History Film / RagingBull

[[caption-width-right:300:Original theatrical poster by Tom Jung]]

->'''Jake [=LaMotta=]''': Come on, hit me. Harder. Harder.\\
'''Joey [=LaMotta=]''': What the fuck do you want? That's hard. What are you trying to prove?

* TheDeterminator: Jake LaMotta is not an easy foe to take down, especially notable in the Sugar Ray battles. He even says this line: "I didn't go down Ray!"

** More specifically, the movie shows the physical and psychological toll a career in sports involves, especially one like boxing. All of those punches on different parts of your body [[RealityEnsues will take a toll on you]], the effort it takes to maintain physique is such that on retirement, Jake [[FormerlyFit really lets himself go]]. Likewise, on retirement, [[AndThenWhat boxers have to rest on their winnings]] and income or find another means of income because the sporting career only lasts until you approach 40.

While critical reception was mixed at the time of its release, [[AwardSnub and it was passed up for Best Picture and Best Director at the Oscars in favor of]] ''Literature/OrdinaryPeople'', ''Raging Bull'' has since become a critical favorite, and is regularly regarded as one of Scorsese's crowning achievements and one of the best movies of all time. It won De Niro his second Oscar, (this time for Best Actor, following his Best Supporting Actor win for ''Film/TheGodfatherPartII''), and his performance is frequently cited as one of the greatest in the history of cinema.

The boxing fights themselves are notable for their cinematography. Run entirely on the RuleOfDrama, they look nothing like actual bouts. One FightUnscene consists of two still frames: [=LaMotta=] with his fist drawn back, and another, him standing triumphant over his downed opponent. Additionally, sponges filled with fake blood were inserted into the boxing gloves, [[CoveredInGunge spraying the fighters and the ropes with amounts of fluid previously unseen in a sports movie]].

The film begins in 1964, as we see an overweight, aging [=LaMotta=], now a comedian, practicing his routine. The scene then changes to 1941, as [=LaMotta=] boxes and throws his fights at the behest of {{the mafia}}. His brother and manager, Joey [=LaMotta=] (Creator/JoePesci), does his best to support Jake and get him a chance at success. Jake seduces Vikki, [[{{Ephebophile}} a 15-year-old girl]] he met at a Bronx public pool. While he catches a break and wins a string of victories, he becomes increasingly paranoid that Vikki is cheating on him, and becomes more and more abusive. The rest of the film details the aftermath in the following years after [=LaMotta=] has retired, as he spirals downward ever further.

The film begins in 1964, as we see an overweight, aging [=LaMotta=], now a comedian, practicing his routine. The scene changes. It is now 1941, as [=LaMotta=] boxes and throws his fights at the behest of {{the mafia}}. His brother and manager, Joey [=LaMotta=] (Creator/JoePesci), does his best to support Jake and get him a chance at success. Jake seduces Vikki, [[{{Ephebophile}} a 15-year-old girl]] he met at a Bronx public pool. While he catches a break and wins a string of victories, he becomes increasingly paranoid that Vikki is cheating on him, and becomes more and more abusive. Eventually, he accuses his brother of sleeping with his wife and attacks them. The rest of the film details the aftermath in the following years after [=LaMotta=] has retired, as he spirals downward ever further.

The boxing fights themselves are notable for their cinematography. Run entirely on the RuleOfDrama, they look nothing like actual bouts. One FightUnscene consists of two still frames: Jake [=LaMotta=] with his fist drawn back, and another, him standing triumphant over his downed opponent. Additionally, sponges filled with fake blood were inserted into the boxing gloves, [[CoveredInGunge spraying the fighters and the ropes with amounts of fluid previously unseen in a sports movie]].

While critical reception was mixed at the time of its release, [[AwardSnub and it was passed up for Best Picture and Best Director at the Oscars in favor of]] ''Literature/OrdinaryPeople'', ''Raging Bull'' has since become a critical favorite, and is viewed as one of the best movies of all time. It won De Niro his second Oscar, this time for Best Actor, following his Best Supporting Actor win for ''Film/TheGodfatherPartII'', and is frequently cited as one of the greatest performances in the history of cinema.

