Every Martin Scorsese Film Ranked Worst To Best

Written by frequent collaborator Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull), Bringing Out the Dead might just be Scorsese's most underrated film. Casting the then-untouchable Nic Cage as haunted, depressed paramedic Frank Pierce, Scorsese takes the slow-burn approach to building up his protagonist's mania.

Cage is phenomenal in the role, playing Frank as a tragic, almost hopeless figure lost to the ghosts of those he couldn't save as his mask of sanity begins to drop.

Despite featuring many of the same themes encountered in the far superior Taxi Driver, Bringing Out the Dead's atmospheric darkness works wonders to craft its own searing tale of obsession and grief.

It won't be for everyone, simply because it's so dire and grim - even by Scorsese's standards - and it certainly doesn't break any major ground from a genre standpoint, but for Scorsese purists it's an absolute gem that deserves more praise than it's received over the years.