Raging Bull

Release Year: 1980

Director: Martin Scorsese

Review: A film about a troubled boxer.  It has been done so many times, but probably never done as well as in 'Raging Bull'.  With Scorsese directing and DeNiro acting there is always a possibility for greatness.  The pair put everything into this film and it shows.  

The acting by DeNiro is astounding.  His physical transformation alone is startling and his outbursts of rage are captivating.  The visual style which Scorsese employs makes the film.  The unique filming style of the fight scenes, going inside the ring with the fighters, showing the brutality of the sport, gives you a tangible feeling for the kind of man Jake LaMotta is.  His moniker fits him.  A man who feeds off of pain, fueling his rage.  The indelible scene of the later Jake LaMotta, in a jail cell punching a wall in anger, shows that even as a shell of his former self, that rage is still there.  

This is a tragic tale more than anything.  As referenced in the film, comparisons can be made to 'On the Waterfront'.  Unlike Brando's Terry Malloy, LaMotta had his shot.  He had everything, and he has no one to blame for what happened in his life but himself.   In the end this isn't really about boxing, but about a jealous man, who lets his issues of trust completely derail his life. It's a stark look at an explosive, yet enthralling fighter, which breaks the mold of a biopic creating a masterwork of its type.
Rating: 5/5