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In The Age of Innocence, Scorcece’s film style shines through in his meticulous attention to detail; every aspect of the film is used to convey further meaning to the viewer, as Scorsese curates the mise en scene throughout in order to symbolise or make references to add depth to the film. The recurrent use of freeze frames, coloured lighting and voice over narration distinguish The Age of Innocence as characteristically Scorsesian. Despite departing from the era and subjects of his usual films, The Age of Innocence remains identifiable through the employment of these motifs, in combination with its subject matter. The use of Scorsese’s favoured filmic techniques shape the viewer’s reactions throughout the film and thereby force the audience to contemplate the complex thematic issues presented to them. Masculinity and moral ambiguity are key themes throughout the film; themes that characterise much of Scorsese’s work, as he appears to be drawn to the exploration of these issues as illustrated in his other films, including Goodfellas (1990), Taxi Driver (1976) and The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), which all contain markedly similar subject matter, thereby forming a large part of what makes Martin Scorsese’s films stand out as his own.

Tribality is another prominent thematic aspect shared by these films. In The Age of Innocence, many of the issues created throughout are caused by the tribal culture of the period, which was rife with restrictive social convention and familial obligation. The divisions created between the characters by this tribal mentality is reflected in the film’s mise en scene as Scorsese’s use of lighting, sets and costumes, are used to clearly define the boarders between families and social groups, and consequently enhance the film’s narrative, as they both reflect the personalities of the characters, reinforce to the audience their obligation to their allotted ‘tribe,’ and through this, shape both our opinions of them and attitudes towards them. Ultimately, it is this exacting attention to detail and common curation of filmic techniques and themes form the style that Scorsese has become renowned for.