Rio’s CCBB Begins 2019 With a Martin Scorsese Retrospective

By Jack Arnhold, Contributing Reporter

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – From this Wednesday, January 2nd, until Monday, January 28th, movie fans in Rio will be treated to a showcase of one of the great American film-makers, Martin Scorsese.

This exhibition, featuring 33 films (including 25 feature films) will span over five decades of the director’s career, from his 1963 short, ‘What’s a Nice Girl Like You Doing in a Place Like This?’ to his latest feature film, 2016’s ‘Silence.’

“Martin Scorsese is undoubtedly one of the greatest directors of cinema in the world.” comment the curators of the CCBB’s latest cinematic exhibition, José de Aguiar and Marina Pessanha. “We have always been astonished that there has never been a retrospective about his work in Brazil.”

They continue, “This exhibition is a way to pay off this debt, displaying for the first time a rich selection of his films. We hope this will reveal to the Brazilian public the greatness of this iconic filmmaker and film buff who has done so much, and continues to do so much, for world cinema.”

While the exhibition will bring together many of Scorsese’s most famous and best-loved films, such as 1980’s ‘Raging Bull,’ 1990’s ‘Goodfellas’ and 2006’s ‘The Departed,’ there will also be a chance for movie buffs to catch some of his lesser-shown works, such as 1972’s ‘Boxcar Bertha,’ as well as four of his early short films, including 1967’s ‘The Big Shave,’ which won the director his first major award, a ‘Prix de l’Age d’Or.’

Proceedings will get underway at 3PM on Wednesday, January 2nd, with a screening of the documentary ‘Il Mio Viaggio in Italia’ (My Journey to Italy) that charts the director’s own personal voyage through the history of Italian cinema. This will be followed by a screening of the director’s 1967 feature-length debut, ‘Who’s That Knocking at My Door,’ at 7:30PM.

‘Who’s That Knocking at My Door,’ was the beginning of the director’s first serial collaboration with an actor, Harvey Keitel, who went on to feature in four more Scorcese films, including the director’s breakout movie, 1973’s ‘Mean Streets.’

Scorcese’s most famous serial collaboration has been with Robert De Niro, who has featured in eight of the director’s films, including 1991’s ‘Cape Fear,’ 1995’s ‘Casino,’ and 1982’s ‘The King of Comedy,’ all of which are being shown by CCBB in this retrospective.

On Wednesday, January 16th, there will be a three-day short course given by Luiz Carlos Oliveira Júnior, Assistant Professor of Communications and Arts at the University of São Paulo. Day two of the course will take place on Thursday, January 17th with the final day of the course following on Friday, January 18th; the course will begin at 2PM on each day.

There will also be a debate about Scorsese on Thursday, January 24th, mediated by the co-curator of the retrospective, Marina Pessanha.

What: ‘Scorsese no CCBB RJ’
When: Wednesday, January 2nd to Monday, January 28th; screening and event times vary
Where: Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil Rio de Janeiro, Rua Primeiro de Março, 66 – Centro
Entrance: R$5 – R$10, unless marked ‘sessão gratuita’ (free entry); tickets available one hour before at the box office