Here we are on March 25, 1981. Martin Scorsese’s new feature film Raging Bull hits the big screen in France and attracts just 450,000 viewers. Globally the film will be a commercial semi-flop but a critical triumph!
This masterpiece by Martin Scorsese would later become a cult film and is considered the best boxing movie ever made.
Park Circus Films released the featurette in theaters on April 12th in a restored 4K version, a nice way to pay tribute to a film that almost never saw the light of day.
In the late 1970s, Martin Scorsese was at rock bottom. The dismal failure of New York, New York at the box office took a toll on him, and he was suffocated by his discomfort with drugs, especially cocaine.
Scorsese is very bad
The director’s health is deteriorating and his relatives are very worried about him. “I tried to reassure them, to tell them everything was fine. Then I went to the Telluride Film Festival on Labor Day, and when I got back to New York, I was completely devastated.”confides in a book of interviews with maestro Richard Schickel, Conversations with Martin Scorsese.
The filmmaker explains that he ended up in the hospital where he was visited by Robert De Niro. “He asked me if I wanted to do Raging Bull. Actually, we were working from ‘Taxi Driver.’Remembers Scorsese.
“It was time to go back to work. And what I discovered then, in Raging Bull and in my later films, was that I had to accept my inner conflict. There comes a point in life when you get used to yourself, that’s who we are, and we have to deal with it.”The director emphasizes.
De Niro to the rescue
So Robert De Niro pulls Martin Scorsese out of his lethargy and dependency and offers him this golden project on a platter. The director grabs him and starts working, even though he doesn’t want to make a boxing movie.
“I knew absolutely nothing about boxing. To me, the weekend fights we saw on TV or in the movies were all the same. They were always shot from the same angle. I had absolutely no idea what was going on. I didn’t understand anything. It was the sport that first turned me on. from making this movie”Scorsese reveals.
Despite his ignorance of combat sports, nicknamed Marty managed to deliver the 7th Art Monument. His way of filming the fights surprised everyone and completely broke what we were seeing at the time.
Scorsese decided to film the ring with only one camera; He wanted us to feel the feelings of the boxers and involve the audience directly in these games.
intense battles
The fight sequence alone took over a month to shoot; The latter required surgical precision, although they only represent ten minutes of the film.
Robert De Niro will be involved body and soul in the character of Jake LaMotta, not hesitating to sculpt the body of a sharp athlete before gaining 30 kilograms to portray the athlete in his downfall.
“I got up early in the morning, then I had a good breakfast, then a big lunch and a big dinner. Then I went to France and ate all three stars there. I was in agony, but in a week, I gained five kilos”explained the artist.
The greatest boxing movie ever
De Niro will be awarded the Oscar for Best Actor for his performance. In turn, Scorsese’s historic collaborator Thelma Schumacher will win the Best Editing statuette. In total, Raging Bull earned 8 nominations at the 1981 Oscars.
Today, Raging Bull is still considered the best boxing film in the history of cinema.
Source: Allocine
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
