Martin Scorsese, the master of gangland classics, comes to the Port Eliot Festival

Martin Scorsese – for many a director synonymous with gritty New York mob films of crime, machismo and corrupt protagonists – has somewhat more of a tranquil backdrop for his latest role as curator of the Paradiso Outdoor Cinema series at the Cornish Port Eliot Festival (21 – 24 July).

This event, traditionally a literary festival, is now in its ninth year and takes over the ancient estate of Port Eliot in St Germans, Cornwall, with an eclectic and inspiring celebration of words, music, film, food, fashion, art and nature.

Festival goers can relax under the stars in the breathtaking gardens or even in one of the specially designed Cadillac cars, to enjoy a series of double-bill film classics chosen by Scorsese to complement the festival’s themes: train films feature Sidney Lumet's 1974 classic Murder on the Orient Express alongside Hitchock's unforgettable North by Northwest; for literary adaptations Visconti's The Leopard is paired with Renoir's earlier film The River. Film noir-wise, The Narrow Margin (1952) by Richard Fleischer is shown with Fritz Lang's Human Desire, and musical fans will be pleased to see Powell & Pressburger's vintage The Red Shoes (1948) together with All About Eve (1950) by Joseph L. Mankiewicz.

North by Northwest, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint and James Mason

This selection of archive films is testament to Scorsese’s status as a respected film historian as well as director, screenwriter, producer and actor. He is one of the most influential figures in the film industry and there will also be discussions of Scorsese’s own work between the screenings, chaired by the author and film critic Tom Shone.

"Thanks to the strength of his visceral gangland dramas, Scorsese is very often portrayed as being married to the mob," Shone told Phaidon. "The variety of his film selection for the Port Eliot Festival shows how prismatic and eclectic his influences actually are. They remind us that the director of Taxi Driver and Goodfellas has also directed a musical, several period epics, an adaptation of Edith Wharton and a life of the Dalai Lama. Hollywood is not renowned for its sense of history, or indeed much memory of anything that happened before last Friday. Scorsese provides it with both a memory and a conscience. His Port Eliot selections confirm his status as the head curator of our collective movie memories," added Shone.

Don't miss your chance to experience the best of classic cinema hand-picked by Scorsese, in this truly unique environment at the Port Eliot Festival.