Raging Bull
Bottom Line: Furious classic.
“You didn’t get me down, Ray.” –Robert De Niro as Jake LaMotta
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Starring: Cathy Moriarty, Frank Vincent, Joe Pesci, Robert De Niro
Martin Scorsese is the motion picture industry’s equivalent to Ludwig van Beethoven. He’ll go as definitively superlative as he can with a production as far as the fashion in which the mood and emotion are presented, as long as in the end it all threads together seamlessly. RAGING BULL is the perfectionistic example of how Scorsese puts his successful style to work. This is the biographical story of Jake LaMotta (Robert De Niro), a middleweight boxer known by his nickname “Raging Bull” in the 1940s and 1950s. This cinematic splendour of a film is a well-acted record of this segment of his life, in which he struggles with his outrageous temper that is raising him to the pinnacle of his career, but is bringing him to an emotionally self-destructive state outside the ring.
The decision to film RAGING BULL in black and white is utterly ingenious. This film is, quite frankly, one of the only films I have seen that I cannot imagine being anything the same in color. Something about this film makes it seem so much like something straight out of the time period in which it is set. That’s impressive, because this film came nearly thirty years after the last point in the story. Even the fight sequences look beautiful under this visual effect. The final fight, though far more brutal than all the others combined, uses the embellishment well. Whereas in a colorization quite a few viewers would be shielding their eyes, the black and white cinematography allows us to focus more on the poignancy of the sequence rather than the violence.
“He ain’t pretty any more.” –Nicholas Colasanto as Tommy Como
Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci are the two key performing highlights of the film. De Niro portrays the furious Jake LaMotta, the film’s primary subject, and Pesci portrays his stubborn brother Joey. Both are magnificently developed characters, and that’s the least I can say. It’s likely that every day, Jake goes to the ring and competes with a different rival. He never knows his opponent, but he’s consistently obligated, let alone paid to beat the living daylights out of him. Ironically, the one Jake seems to truly want to pummel is Joey, who he sees seemingly every time he comes home. We begin to feel Jake’s life eventually, and as the heated arguments and tension build up in the film, we begin to feel our blood burning, as well. It’s the definition of a tour de force performance.
“Come on. Hit me. Harder. Harder.” –Robert De Niro as Jake LaMotta
“What do you want? That is hard. What are you trying to prove?” –Joe Pesci as Joey LaMotta
I’m a sucker for almost any boxing film, and the most likely reason is because I’m NOT a sports fanatic. I always try to avoid sports; this goes with sports films, as well. Boxing is another thing. The sport is so simple that when someone as anti-athletic as me is watching a film about it, it’s a relief to be able to not have to spend minutes trying to figure out what is going on in the sport at the moment, and rather to focus on the more important plot itself. The way the sport is presented here is wonderful. It’s not ROCKY, where career and personal life are two separate opportunities. It’s thematically similar: we get a look at how personal life are two separate opportunities, bounded by one rope–in this case, Jake LaMotta’s temper–that frays and frays until all that is left is a mere thread. RAGING BULL is one of those films that has a few memorable scenes, including its opening and its ending, but the entirety of it is what lingers in the mind of the viewer after it is finished with. A magnificent accomplishment.
I am glad you finally came around to seeing this, and even more glad you gave it an A+. Really great review.
I also just saw Jaws today. I loved it. Will have to add to top 100 movies.
This would probably be in my Top 10 of all time. I’m so glad I so it, too. Thanks for the compliment on my review. I wanted to flow out all my thoughts about the film into one long review, which I guess I did, and I wasn’t sure how it would work out at first. This had me thinking so much; it’s definitely one I would watch again. I was originally planning on watching The Silence of the Lambs today, but my mother wanted to watch it because she hadn’t seen it in a long time, so I guess that one will have to wait till next week. (I can’t wait any longer!!)
So glad you saw Jaws. I was shocked when I read the comment on your blog that said you hadn’t seen it. It’s one of those films so many people think you have to see to be a defined film fanatic. But then again, I have a few classics to see, like The Godfather and almost every film by Ingmar Bergman and Roman Polanski. Have you read the novel it’s based on?? I first saw Jaws about four years ago, maybe five, and ever since then, I’ve been trying to get my hands on Peter Benchley’s source material. I haven’t been scrambling so vigorously now as I was when I first saw it, but now that you’ve reminded me of the film, I think it’s possible I might try and seek out the novel again.
Thanks for commenting, as usual, Alec!
You did a great job on this review, as you do on all of them. I know how you feel. Whenever I write a review on a movie I loved (Drive, and Warrior for an example), I always feel like the words don’t do the movie justice. I look forward to your Silence of the Lambs review. I am glad I saw Jaws, I loved it. You turn to see The Godfather. Oh, and the pleasure is mine on commenting, I get to read an outstanding review.
