Mickey Rourke's Raging Bull

Rating: 10/10 (22 February 2009)

Randy 'The Ram' Robinson (Mickey Rourke), once a former big name in the sport but now long past his prime.the camera follows Randy around as he conducts his business, giving us ample views of the back of his head with its long mane of bleach-blond hair. However a picture surely emerges of a dedicated loser, living on the edges of past glories, the law of diminishing returns eating into him minute by minute. Randy is now relegated to the small-time independent circuit and the measly handful of dollar bills he collects for a bout won't stretch to paying the rent on his trailer home - or maybe that's because he spends too much of it on booze and his favorite lap dancer, Cassidy (Marisa Tomei),in her most 'revealing' performance to date! down at his local club. Randy is alone in the world and his only family is his daughter, Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood), who has such a mountain of issues with her father that she can't stand the sight of him. Clearly Randy has reached some kind of a watershed moment: he's getting too old for his chosen game but what else can he do? Hopefully Mickey Rourke land's himself an Oscar