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'''''Raging Bull''''' is a 1980 American [[Biographical film|biographical]] [[Sports film|sports]] [[Drama (film and television)|drama film]] directed by [[Martin Scorsese]] and starring [[Robert De Niro]], [[Joe Pesci]], [[Cathy Moriarty]], [[NicholasTheresa ColasantoSaldana]], [[TheresaFrank SaldanaVincent]], and [[FrankNicholas VincentColasanto]] in his final film role. The film is an adaptation of former [[middleweight]] boxing champion [[Jake LaMotta]]'s 1970 memoir ''[[Raging Bull: My Story]]''. It follows the career of LaMotta, played by De Niro, his rise and fall in the boxing scene, and his turbulent personal life beset by rage and jealousy.
 
Scorsese was initially reluctant to develop the project, though he eventually came to relate to LaMotta's story. [[Paul Schrader]] re-wrote [[Mardik Martin]]'s first screenplay, and Scorsese and De Niro together made uncredited contributions thereafter. Pesci was an unknown actor prior to the film, as was Moriarty, whom Pesci suggested for her role. During [[principal photography]], each of the boxing scenes was choreographed for a specific visual style and De Niro gained approximately {{convert|60|lb|kg}} to portray LaMotta in his later post-boxing years. Scorsese was exacting in the process of [[Post-production|editing and mixing]] the film, expecting it to be his last major feature.
 
''Raging Bull'' premiered in New York City on November 14, 1980, and was released in theaters on December 19, 1980. The film had a lukewarm box office of $23.4 million against its $18 million budget. The film received mixed reviews upon its release; while De Niro's performance and the editing were widely acclaimed, it garnered criticism due to its violent content. Despite the mixed reviews, the film was nominated for eight [[Academy Awards]] at the [[53rd Academy Awards]] (tying with ''[[The Elephant Man (film)|The Elephant Man]]'' as the most nominated film of the ceremony), including [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]] and [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]], and won two: [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] for De Niro (his second Oscar) and [[Academy Award for Best Film Editing|Best Editing]].
 
After its release, ''Raging Bull'' went on to garner high critical praise, and is now considered one of the [[List of films considered the best|greatest films ever made]]. In 1990, it became the first film to be selected in its first year of eligibility for preservation in the United States [[National Film Registry]] by the [[Library of Congress]] as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant",<ref>{{Cite web|title=Complete National Film Registry Listing |url=https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/complete-national-film-registry-listing/|website=Library of Congress|access-date=2020-05-08|archive-date=October 31, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161031213743/https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/complete-national-film-registry-listing/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last1=Gamarekian|first1=Barbara|last2=Times|first2=Special To the New York|date=1990-10-19|title=Library of Congress Adds 25 Titles to National Film Registry|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/10/19/movies/library-of-congress-adds-25-titles-to-national-film-registry.html|access-date=2020-05-08|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=October 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004011545/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/10/19/movies/library-of-congress-adds-25-titles-to-national-film-registry.html/|url-status=live}}</ref> and the [[American Film Institute]] ranked it as the [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)|fourth-greatest American movie of all time]].
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Jake is controlling and domineering over Vickie, and constantly worries that she has feelings for other men. His jealousy is evident when he brutally beats his next opponent, [[Tony Janiro]], in front of Tommy Como, the local [[mob boss]], and Vickie. As Joey discusses the victory with journalists at the [[Copacabana (nightclub)|Copacabana]], he is distracted by seeing Vickie approach a table with Salvy and his crew. Joey speaks with Vickie, who implies she is dissatisfied in her marriage with Jake. Under the wrong impression that Vickie is having an affair with Salvy, Joey viciously attacks him in a fight that spills outside of the club. Como later orders them to apologize, and has Joey tell Jake that if he wants a chance at the championship title, which Como controls, he will have to take a [[Match fixing|dive]] first. Jake purposely loses his next match against [[Billy Fox (boxer)|Billy Fox]], and is booed out of the building after putting up a lackluster performance. He is suspended shortly thereafter from the board on suspicion of throwing the fight, much to his anguish. He is eventually reinstated, and in 1949, wins the middleweight championship title against [[Marcel Cerdan]].
 
