since he could never express it to Kazan himself, we get this film instead. This isn't a complete look at the career of Kazan as several films are overlooked. Instead, we get some terrific comments from Scorsese who talks about some of his favorite movies from the legendary director. ON THE WATERFRONT and EAST OF EDEN are the two films that get the majority of the running time. I really enjoyed hearing Scorsese's comments on ON THE WATERFRONT because it's obvious the impact this film had on him and you can see this in countless movies from the director. Just listen to the way Scorsese talks about the people in the movie, the look of the sets and of course the way Kazan tried to be as real as possible. You can then look at GOODFELLAS, it's characters and the look of that film and see that Scorsese was going for the same thing. The EAST OF EDEN comments are also very interesting including Scorsese talking about Dean and the impact of the film's story on him. Fans of either Scorsese or Kazan should certainly check out this love letter between one master to another.

First off let's take a moment to talk about the criticism of Kazan's actions during the blacklist and get that out of the way. Kazan is considered by the top directors in the world to be the best of all of them for good reason, but no discussion of Kazan can leave out some issues arising from the the HUAC -- and the cultural context. Let me just say that as a lifelong fan of Peter Greenaway I made it a point to see the premier of his "Eisenstein in Guanajuato" (Greenway has an upcoming "Eisenstein in Hollywood" as well). It is interesting that one of the actors I saw gushing to the press about that film and Eisenstein in general, was one of the nastiest critics of Kazan getting the honorary Oscar in 1999. Excuse me, but Kazan named 8 names -- of Stalin lovers like Trumbo when Stalin aficionados were were no different than Nazis -- while Eisenstein fawned over Stalin, worked directly with the KGB and its predecessor organ, and betrayed moderate socialists and communists and got them KILLED. Eisenstein was a great director -- AND an active participant in murder of dissidents, as well as jailing and torture off artists in the USSR -- quite of few of whom he secretly denounced to the KGBd knowing they would not be blacklisted - but subject to violence, imprisonment and often death. From the Soviet archives released after 1999 brouhaha with Kazan, we now know for a fact that two of the people Kazan named were in fact direct soviet agents, not just people who went to a meeting or two, but people who were collecting blackmail against others for the benefit of the KGB and directly working with the KGB. Kazan harmed the career path of people who were stalinists. What he did was no different than than "doxing"/naming Nazis. What Eisenstein did was hlp the KGB murder people, yet Eisenstein's participation in politics of totalitarianism is never fully told.

So let's face facts. There is a clear double standard. Modern Hollywood celebrates artists who adored Stalin, and quite a few who directly worked for that evil apparatus vs and people like Kazan, whose sins, if they were even sins, were trivial in comparison.

As to the rest of this film, Scorsese acknowledgement of the influence and inspiration of Kazan is instructive and inspirational for all film lovers. Scorsese touches on the dual incredible sensitive of Kazan as an artist, creator, and his incredible understanding and portrayal of the human condition combined with his perseverance that allowed him to survive. One hour is a very short time to cover Kazan's accomplishments. I suggest Kazan's own award winning and brutally honest autobiography, but Scorsese's love letter is a good start.