10 Underrated Films By Amazing Directors

While his partnership with Robert De Niro goes together like butter on bread or milk in tea, Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro don’t always hit the big time as is evident with The King of Comedy.

The film follows the story of Rupert Pupkin an aspiring comedian and performer, trying to hit the big time, as he begins to stalk his hero Jerry Langford. What proceeds, is a story of madness, comedy and tragedy as Pupkin’s delusion is played out in full.

After the runaway success of Raging Bull, Scorsese had considered retiring from films altogether to focus on making documentaries instead, but at the behest of Robert De Niro and his own interest in developing The Last Temptation of Christ, Scorsese returned with The King of Comedy.

While it wasn’t the sort of success that he would later find, The King of Comedy is a true dive into the world of celebrity worship, with its final scene, standing up as a truly tragic, yet beautiful scene.

The story itself has inspired countless films since, not least the upcoming DC film Joker, which De Niro will also be appearing and that Scorsese was at one point producing.

It may not be his most well-known (otherwise it wouldn’t be in this list), but The King of Comedy is worth the price of admission on its own and should be a must-watch for any Scorsese or De Niro fan.