* JailBait: Vikki is just 15 when Jake (who's 20 at the time) starts seeing her. Much later on, Jake's downfall in Miami happens when he canoodles a bit with a young lady at his club who says she's 21, and introduces her to some male customers. Turns out she was actually 14 and using a fake ID, so the vice squad busts him and he gets incarcerated.

The film begins in 1964, as we see an overweight, aging [=LaMotta=], now a comedian, practicing his routine. The scene changes. It is now 1941, as [=LaMotta=] boxes and throws his fights at the behest of {{the mafia}}. His brother and manager, Joey [=LaMotta=] (Creator/JoePesci), does his best to support Jake and get him a chance at success. Jake seduces Vicky, [[{{Ephebophile}} a 15-year-old girl]] he met at a Bronx public pool. While he catches a break and wins a string of victories, he becomes increasingly paranoid that Vicky is cheating on him, and becomes more and more abusive. Eventually, he accuses his brother of sleeping with his wife and attacks them. The rest of the film details the aftermath in the following years after [=LaMotta=] has retired, as he spirals downward ever further.

* {{Fanservice}}: Vicki's introduction, especially the [[ShesGotLegs shot of her legs kicking in the pool.]]

* FlatCharacter: Joey's wife Lenora has literally no personality other than being Joey's wife and barely even says anything. Jake and Vickie's children also fit this trope as [[SatelliteCharacter all of their scenes are around at least one of their parents]], heck, we don't even know what their ''names'' are!

* GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex: Before Jake's jealousy begins to rear its ugly head, he and Vicki are quite hot for each other, to the point that Jake gets quite close to breaking the "no sex before a fight" guideline.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Jake's CrazyJealousGuy antics over Vicki are made worst when you remember that Jake both cheated on and later left his wife for her. Near the end of the movie he starts making out with various women in his club.

* JailBait: Vickie is just 15 when Jake (who's 20 at the time) starts seeing her. Much later on, Jake's downfall in Miami happens when he canoodles a bit with a young lady at his club who says she's 21, and introduces her to some male customers. Turns out she was actually 14 and using a fake ID, so the vice squad busts him and he gets incarcerated.

* MamaBear: Eventually, Vicki gets so frustrated over her husband's constant abuse and terrorizing, she decides to divorce him, move away, bring her children with her, and threatened to call the police if he showed his face at the house again. How's that for [[BewareTheNiceOnes dedication to protecting your loved ones?]]

* WouldHitAGirl: Jake physically abuses Vicki whenever he gets pissed at her.

* DeliberatelyMonochrome: The movie is in black and white, except for a sequence of home movies shot in color. Scorsese has stated that he decided to film it this way at least in part because fellow director Creator/MichaelPowell, who happened to be viewing the initial (color) footage of De Niro as [=LaMotta=] with him, pointed out that the gloves De Niro was wearing were the wrong color for the period. Scorsese also revealed in a contemporary interview with ''Film Comment'' that he wanted to ensure that the film preserved better over the decades, as it was produced around the time when [[https://unwritten-record.blogs.archives.gov/2016/01/11/film-preservation-101-why-are-old-films-sometimes-pink/#_edn1 color fading in old Eastmancolor prints]] (which resulted in them looking unnaturally pink because of the yellow and cyan dyes degrading) became widely known to filmmakers. Despite the home movie sequences being shot in color, Scorsese didn't have anything to worry about, as they were shot on the same kinds of reversal film stocks used for actual home movies at the time (reversal stocks don't suffer from the same fading problem due to the dyes being far more stable than in Eastmancolor).

* InMemoriam: Before the end credits start up, there's a brief memorial to Haig Manoogian, [[Creator/MartinScorsese the director's]] NYU film teacher, who died the same year the film got released.

* TheDeterminator: "I didn't go down Ray!"

--> '''Jake:''' "Joey, how many times I gotta tell ya? Why're you always cursin' when I'm talkin' to you? Don't do it around me. Do it around your friends..."

-->-- '''Jake:''' "Joey, how many times I gotta tell ya? Why're you always cursin' when I'm talkin' to you? Don't do it around me. Do it around your friends..."

