Brilliance...sheer brilliance.

Rating: 9/10 (24 June 2006)

And that's the best way to sum up this breathtaking film. Not only does Robert De Niro give his absolute best performance of his career, but Scorsese's direction is perhaps the greatest of his storied career as well. This film manages to strike a nerve with the audience and come off as incredibly unique because of not only the films different take on the classic narrative structure, but the gritty black and white add a sense of surrealness to the entire picture, making it seem like a gritty nightmare. The boxing scenes are probably the greatest to ever be photographed, and perhaps the most brutal. Joe Pesci chimes in with HIS best performance of his career as well. However, make no mistake, while this is a brilliant piece of art, it's still not the best boxing film to ever be made; that honor goes to Rocky. I will however say, that this is perhaps the best movie to ever be made ABOUT a boxer.