Martin Scorsese says he is done trying to make a film on the life of Frank Sinatra.
The director, who has done so much to promote the music of the last century through documentaries and concert films, talked recently with Canada’s Sun Media, telling them that he just can’t get the picture made. “We can’t do it! I think it is finally over. They (remaining members of the Sinatra clan) won’t agree to it. Open it up again and I’m there!”
He went on to say it was the darker and more controversial parts of Sinatra’s life that kept the family from agreeing. “Certain things are very difficult for a family, and I totally understand. But, if they expect me to be doing it, they can’t hold back certain things. The problem is that the man was so complex. Everybody is so complex — but Sinatra in particular.”
Among Scorsese’s music-oriented projects are The Band’s The Last Waltz, the PBS series The Blues, the Rolling Stones concert film Shine a Light, George Harrison: Living in the Material World and the TV series Vinyl.