A sequel was long in DevelopmentHell (with [=LaMotta's=] involvement), but eventually under the threat of a lawsuit from MGM, the title was changed from ''Raging Bull II'' to ''The Bronx Bull'' in order to disassociate itself from the original. The film stars Creator/WilliamForsythe as the older Jake [=LaMotta=], Morjean Aria as a young [=LaMotta=], and has a supporting cast including the likes of Creator/JoeMantegna, Creator/TomSizemore, Creator/PenelopeAnnMiller, Creator/NatashaHenstridge, Creator/AliciaWitt, Creator/RayWise, and James Russo.

A sequel was long in DevelopmentHell (with [=LaMotta's=] involvement), but eventually under the threat of a lawsuit from MGM, the title was changed from ''Raging Bull II'' to ''The Bronx Bull'' in order to disassociate itself from the original. The film stars Creator/WilliamForsythe as the older Jake [=LaMotta=], Morjean Aria as a young [=LaMotta=], and has a supporting cast including the likes of Creator/JoeMantegna, Creator/TomSizemore, Penelope Ann Miller, Creator/NatashaHenstridge, Creator/AliciaWitt, Creator/RayWise, and James Russo.

* DeliberatelyMonochrome: The movie is in black and white, except for a sequence of home movies shot in color. Scorsese has stated that he decided to film it this way at least in part because fellow director Creator/MichaelPowell, who happened to be viewing the initial (color) footage of De Niro as [=LaMotta=] with him, pointed out that the gloves De Niro was wearing were the wrong color for the period.

* SexlessMarriage: Jake is an incredibly jealous husband who regularly beats his wife because he ''suspects'' she might be interested in other men. He also apparently has no desire to actually have sex with her (which she shows subtle frustration with in one scene). This has, of course, fuelled the HomoeroticSubtext interpretation of his character.
** Played With early in their marriage. Of course, going without sex is part of his fight prep regime. There is a scene where Jake asks his wife to "take off (his) pants", and then "take off your panties", she replies "you made me promise not to get you excited". They fool around anyway but Jake stops before sex happens, and cools down by dousing his, uh, excitement, in cold water... suggesting this sexless marriage is certainly not without passion and desire at this point.
** Averted by the fact Jake is a father, unless you believe in storks...

A sequel was long in DevelopmentHell (with [=LaMotta's=] involvement), but eventually under the threat of a lawsuit from MGM, the title was changed from ''Raging Bull II'' to ''The Bronx Bull'' in order to disassociate itself from the original. The film stars William Forsythe as the older Jake [=LaMotta=], Morjean Aria as a young [=LaMotta=], and has a supporting cast including the likes of Joe Mantegna, Tom Sizemore, Penelope Ann Miller, Natasha Henstridge, Alicia Witt, Creator/RayWise, and James Russo.

* DeliberatelyMonochrome: The movie is in black and white, except for a sequence of home movies shot in color.
** Scorsese has stated that he decided to film it this way at least in part because fellow director Creator/MichaelPowell, who happened to be viewing the initial (color) footage of De Niro as [=LaMotta=] with him, pointed out that the gloves De Niro was wearing were the wrong color for the period.

* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: Averted in general but Creator/PaulSchrader who wrote the screenplay felt that the very act of making this film gives [=LaMotta=] this, noting that the film implies that he was a more significant figure in boxing and sports than his career otherwise supports. He feels that the film ultimately elevated a mediocrity to a level of fame he otherwise wouldn't deserve.

* OneDialogueTwoConversations: An extended PlayedForDrama example in the scene where Jake suspects that Joey and Vikki are having an affair. Joey, totally taken aback at Jake's paranoia, refuses to discuss the issue, which Jake takes as confirmation that his suspicions are true. Then when Jake confronts her about it, she sarcastically tells him she's slept with every man on their block, exasperatedly trying to get him to see how ridiculous he's being. But again, Jake can't see the irony and completely believes her.

While critical reception was mixed at the time of its release, [[AwardSnub and it was passed up for Best Picture and Best Director at the Oscars in favor of]] ''Literature/OrdinaryPeople'' ''Raging Bull'' has since become a critical favorite, and is viewed as one of the best movies of all time. It won De Niro his second Oscar, this time for Best Actor, following his Best Supporting Actor win for ''Film/TheGodfatherPartII'', and is frequently cited as one of the greatest performances in the history of cinema.