The Best Film Of My Lifetime

Rating: Null/10 (13 May 1999)

Martin Scorsese's "Raging Bull" is without a doubt the most engaging and remarkable films I have ever seen.
From its opening credits as DeNiro (as LaMotta) dances, throwing jabs, in slo-mo, we're drawn into this richly textured story.
Seen from only LaMotta's point of view, the film is tough on the soul. We've all known someone like LaMotta. A man, who seemingly has all the luck in the world, yet has many demons that he can't fight off, in or out of the ring.
As the film opens, LaMotta is in a marriage that is going nowhere fast and he feels trapped and unhappy. Upon his introduction to Vicki (executed to perfection by Cathy Moriarty) his look on life changes. His budding boxing career is beginning to take off, yet out of the ring, as he views his young wife from a distance, she floats in slo-mo and gazes by hungry men don't go unseen by LaMotta. This only further fuels his jealousy.
The rest of the film is like this, a slow decent into LaMotta's own private hell, and then salvation.
Enough good things can't be said about the richly textured story that Scorsese and his co-writer Paul Schrader created from Jake LaMotta's autobiography of the same title. The film is dark, hard to watch, and yet still very redeeming.
'For once I was blind and now I can see'
In more ways than one, this passage from the Holy Bible that stands at the end of this film says everything and then nothing.
"Raging Bull" is the best film I have ever seen.