One Of The Greatest Films Ever Made. An Excellent,Powerful And Unforgettable Masterpiece From Martin Scorsese And Robert De Niro

Rating: 10/10 (1 August 2014)

Raging Bull is one of the greatest films ever made,an excellent,powerful and unforgettable Masterpiece of cinema that combines amazing direction,powerful acting,beautiful music and stunning photography. All of those elements make Raging Bull Martin Scorsese,Robert De Niro and Film making at their best.
Based on the book of the same name and set from the 1940s to the 1960s,Raging Bull tells the true story of Jake LaMotta(Robert De Niro),a middleweight Boxer who is successful and rising to the top in the Boxing ring and wants to become the middleweight champion of the world. While Jake is doing well in the ring his personal life and troubled relationships with his wife Vicki(Cathy Moriarty)and brother Joey(Joe Pesci)lead to Jake's rise and fall in and out of the ring.
Released in 1980,Raging Bull despite being a modest Box Office success and receiving eight Academy Award nominations and winning two for best actor(Robert De Niro)and Best editing(Thelma Shoonmaker)received mixed reviews from critics because the violence and language and lost the Oscars for Best Picture and Director to Robert Redford's Ordinary People which is a fine film in it's own right. But overtime Raging Bull is now seen as a masterpiece and not only one of the greatest films ever made but also the greatest film of the 1980s. Right from it's terrific opening credits and first scene,Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull is a brilliant and powerful masterpiece on so many levels from the acting,direction and everything else is one the main reasons I love cinema so much. The movie is a great combination biopic,sports drama and art film giving viewers a movie that is both beautiful and ugly as well as brutal and harsh at the same time. Raging Bull was one of the last if not the last great film that came from the New Hollywood era that lasted from the late 60s into the 1970s even though the movie was released in 1980. The Black and White photography by Michael Chapman is fantastic,visually stunning and truly adds to the film giving the movie an accurate and stylish look to the 1940s and 50s as well the scenes inside and out of the Boxing ring. Chapman also uses smoke and lighting to great effect not giving the movie an incredible atmosphere but reflecting the characters state of mind. What also makes Raging Bull an outstanding film is the editing by Scorsese veteran Thelma Schoonmaker. The editing by Schoonmaker is sensational because we get freeze frames,fast cuts which give the movie a great pace and quickness that was ahead of it's time and holds up years later. The Boxing scenes in Raging Bull are thrilling,amazing and some of the bloodiest and most graphic Boxing scenes ever caught on film and directed with terrific skill,detail with Actions and sound effects and when every punch is thrown you not only hear the punches you feel them as well and there is devastating impact with each of the fight scenes. What I also love about each of the Boxing scenes is that all of them have a different tone and style with Scorsese mixing realism and exaggeration. The violence in Raging Bull is shocking and at times horrific and will disturb viewers but the violence fits with the movie's tone and spirit. Although the movie has Boxing the movie is more about the man Jake LaMotta than his profession. The portrayal of Jake LaMotta will obviously divide viewers when they watch the film because on one hand we feel sorry for Jake and some of the things he has to endure but on the other hand viewers will dislike Jake because of his abuse to his wife and self-destructive ways bringing his brutality outside of the ring. We also see Jake brought down by his own insecurities and paranoia which makes his rise and fall much more tragic. One of the reasons Raging Bull is amazing because it's not really a Boxing but more of a character study. The ending of Raging Bull is amazing and memorable because it gives Jake LaMotta a new beginning that is optimistic and positive. Will you feel differently about Jake LaMotta at the end? The movie greatly asks viewers that question and makes viewers answer the question themselves. A terrific and unforgettable ending.
The cast is amazing. Robert De Niro is excellent in one of finest acting performances in film history and gives his greatest performance as Jake LaMotta,with De Niro bringing emotion,intensity and anger to his Oscar winning role role. Cathy Moriarty is terrific,beautiful and sexy and Vicki LaMotta,Jake's second wife and holds her own against De Niro and Pesci. Joe Pesci is brilliant and fiery as Joey LaMotta,Jake's younger brother and has great scenes with De Niro. Frank Vincent is wonderful as Salvy,Joey's friend. Nicolas Colasanto is outstanding as Tommy Como,a Mob Boss that wants to help Jake. Mario Gallo(Mario),Theresa Saldana(Lenore)and Lori Anne Flax(Irma)give good performances as well.
The direction by Martin Scorsese is brilliant,powerful and some of best directing in movie history,with Scorsese using zooms,wide,high and low angle shots,a great tracking shot,close ups and use of slow motion while doing an amazing with the Boxing scenes. Outstanding direction,Scorsese.
The classic music by Pietro Mascagni is beautiful,mesmerizing and memorable and fits with the images and tone of the movie. Great music.
In final word,if you love Martin Scorsese,Robert De Niro or movies in general,I highly suggest you see Raging Bull,an excellent,brilliant and unforgettable masterpiece of cinema that deserves to be in every movie lover's collection. Highly Recommended. 10/10.