...Unprecedented

Rating: 10/10 (8 August 2016)

If I had to describe this movie in one word, that word would be 'striking'.
The world is crazy, and for the time being, it's only going to get crazier. When it gets to be too much, I sit in my bed, turn off all external stimuli, and remind myself that I have somehow, some way gotten to live at a place and time where I can watch movies like Raging Bull.
I kick myself for not having seen this sooner. It can be argued that Scorsese has made more great films than any other filmmaker, but this is his greatest. It is one of the greatest films I have ever seen. De Niro delivers his best-ever acting job, and the other actors play their parts, but this is Scorsese's vision through and through.
It is based off the story of Jake LaMotta, a former middleweight champion boxer famous for his toughness and turbulent life outside the ring, but it does not fall victim to any of the typical fallings of 'true story' movies. There is no crass sentimentalism or pseudo-wisdom. It is filthy, violent, experimental, and operatic.
Many of Scorsese's movies are based off real events or people, but none feel as original and dynamic as this film. Had I never heard of LaMotta, I'd be likely to say he was a fictional character made up by Scorsese. Without changing anything about the man's life, Scorsese has made it his own.
If a pirate kidnapped you, stuck you on a deserted island that somehow had electricity and a DVD player, and held out every Scorsese movie ever made, asking you to pick one... choose Raging Bull. This is prime Scorsese. No one else would even think of attempting a film like that. Scorsese mends the very boundaries of art to his will.
Who other than Scorsese would stop the film midway through to speed ahead five years not by a means of a simple time skip but an elaborate montage contrasting highly stylized boxing action with lighthearted shots of the LaMotta family that are the only colored parts of this film.
Yes, the film is in black and white, and it is better for it. Intense films are better in black and white than in color. While I don't agree with those who say film as a whole is better in black and white, the modern black and white films I have see have looked better than almost any color films. The sorts of directors who would consider making a black and white film long after the medium went out of style know when it's appropriate and when it enhances the experience. For reference, see Schindler's List and Memento By the way, I would have loved to see a black and white MM:FR. It would probably be one of my five favorite films of all time.
As for this film, it is firmly in my top 50. Maybe it'll even make it into my top 30. It's one of the greatest films of the decade. Note the contrast between the ring scenes and the outside-the-ring scenes. The ring scenes are stylized and electric. They pull out all the tricks in Scorsese's toolbox, and if there's one thing Scorsese is best at, it's drawing from everything done throughout the history of cinema while adding his own tricks, so that toolbox is mighty full. The boxing scenes in Rocky are fun, but they are child's play compared to this. The fights are atemporal. Time slows down and speeds up with the flow of the fight. It's much more like what is happening inside the fighter's mind than what is physically going on in the ring. Also present are the bright flashes of old-fashioned cameras, which Scorsese would once more rely on in The Aviator. Again, LaMotta's mental state during these fights make the bulbs stick out more than they otherwise should have.
The outside-the-ring scenes, however, utilize long takes. If it weren't so gritty and profanity-laced, I might be fooled for a couple minutes into thinking I'm watching a Woody Allen movie. When the film snaps back to the ring scenes, it's both startling and exhilarating.
As a piece of filmmaking, Raging Bull is unparalled. It's a marvel to watch. This is a film I'd love even if I had to listen to it in an unknown language. It also avoids Scorsese's 'weakness', if you can call it that, which is overemphasizing technical and stylistic marvel over genuine emotion. Here, technical side of the film, as well as the film's lofty, epic ambitions, flow perfectly into its emotional core.
This film left me stunned and astonished. Perhaps the word masterpiece is used too often these days. I'm indifferent on the issue. But even if it is, this is one of the films truly worth of that lofty title. In many ways, it is the pinnacle of American filmmaking.