Raging Bull (1980) (Blu Ray) - 8/10

After getting back from the exahausting trip to Miami, I was ready to get back into the swing of things and decided to go into one of Scorcese's masterpieces, Raging Bull, on newly restored Blu Ray. The first thing you noticed is that while listening to the commentary, Marty talks about how they originally did test footage in color of DeNiro fighting, then decided against it and instead filmed in B/W to give it a more authentic look which I have to agree works well. This movie is gritty and brutal both in the realism and point of view shots of the fights but also in the aggression and anger towards women in the film. Following a very bleak time of history during the depression, we are shown what DeNiro looks like at the end then transported back in time into each of his fights as he struggles with his family and the law to an ultimately sad ending of how this all went down. I really liked the balance and banter between him and his brother, played by Joe Pesci, where we see his drive to be the best but also the limitations of his weight and time period's showbiz. The way the camera jumps around during the fight scenes while using slow motion blood spurts really was hard to watch but very effective in showing the bruises and hits to his body and ego that he takes which carry with him through the film. Once the downfall starts and the Raging Bull starts to gain weight and lose, I felt sorry for how alone he ends up and it really was b/c of DeNiro's acting that makes it so believable. In the end, the movie seems low budget but with the terrific dialogue, it transcends it's genre into a rewarding period drama of the some true stories the boxing world faced that would make you shake your head of the riots and violence compared to today's glorified greaseballs. Scorcese does an excellent job using the B/W to really make you pay attention to the details and characters instead of flashy editing and backgrounds. Hard to watch but worth the attention.