Mardik Martin
Writing
Biography
Mardik Martin (September 16, 1934 – September 11, 2019) was an American screenwriter of such classics as Mean Streets, New York, New York, and Raging Bull directed by his lifelong friend Martin Scorsese and starring Robert De Niro. Mardik Martin is among the revered screenwriters on the Writers Guild of America's list of 101 Greatest Screenplays. Martin Mardik was born into a family of Armenian genocide survivors that fled to Iran. They later moved to Iraq. Although his family in Iraq was wealthy, he fled the country to avoid the draft and arrived in New York City in a penniless state. In Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, Peter Biskind’s 1998 book on the New Hollywood, the author writes that Martin had to wash dishes to pay his way through NYU, where he met fellow student Martin Scorsese in 1961. The two formed a close friendship and worked together on Scorsese's early projects such as It's Not Just You, Murray! and the semi-autobiographical Season of the Witch, which ultimately became Mean Streets. According to Biskind, "The two young men sat in Martin's Plymouth Valiant and wrote. In the winter, in the cold and snow." Martin also shared writing credits on the Scorsese films New York, New York (with Earl Mac Rauch) and Raging Bull (with Paul Schrader). In 2014, Martin co-wrote the screenplay of the German drama The Cut, which won a special mention by the Young Jury Members of the Vittorio Veneto Film Festival for its director Fatih Akin at the 2014 Venice Film Festival. Martin died of unknown causes on September 11, 2019. He was found dead in his house five days short of his 85th birthday.
Known For
The life of boxer Jake LaMotta, whose violence and temper that led him to the top in the ring destroyed his life outside of it.
Raging Bull
Aspiring comic Rupert Pupkin attempts to achieve success in show business by stalking his idol, a late night talk-show host who craves his own privacy.
The King of Comedy
A small-time hood must choose from among love, friendship and the chance to rise within the mob.
Mean Streets
The untimely death of silent screen star Rudolph Valentino prompts the many women in his past to reminisce about his troubled rise to superstardom.
Valentino
The chronicle of the mind-blowing journey that was Hollywood during the seventies; the true and gripping story of the last golden age of American cinema, an exalted celebration of creativity and experimentation; but also of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll: a turbulent and dark tale of ambition, envy, betrayal, hatred and self-destruction.
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex 'n' Drugs 'n' Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood
An egotistical saxophone player and a young singer meet on V-J Day and embark upon a strained and rocky romance, even as their careers begin a long uphill climb.
New York, New York
Martin Scorsese's documentary intertwines footage from The Band's incredible farewell tour with probing backstage interviews and featured performances by Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, and other rock legends.
The Last Waltz
A Catholic New Yorker falls in love with a girl and wants to marry her, but he struggles to accept her past and what it means for their future.
Who's That Knocking at My Door
Providing behind the scenes footage of the director on set with clips from his own films, Martin Scorsese Directs depicts to riveting effect the way Scorsese brings the written story to life on the big screen. Additional interviews with the likes of Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel, Thelma Schoonmaker, the director’s own parents, and others build a perception of Scorsese that not everybody knows.
Martin Scorsese Directs
The first part of a four-part documentary about the production of "Raging Bull." Collectively Called Raging Bull: FIght Night
Raging Bull: Before the Fight
In 1915 a man survives the Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire, but loses his family, speech and faith. One night he learns that his twin daughters may be alive, and goes on a quest to find them.
The Cut
Filmmaker Martin Scorsese interviews his mother and father about their life in New York and family history back in Sicily.
Italianamerican
The very first full-length documentary on Scorsese offers an invaluable look at how he was perceived by his colleagues, and himself, in 1977. Catching Scorsese while he was in post-production on New York, New York and editing The Last Waltz, British filmmaker Peter Hayden gets the manically hyper Scorsese to comment on his youth, his relation to his lead characters, the making of Mean Streets and most importantly, his approach to direction. The doc doesn’t quite move at the pace of Scorsese’s revved-up speed-talking, but it does offer some real insight into his productivity in the 1970s, thanks to an impressive array of talking heads. Included are Scorsese’s collaborators Jay Cocks, Mardik Martin, Brian De Palma, Steven Prince (who co-produced this doc), and his mentor John Cassavetes. Also the performers, who discuss his working methods in detail — Jodie Foster, Liza Minnelli, and, of course, Robert De Niro.
Movies Are My Life
An intimate portrait of an oft-forgotten character in Hollywood: the screenwriter. Raised in Baghdad, screenwriter Mardik Martin was infused with an early love for movies when he was sent to the U.S. by his family to avoid being drafted into the Iraqi army. Mardik discovered the NYU cinema department, and there he met Martin Scorsese; their friendship would lead to some of the greatest films in American cinema.
Mardik: From Baghdad to Hollywood
Martin Scorsese spends an evening with larger-than-life raconteur Steven Prince—a former drug addict, road manager for Neil Diamond, and actor—as he recounts stories from his colorful life.
American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince
Chris Robinson plays an eyepatched Vietnam vet named Ross Archer, who comes home to find that his wife had left him and become involved with some shady business dealings.
Revenge Is My Destiny
A middle-aged mobster reflects on his rise from bootlegger to success, crediting his longtime friend Joe for his good fortune—unaware that Joe has been betraying him all along, both in business and at home.
It's Not Just You, Murray!
A short documentary about the making of Martin Scorsese's debut feature.