A year later, Jake becomes increasingly paranoid that Vickie is having an affair. He asks Joey if he has had an affair with her, enraging Joey and causing him to leave. Jake later presses Vickie about whether she has had an affair, leading to her sarcastically confessing that she had sex with Joey, Salvy and Tommy. In a fit of rage, Jake, followed by Vickie, walks to Joey's house and assaults him in front of his wife Lenora and their children before knocking Vickie unconscious. Vickie later returns to their home and threatens to leave, but they reconcile. After defending his championship belt in a grueling fifteen-round bout against [[Laurent Dauthuille]] in 1950, he calls his brother after the fight to make amends, but when Joey assumes Salvy is on the other end and starts insulting and cursing at him, Jake silently hangs up. Estranged from his brother, Jake sees his career decline and he eventually loses his title to Sugar Ray Robinson in their [[Sugar Ray Robinson vs. Jake LaMotta|final encounter in 1951]].
 
By 1956, an aged and overweight Jake has retired and moved with his family to [[Miami]]. After he stays out all night at the nightclub which he owns, Vickie tells him she wants a divorce as well as full custody of their children. She also threatens to call the police if he comes anywhere near them. He is later arrested for introducing under-age girls to men in his club. He unsuccessfully attempts to bribe his way out of his criminal case using the jewels from his championship belt. In 1957, he goes to jail, sorrowfully questioning his misfortune and crying in despair. Upon returning to [[New York City]] in 1958, he encounters Joey, who reluctantly accepts his embrace.
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== Cast ==
{{multiple image
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| image1 = Jake_LaMotta_signed_photo_postcard_1952.JPG
| width1 = 217
| height1 = 240
| caption1 = [[Jake LaMotta]] in a postcard dated 1952
| image2 = Robert_De_Niro_2_by_David_Shankbone.jpg
| width2 = 186
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| caption2 = Robert De Niro portrays Jake LaMotta in ''Raging Bull''.
}}
{{cast listing|
* [[Robert De Niro]] as [[Jake LaMotta]]<ref name="Evans p177">Evans, Mike ''The Making of Raging Bull'' 2006 p.177.</ref>
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* [[Mario Gallo (actor)|Mario Gallo]] as Mario
* [[Frank Adonis]] as Patsy
* {{ill|Joseph Bono|wd=Q111549303|short=yes}} as Guido
* Frank Topham as "Toppy"
* [[Charles Scorsese]] as Charlie
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* [[Shay Duffin]] as Ring announcer for Janiro Fight
* [[Martin Scorsese]] as Barbizon Stagehand ''(voice)''
* [[Michael Badalucco]] as Soda Fountain Clerk
* [[John Turturro]] as Man at Webster Hall Table (uncredited)
* [[Coley Wallace]] as [[Joe Louis]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/coley-wallace-1-736638|title=Coley Wallace - the Scotsman|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418164000/https://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/coley-wallace-1-736638|archive-date=April 18, 2019|access-date=April 18, 2019}}</ref>
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[[File:JakeLaMotta with DeNiro.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.9|Robert De Niro in training with the real Jake LaMotta]]
 
Preparation for the film began with Scorsese shooting some 8&nbsp;mm color footage featuring De Niro boxing in a ring. One night when the footage was being shown to De Niro, [[Michael Chapman (cinematographer)|Michael Chapman]], and his friend and mentor, the British director [[Michael Powell]], Powell pointed out that the color of the gloves at the time would have only been maroon, oxblood, or even black. This is one of the reasons Scorsese chose to film ''Raging Bull'' in black and white. Other reasons were to distinguish the film from other color films around the time and to acknowledge the problem of fading color film stock—an issue Scorsese recognized.<ref name="Biskind p389">Biskind, Peter, ''Easy Riders, Raging Bulls'', 1998, p. 389.</ref><ref name="Total Film pp180-181">Total Film, ''The 100 greatest films of all time'', pp. 180–181.</ref><ref name="Thompson p80">Thompson, David and Christie, Ian, ''Scorsese on Scorsese'', p. 80.</ref> Scorsese went to two matches at [[Madison Square Garden]] to aid his research, picking up on minor but essential details such as the blood sponge and subsequently, the blood on the ropes (which would later be used in the film).<ref name="Thompson p80" /> According to the brief comments on the inlay card of the ''Raging Bull'' DVD, Scorsese was not—and still is not—a fan of sports or boxing, which he describes as boring. When he saw the blood-soaked sponges being dipped in a bucket, he recalls thinking to himself, 'And they call this sport.'
 
