While Martin Scorsese continues to weigh his pre-strike options on the dramatic feature side of things (and Devin forwarded me a doozey of a rumor that may have a shred of truth to it, but confirmation has proved elusive), he’s just announced his intention to direct a documentary on the life of George Harrison. With the cooperation of Harrison’s widow Olivia, Scorsese will piece together a history of the baby Beatle encompassing his work with the greatest rock-and-roll band of all time, his solo efforts (including the majestic All Things Must Pass), his immersion in Eastern philosophy, "The Concert for Bangladesh" and, one hopes, the production of Shanghai Surprise (via Harrison’s Handmade Films).
Scorsese will edit the currently untitled documentary with David Tedeschi, who teamed with the director on the excellent No Direction Home: Bob Dylan and the as-yet-unreleased Shine a Light, which examines the profound cultural ramifications of a sixtysomething Mick Jagger grinding his crotch into Christina Aguilera’s ass. Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are "expected" to participate (it’s not like they’ve any reason to abstain), while the documentary will evidently be several years in the assembling.
Now that Scorsese is unburdened by the "hasn’t won an Oscar" stigma (as if that was a legitimate burden in the first place), I wouldn’t mind seeing him backburner the drama stuff in favor of more music docs. No Direction Home is more recognizably Scorsese than anything he’s done since Bringing Out the Dead (which was a total through-the-motions exercise). Hunkering down in an editing bay with Tedeschi seems to be bringing out the best in the master; speaking as a fan, Marty, please keep it coming.