Boxing and cinema have long gone together since the birth of movie theaters and nickelodeons. It is a type of film and story that shows raw emotion and puts the viewer right in the center of the ring. With the forthcoming FX series Lights Out and Mark Walhberg and Christian Bale's latest The Fighter getting much critical praise and Oscar buzz, it is proof that stories about boxers will never cease, hell just ask Stallone, he made a whole career out of one! With these latest releases and popular titles through the years, only one shows the poetry of the ring and brutality of a tortured fighter's soul as Martin Scorsese's masterpiece, Raging Bull. The 1980 film, based on the true story of fighter Jake LaMotta, stars Robert DeNiro as LaMotta and Joe Pesci as his brother Joey and trainer. LaMotta who was just as brutal to the people outside the ring as he was to his opponents on the inside, is constantly fighting with the world around him. He is a selfish headcase that is jealous, furious and does not care who he offends or hurts to get what he wants. The story was presented to Scorsese by DeNiro after DeNiro read LaMotta's book of the same name, reluctant at first to adapt the film, Marty would end up doing it and would create a flawless masterpiece and American Film Institutes #4 ranked, greatest American film of all time.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Movie of the Month - Raging Bull
Boxing and cinema have long gone together since the birth of movie theaters and nickelodeons. It is a type of film and story that shows raw emotion and puts the viewer right in the center of the ring. With the forthcoming FX series Lights Out and Mark Walhberg and Christian Bale's latest The Fighter getting much critical praise and Oscar buzz, it is proof that stories about boxers will never cease, hell just ask Stallone, he made a whole career out of one! With these latest releases and popular titles through the years, only one shows the poetry of the ring and brutality of a tortured fighter's soul as Martin Scorsese's masterpiece, Raging Bull. The 1980 film, based on the true story of fighter Jake LaMotta, stars Robert DeNiro as LaMotta and Joe Pesci as his brother Joey and trainer. LaMotta who was just as brutal to the people outside the ring as he was to his opponents on the inside, is constantly fighting with the world around him. He is a selfish headcase that is jealous, furious and does not care who he offends or hurts to get what he wants. The story was presented to Scorsese by DeNiro after DeNiro read LaMotta's book of the same name, reluctant at first to adapt the film, Marty would end up doing it and would create a flawless masterpiece and American Film Institutes #4 ranked, greatest American film of all time.