=== Screenplay ===
Under the guidance of Chartoff and Winkler, [[Mardik Martin]] was asked to start writing the screenplay.<ref name="Biskind p379">Biskind, Peter ''Easy Riders, Raging Bulls'' 1998, p. 379.</ref> According to De Niro, under no circumstances would [[United Artists]] accept Martin's script.<ref name="Biskind pp384-385">Biskind, Peter ''Easy Riders, Raging Bulls'' pp. 384–385</ref> The story was based on the vision of journalist [[Pete Hamill]] of a 1930s and 1940s style, when boxing was known as "the great dark prince of sports". De Niro was unimpressed when he finished reading the first draft, however.<ref name="Baxter pp186-189">Baxter John ''De Niro A Biography'', pp. 186–189.</ref> ''[[Taxi Driver]]'' screenwriter [[Paul Schrader]] was swiftly brought in to rewrite the script around August 1978.<ref name="Baxter pp186-189" /> Some of the changes that Schrader made to the script included a rewrite of the scene with the undercooked steak and inclusion of LaMotta seen masturbating in a [[Florida]] cell. The character of LaMotta's brother, Joey, was finally added, previously absent from Martin's script.<ref name="Biskind pp384-385" /><ref name="Baxter pp186-189" /> United Artists saw a massive improvement on the quality of the script. However, its chief executives, [[Steven Bach]] and David Field, met with Scorsese, De Niro, and producer [[Irwin Winkler]] in November 1978 to say they were worried that the content would be [[X-rated]] material and have no chance of finding an audience.<ref name="Biskind p389" />
 
According to Scorsese, the script was left to him and De Niro, and they spent two- and- a- half weeks on the island of [[Saint Martin (island)|Saint Martin]] extensively re-building the content of the film.<ref name="Thompson pp.76/77" /> The most significant change would be the entire scene when LaMotta fixes his television and then accuses his wife of having an affair. Other changes included the removal of Jake and Joey's father; the reduction of [[organized crime]]'s role in the story and a major re-write of LaMotta's fight with Tony Janiro.<ref name="Biskind p390">Biskind, Peter ''Easy Riders, Raging Bulls'', p. 390.</ref><ref name="Baxter p193">Baxter, John ''De Niro A Biography'', p. 193.</ref> They were also responsible for the end sequence where LaMotta is all alone in his dressing room quoting the "I could have been a contender" scene from ''[[On the Waterfront]]''.<ref name="Baxter p193" /> An extract of ''[[Richard III (play)|Richard III]]'' had been considered but [[Michael Powell]] thought it would be a bad decision within the context of an American film.<ref name="Thompson pp.76/77" /> According to Steven Bach, the first two screenwriters (Martin and Schrader) would receive credit, but since there was no payment to the writer's guild on the script, De Niro and Scorsese's work would remain uncredited.<ref name="Baxter p193" />
 
=== Casting ===
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=== Box office ===
The brew of violence and anger, combined with the lack of a proper advertising campaign, led to the film's lukewarm box office intake of only $23&nbsp;million, when compared to its $18&nbsp;million budget. By the time it left theaters, it only earned $10.1&nbsp;million in [[Gross rental|theatrical rentals]] (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US-GDP|10.1|1980|r=1}}&nbsp;million in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}).<ref>{{cite journal |title=The Unstoppables |publisher=New York: Sussex Publishers, LLC |author=Spy |journal=Spy: The New York Monthly |date=Nov 1988 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KJly6nVC7qkC&q=An+Officer+and+a+Gentleman+1982+budget&pg=PA92 |issn=0890-1759 |page=90 |author-link=Spy (magazine) |access-date=October 28, 2020 |archive-date=February 6, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206085526/https://books.google.com/books?id=KJly6nVC7qkC&q=An+Officer+and+a+Gentleman+1982+budget&pg=PA92 |url-status=live }}</ref> Scorsese became concerned for his future career and worried that producers and studios might refuse to finance his films.<ref name="Evans pp124-129" /> According to [[Box Office Mojo]], the film grossed $23,383,987 in domestic theaters (equivalent to ${{Format price|{{Inflation|US-GDP|23,383,987|1980|r=-5}}}} in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}).<ref name="BOMJ">{{Mojo title | id=ragingbull | title=Raging Bull}}</ref>
(According to [[Box Office Mojo]], the film grossed $23,383,987 in domestic theaters (equivalent to ${{Format price|{{Inflation|US-GDP|23,383,987|1980|r=-5}}}} in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}).<ref name="BOMJ">{{Mojo title | id=ragingbull | title=Raging Bull}}</ref>)
 
