So I went into this without any prior knowledge of the film aside from the director and lead. I expected it to be just an average, ordinary sports movie, maybe a little bit greater than most I had seen in my life (which would explain its importance).
Five minutes in, there's a full-fledged riot on screen, a woman is being horrifically trampled to death, and my mind is being blown.
Which brings me to my first major point about this film: Raging Bull is violent and sexual in a way I have never seen before and most likely will never see again; oh, sure, American Psycho and other films have touched on such things, but not in the way that Raging Bull does. Other films throw in sex and violence as mere parts to the story, which is fine and dandy for what the other films are trying to achieve. Raging Bull, on the other hand, builds its entire story on violence--which, in turn, strengthens both the story and violence overall. I clearly recall wincing with every punch and headbutt DeNiro's Jake LaMotta threw against a prison wall; no other movie has ever made me do that before.
The story of Raging Bull succeeds in that it does not rely on the tropes and cliches of the average sports movie; nay, it seems more to be a deconstruction of the genre as a whole. Whereas most sports films would take us along only for the highs of a career (and maybe some humble beginnings as well) and end the story with the winning of the championship, Raging Bull tears the curtain down and exposes the innate humanity of its supposedly larger-than-life characters. These are real people onscreen, not idolized images to be thrown onto bedroom posters; and for that, Raging Bull is all the more memorable.
Two special notes: one, I loved the way in which this movie was filmed (from a technical standpoint). The black and white adds to the grittiness, and the contrast with the only parts filmed in color (idealized home movies filmed on what appeared to be period cameras) was astonishing and crucial to the film.
Secondly, the quoting of Brando's "Contender" speech from On the Waterfront brought a definite smile to my face (and maybe a tear or two to my eye).
"Let's face it. It was you, Charlie...it was you, Charlie."
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