“Whenever I write a review on a movie I loved (Drive, and Warrior for an example), I always feel like the words don’t do the movie justice.”
I think we all have that problem, don’t we? Sometimes in different ways. I often look back at my reviews and wish I could just cut and paste the entire screenplay/film into the review to share the experiences I’ve had with readers, albeit good or bad experiences. But that’s illegal. Worse, it spoils the fun.
I am most likely going to see The Godfather quite soon. My ‘rents are always hesitant when it comes to letting me watch crime movies (even when they’re from the ’70s), but they finally approved The Godfather just yesterday morning. I might make my horse-obsessed sister watch it with me just for that one scene, haha.
She always stops by and tries to watch movies with me anyway, so I may not even have to try!
I’m glad you love my reviews. It goes the other way around, as well.
Forgot to add: have you heard about the follow up in the works (to Raging Bull)? Like the rumored sequel to Scorsese’s The Departed, it seems like a bit unnecessary, but I still feel interested somehow.
I am not eagerly awaiting the Raging Bull one. I loved this one, and I can’t see a sequel to it. This was a movie that took risks, and have them pay off big time. I may get interested as more details arise though. The Departed is the one that I am a little interested in. I feel that story has more ways it can go. Prequel or sequel.
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The Raging Bull followup is to be a combination of a prequel and a sequel. Scorsese and De Niro are being replaced by two figures I’ve never even heard of. Still, I’m interested to watch…how they screw up. I can’t imagine The Departed with a sequel, but a prequel (or better yet, two prequels, one showing Billy Costigan and the other showing Colin Whatshisname) would be great. As I remember, hadn’t the entire cast been shot down by the end? I’m still dying to give The Departed another watch, just to find a better comprehension of the last scene, where Matt Damon’s character gets shot down while bringing in groceries. Hell, I’m dying to give it another watch just because it’s such a great film!! I think with a lack of so many characters, a SEQUEL to The Departed, as opposed to a prequel, wouldn’t work out as well as a prequel. Just my thoughts I’m throwing out there, but it’s nearly inevitable that I’ll see both the Raging Bull followup and the Departed followup (if and) when they hit theaters. Raging Bull II is set for 2013…my biggest anticipation of next year, personally, is “Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of ‘Psycho’”, a biopic starring a well-known cast as the cast and crew (and, of course, the director) of Psycho.
Masterpiece. Great review.
Thanks! I can see your standpoint already from just your photo, haha.
Definitely one of Scorsese’s and De Niro’s finest achievements. Great review!
Thanks! I’m starting to really enjoy Martin Scorsese. I really want to see Taxi Driver, Cape Fear, Mean Streets, The Color of Money, and Kundun. They look so interesting.
Good review. The acting in this movie is spectacular. And the fight scenes are just gorgeous. I agree that boxing is a sport that even non-sports fans can enjoy, like swimming.
Swimming would be an interesting sport to place as a non-documentary film subject. I can’t recall ever having seen a film about swimming before, but if you could give me some suggestions, that’d be great.
Everything about this film, I thought was phenomenal, especially, as you mentioned, the acting and the fight sequences. 1980 was such a great year for film. It was the year that released some of my absolute favorite films: The Blues Brothers, The Shining, Ordinary People, Airplane!, The Empire Strikes Back, and this. All of which I’d give an A+.
I actually don’t have any swimming film recommendations. I love that sport and I practiced it for about 8 years but I’ve never seen a movie about it.
Wow, that’s a surprise. It just goes to show that people only like team sports [and boxing]. Probably the same reason I’ve never seen a film about skiing or bowling, either.
Want to see a movie about bowling? Watch The Big Lebowski. OK, it’s not really about bowling, but bowling features in it prominently. Plus, you’ll laugh. A lot.
I really, really want to see The Big Lebowski. It looks like so much absurd fun. I’ll try to hunt it down sooner or later.
I just did some research and found eight films about swimming that I’d never heard of
:
http://www.sportsinmovies.com/swimming-movies.asp
I know Swimfan but had no interest in that one. Swimming Upstream with Geoffrey Rush was very popular in my swimming team but it never interested me.
Didn’t know Swimming Upstream had Geoffrey Rush. I may have to watch it, even though I’ve never heard of the subject character
Swimming Upstream is playing tomorrow, and I recalled this mention, so I decided to record it on the DVR. I also recorded The War of the Roses and Flags of Our Fathers.
Nice. I’ve always wanted to see War of the Roses.
Well, my mother and father were both guffawing very hard and shouting, “Oh, that’s a great one!”, when I recorded it, so I’m hoping it will be very funny.
Good review. There aren’t too many flaws in this movie to speak of. Great performances and great directing.
Robert De Niro won his second well-deserved Oscar for this film. He’s flawless in the role.
His performance is a great proof of what great things a little dedication can do. He was so dedicated to his role as Jake LaMotta, he gained 60 pounds(!) to portray him in his years after boxing.