5. Camera Doesn't Stop Moving in First 10 Minutes
Scorsese has always been a avid supporter of using cinematic language to tell his tales, but when the feedback of Casino’s test screenings fell on his lap, Scorsese knew he had to do some restructuring, predominately on narrative but also on his choice of shots.
After adding more voice-over, Scorsese believed the overall pacing for the opening ten minutes lost its impact. With his long-serving editor Telma Schoonmaker, they re-structured a lot of the opening montage. They selected shots that featured a ton of camera coverage, whip pans, tracking shots and punch-ins. After splicing them all together, they managed to recapture the energy whilst maintaining the sense of explanation of who these wiseguys were. It flows seamlessly and captures the world of excess that is subversively thrown at us in a seductive way, but if you watch carefully, the camera never stops moving (occasionally for a quick beat) throughout its ten minute opening.
