Raging Bull

The Man Outside The Ring

Director: Martin Scorsese

Release Date: 1980

Rating: 18

Running Time: 129 mins

Genre: Biography/Drama/Sport
Starring: Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci, Cathy Moriarty

"If you win, you win. If you loose, you still win."

When people  think of Martin Scorsese they usually tend to associate him with the crime and gangster genre of cinema, ('Goodfellas', 'Casino', 'The Departed', 'Mean Streets') and because of that they look over the other brilliant films he's made, it makes you wonder what made him choose a sports film at all.  I find Scorsese's films to go deeper than just a singular genre and more often than none, they turn out to be more along the lines of biographical dramas oppose to just full out gangster mob movies. Scorsese stands out to me as a director who's able to capture the harsh realities of life and therefore doesn't necessarily always deliver the happy endings that most audiences usually hope to see. In that sense I see Scorsese as quite a bold risk taker in terms of delivering different and gritty stories about troubled and exceptional people.

Until I saw Raging Bull, I had absolutely no interest in boxing what so ever, if anything I found the concept barbaric and hard to grasp, no need to say  that I was slightly apprehensive when I came to watching Raging Bull. Nevertheless I found it hard to turn down a film directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Robert DeNiro. I had never heard of Jake LaMotta before and I didn't realise when I came to watching it that 'Raging Bull' was infact a biographical film about the boxers life, but I stuck with it all the same having heard such great things about it prior, and I have to say that my opinion of boxing was changed. Whist watching the film, Scorsese still managed to captivate me in much the same way as 'Mean Streets' and 'Taxi Driver' were able to (the two films that Scorsese directed and collaborated with DeNiro prior to 'Raging Bull'). 

Filmed in high contrast black and white, the film starts out with Jake LaMotta being cheated out of winning a fight against Jimmy Reeves in 1941 causing major controversy at that time for fans of boxing. However, despite not really believing in himself both in the ring and outside it with his suffering marriage, LaMotta is spurred on by his brother and manager Joey LaMotta (Joe Peci: 'Goodfellas', 'Casino') and continues to fight. Along the way Jake also meets 15 year old Vickie who he very quickly falls in love with, and despite already being married the two form a very strong relationship. The film follows the highs and lows of LaMotta's life; his career inside the ring and his relationships outside of the ring as well with Vickie and his brother Joey. 'Raging Bull' is able to deliver a gritty and hard hitting side to LaMotta that fans may never have seen before. Scorsese and DeNiro are able to potray an extraordinary (and slightly dramatised) adaptation of the boxers life both during and after the fighting that still intrigues audiences today.

For me, 'Raging Bull' is one of Martin Scorsese and Robert DeNiro's best collaborations and moreover, perhaps one of the best films of both of their careers. Whether you're a fan of boxing or not, it's still definitely one to check out as it's a true masterpiece.

Overall: 8/10