The Alto Knights
Martin Scorseseis one of the greatest living filmmakers , with an inimitable style that ’s altogether his own , but some of his copycat have derive surprisingly close to creating their own Scorsese movie . Whenever a director come along with their own alone style , a lot of copycats incline to keep an eye on . The emergence of Quentin Tarantino leave to a slew of ultraviolent offence thriller throughout the ‘ 90s , fromDobermanntoThings to Do in Denver When You ’re utter . The popularity of Judd Apatow ’s comedies in the 2000s led to an overuse of improvisation across all of flick clowning .
Scorsese ’s fashionable , energetic approach to crime films — with dark humour , voiceover narration , and zippy nonlinear editing — has been emulated by countless movies in the half a hundred he ’s been a renowned voice in cinema . The most late gangster movie to mimic Scorsese ’s expressive style is Barry Levinson’sThe Alto Knights , which castsScorsese ’s go - to lead military man Robert De Niroin not one , but two role , and it comes pretty close to recapturing the unmistakable feel of a Scorsese picture show . And it ’s not the only Scorsese imitator to do so ; moving-picture show likeBoogie NightsandAmerican Madehave deplume it off , too .
10Donnie Brasco
Before Scorsese derive along , mafia movies tended to follow the custom ofThe Godfather . They revolved around the caput honchos at the top of the down and enjoin their story in a classy manner . ButGoodfellasushered in a newfangled epoch of street - degree gangster movies that go around around mid - tier up mobsters who have to do the dirty body of work for the guy at the top of the pile . One of the best Scorsese imitators in this tradition is Mike Newell’sDonnie Brasco . Much like Scorsese ’s crime film , it ’s a contemplative fictional character subject field disguised as a violent mobster movie .
9American Hustle
David O. Russell try his hand at a Scorsese - style crime celluloid withAmerican Hustle . invigorate by the FBI ’s Abscam operation of the recent ‘ 70s and early ‘ fourscore , American Hustlestars Christian Bale and Amy Adams as a pair of fraudsters who reluctantly team up with an FBI agent play by Bradley Cooper to run a involved sting on hunched politicians . American Hustlehas all the makings of a Scorsese movie : a complicated law-breaking saga , a lurch - grim comedic sensibility , a grey-haired feeler to morality , a soundtrack full of authoritative careen — it even has a cameo appearance by De Niro .
8Joker
Todd Phillips ’ book - break away billion - dollar blockbusterJokeris fundamentally a mashup ofTaxi DriverandThe King of Comedy . It ’s a coarse-grained urban vigilante pic , likeTaxi Driver , and it ’s a psychological study of an aspiring comic who lives with his mother , likeThe King of Comedy . Joker ’s geographic expedition of its base is much shallower than Scorsese ’s masterpiece , but cinematographer Lawrence Sher perfectly beguile the seedy underbelly of a crime - ridden metropolis , like Michael Chapman , and Joaquin Phoenix absolutely captures the dark genial gymnastic exercise that run an average man to become a killer , like De Niro .
7Lord Of War
Andrew Niccol’sLord of Waris fundamentally a adaptation ofGoodfellasthat switches out drug trafficking for arm trafficking . It sharesGoodfellas ’ manic cinematic vigour and bare sense of humor , but it orb around a criminal who flummox racy off the sales agreement of weapons around the dissolution of the Soviet Union , not one who gets plenteous off the cocaine trade . Lord of Warexplores a very different illicit manufacture thanGoodfellas , but it explores it in just as much astuteness and with just as much stylistic vitality . It has one of the most memorable orifice sequences in movie story .
6The Alto Knights
The Alto Knightshas all the hallmarks of a Scorsese gangster flick : freeze flesh , voiceover narration , nonlinear storytelling , contemporary acerate leaf - drops on the soundtrack , De Niro in the lead role(s ) , a screenplay by Nicholas Pileggi , and a fascinating true - criminal offense tarradiddle from the mean streets of New York . De Niro play dual roles as puerility friends who grew up to become rival mob boss , one of whom ordered a flub hit on the other . The Alto Knightsdoesn’t have the thoughtful introspection or cruel honesty that make Scorsese ’s syndicate movies so dandy , but it is just as entertaining , well - shot , and darkly hilarious .
5American Made
Doug Liman’sAmerican Madeplays like a more legal action - packed version of a Scorsese crime biopic . Tom Cruise plays Barry Seal , a pilot who became a drug moon curser for the Medellín Cartel and an source for the DEA.Much likeGoodfellas , American Madeuses its expectant - than - living true narrative to research both sides of the law , and the hunky-dory line between good and wickedness . And , much likeGoodfellas , it ’s a wildly entertaining ride that does n’t leave behind its audience bore for a second . It take up some liberties with the historic upshot it depicts , but it ’s a material capital - thousand moving-picture show .
4I, Tonya
Craig Gillespie made the ingenious determination to dramatise Tonya Harding ’s involvement in the assault on Nancy Kerrigan in the style of a Scorsese gangster motion picture . Similar toGoodfellas , I , Tonyahas rapid - pace editing and a healthy dose of glum sense of humor . Harding tells the story as an treacherous teller who breaks the 4th wall . I , Tonyacould’ve easily fallen into the trap of being a irksome , serious true - crime drama , but Gillespie and producer / wiz Margot Robbie took a much more daring approach that made the movie a band more memorable and a mass more entertaining .
3City Of God
The way of life Scorsese captures the condemnable underworld of New York inMean Streets , Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund enamour the deplorable netherworld of Rio de Janeiro inCity of God . Where Scorsese focused on Little Italy inMean Streets , City of Godfocuses on Rio ’s Cidade de Deus suburbia . Much like Scorsese , they do n’t bring the world of unionised crime to the screen through shopworn genre archetype ; their characters are literal , three - dimensional human beings . In chronicle an epic crime saga sweep decennary , Meirelles and Lund use Scorsese ’s theme song fast pacing and energetic editing to keep the narrative momentum go .
2A Bronx Tale
When De Niro made his directorial debut , he take a lot of inspiration from his collaboration with Scorsese . Based on Chazz Palminteri ’s autobiographic drama of the same name , A Bronx Taletells the coming - of - age news report of a young Italian - American man who ’s tear between the mentorship of his severely - work blue - collar pappa and a local mob boss who takes a shine to him . Much like Scorsese ’s crime films , A Bronx Talecaptures the lifestyle of the mafia and the atmosphere of New York with raw authenticity , and it chronicles city - wide tensions and organized crime from a deeply personal place .
1Boogie Nights
After his low - budget indie debutHard Eight , Paul Thomas Anderson get much more ambitious with his second movie . Boogie Nightsis a mega - scale three - hr heroic poem adjust in the adult moving-picture show industry of the 1970s . It has a sprawling ensemble mold , a complex entanglement of plotlines , and a well - rounded world .
Anderson hard channels Scorsese in his focal point ofBoogie Nights . The filmmaking has the fidgety tempo , sweeping camera movements , ever - change soundtrack , and all - over - the - place editing ofGoodfellasandCasino , but the wage hike and fall of Mark Wahlberg ’s pornstar character Dirk Diggler mirror that of boxer Jake LaMotta inRaging Bull . In the last scene ofBoogie Nights , Anderson even includes a direct homage tothe ending ofRaging Bull . Of all the copycat that have essay to mimicMartin Scorsese ’s style , Boogie Nightshas come up the skinny to equal Scorsese ’s bare-ass intensity , thinking - elicit themes , and absolute celluloid .
