Never compromises it's beauty; never compromises its ferocity.

Rating: 10/10 (7 July 2006)

Most Martin Scorcese fans will remember him for his 1990 film Goodfellas. Others believe that his greatest achievement lies within the confines of Taxi Driver. And then there are other fans, who fall into another camp, one that will always remember the genius that he exuded on another film. That film is Raging Bull, his most poignant and beautiful, yet unrelenting, film.
Paul Schrader's superlative script gives us insight into the life of Jake La Motta, played by Robert De Niro. De Niro puts forth bestial nature of the boxer so brilliantly and puts forth so much effort to become him; he even gained sixty pounds for the later scenes! To only praise De Niro would be a crime, though. Joe Pesci holds his own against the titanic De Niro and provides an antagonistic camaraderie toward him. Cathy Moriarty, who plays La Motta's wife Vickie, is perfect and acts as a voice of reason against La Motta's paranoid delusions.
Raging Bull is violent and vicious, yet somehow there is a great beauty attached to it. The black and white cinematography is amazing, with its long takes and shots. The boxing matches are the best ever filmed, making the sport seem akin to ballet. The animal sounds thrown in to some of the fights reminds us of the brutality of the sport, and of La Motta. But some of the beauty would not be achieved without the music from Pietro Mascagni's opera Cavalleria Rusticana. This extends Bull to operatic heights.
I love Goodfellas, even though it is a little overrated; I like Taxi Driver, even though it is overrated too. However, Raging Bull exceeds all expectations and becomes Scrosese's best film. Bull is the best film of 1980, the best film of the 80s, and probably the best film of all time. Scorsese presented a masterpiece that has not been matched since its release. And to think that he didn't even want to direct it because it was a "boxing movie!" Thank God (or really thank Scorsese) that this extraordinary director managed to helm Raging Bull.