=== Critical response ===
When it first premiered in [[New York City|New York]] on November 14, 1980, the initial release of ''Raging Bull'' was met with polarized reviews, but the film would later receive widespread critical acclaim and is widely regarded as one of Scorsese's best works.<ref name="Biskind p399">Biskind, Peter ''Easy Riders, Raging Bulls'' 1999, p.399.</ref><ref name="Baxter p90" />

On the [[review aggregator]] [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film has an approval rating of 92% based on 149 reviews, with an average rating of 9.00/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Arguably Martin Scorsese's and Robert De Niro's finest film, ''Raging Bull'' is often painful to watch, but it's a searing, powerful work about an unsympathetic hero."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://rottentomatoes.com/m/raging_bull/ |title=''Raging Bull'' Movie Reviews, Pictures |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=October 10, 2023 |archive-date=October 13, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101013080614/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/raging_bull/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Metacritic]] rateswhich theassigns moviea weighted average, gave it a score of 90 out of 100, based on 28 reviews, which representsindicating "universal acclaim".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/raging-bull |title=''Raging Bull'' Movie Reviews |website=[[Metacritic]] |access-date=April 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101218180746/http://www.metacritic.com/movie/raging-bull |archive-date=December 18, 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Jack Kroll of ''[[Newsweek]]'' called ''Raging Bull'' the "best movie of the year".<ref name="Biskind p399" /> [[Vincent Canby]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' said that Scorsese "has made his most ambitious film as well as his finest" and went on to praise Moriarty's debut performance saying: "either she is one of the film finds of the decade or Mr. Scorsese is [[Svengali]]. Perhaps both."<ref>{{cite web |last=Canby |first=Vincent |author-link=Vincent Canby |title=ROBERT DE NIRO IN 'RAGING BULL' (Published 1980) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/11/14/archives/robert-de-niro-in-raging-bull.html |website=[[The New York Times]] |date=14 November 1980 |access-date=January 9, 2021 |archive-date=January 28, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200128091635/https://www.nytimes.com/1980/11/14/archives/robert-de-niro-in-raging-bull.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Evans pp124-129">Evans, Mike ''The Making of Raging Bull'' pp. 124–129</ref> ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' praised De Niro's performance since "much of ''Raging Bull'' exists because of the possibilities it offers De Niro to display his own explosive art".<ref name="Evans pp124-129" /> Steven Jenkins from the [[British Film Institute]]'s (BFI) magazine, ''Monthly Film Journal'', said "''Raging Bull'' may prove to be Scorsese's finest achievement to date".<ref name="Evans pp124-129" />
 
=== Accolades ===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
|-
! scope="col"| Award
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|-
| [[33rd Directors Guild of America Awards|Directors Guild of America Awards]]
| [[Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film|Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures]]
| Martin Scorsese
| {{nom}}
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*[https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/7869-raging-bull-american-minotaur Raging Bull: American Minotaur] an essay by [[Robin Robertson]] at [[The Criterion Collection]]
*[https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/7867-raging-bull-never-got-me-down Raging Bull: Never Got Me Down] an essay by [[Glenn Kenny]] at The Criterion Collection
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=deq3xI8OmCkC ''Raging Bull''] essay by Daniel Eagan in [https://books.google.com/books?id=deq3xI8OmCkC ''America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the [[National Film Registry]]''], A&C Black, 2010 {{ISBN|0826429777}}, pages 768–770.
 
{{Martin Scorsese}}
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[[Category:BAFTA winners (films)]]
[[Category:Biographical films about sportspeople]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of American menpeople]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of boxers]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Joe Louis]]
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[[Category:United Artists films]]
[[Category:United States National Film Registry films]]
[[Category:English-language biographical drama films]]
[[Category:English-language sports drama films]]
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