Raging Bull

Raging Bull is a 1980 American <a href="/facts/Biographical_film/lkJANhWB">biographical</a> <a href="/facts/Sports_film/6hVpYlFK">sports</a> <a href="/facts/Drama_(film_and_television)/K3GjTczf">drama film</a> directed by <a href="/facts/Martin_Scorsese/WcboUwcB">Martin Scorsese</a>, produced by <a href="/facts/Robert_Chartoff/1IIq2Uqd">Robert Chartoff</a> and <a href="/facts/Irwin_Winkler/nFagmUvL">Irwin Winkler</a> and adapted by <a href="/facts/Paul_Schrader/BMJv9rkr">Paul Schrader</a> and <a href="/facts/Mardik_Martin/DkzHFKzb">Mardik Martin</a> from <a href="/facts/Jake_LaMotta/3vM5kfoq">Jake LaMotta</a>'s 1970 memoir <a href="/facts/Raging_Bull:_My_Story/3vM5kfoq">Raging Bull: My Story</a>. The film, distributed by <a href="/facts/United_Artists/4cSJnjrI">United Artists</a>, stars <a href="/facts/Robert_De_Niro/5k4lkNfK">Robert De Niro</a> as Jake LaMotta, an Italian-American <a href="/facts/Middleweight/5pvqTmtL">middleweight</a> boxer whose self-destructive and obsessive rage, sexual jealousy, and animalistic appetite destroyed his relationship with his wife and family. Also featured in the film are <a href="/facts/Joe_Pesci/YcX8IKwD">Joe Pesci</a> as <a href="/facts/Joey_LaMotta/UCkDs4gA">Joey</a>, LaMotta's well-intentioned brother and manager who tries to help Jake battle his inner demons, and <a href="/facts/Cathy_Moriarty/3wo0efxq">Cathy Moriarty</a> as his <a href="/facts/Vikki_LaMotta/eA91jYac">wife</a>. <a href="/facts/Nicholas_Colasanto/Sd7hw3I4">Nicholas Colasanto</a>, <a href="/facts/Theresa_Saldana/tvI3t4eQ">Theresa Saldana</a>, and <a href="/facts/Frank_Vincent/gd7gPXvt">Frank Vincent</a> all play supporting roles in the film.
Scorsese was initially reluctant to develop the project, though he eventually came to relate to LaMotta's story. Schrader re-wrote Martin's first screenplay, and Scorsese and De Niro together made uncredited contributions thereafter. Pesci was an unknown actor prior to the film, as was Moriarty, who was suggested for her role by Pesci. During <a href="/facts/Principal_photography/QuWTt1Wf">principal photography</a>, each of the boxing scenes was choreographed for a specific visual style and De Niro gained approximately 60 pounds (27 kg) to portray LaMotta in his later post-boxing years. Scorsese was exacting in the process of <a href="/facts/Post-production/RpqM8yLl">editing and mixing</a> the film, expecting it to be his last major feature.
Raging Bull premiered in New York on November 14, 1980 and was released in theaters on December 19, 1980. The film had a lukewarm box office of $23.4 million against its $18 million budget. The film received mixed reviews upon its release; while De Niro's performance and the editing were widely acclaimed, it garnered criticism due to its violent content. Despite the mixed reviews, the film was nominated for eight <a href="/facts/Academy_Awards/CwTxYuNQ">Academy Awards</a> at the <a href="/facts/53rd_Academy_Awards/01Xj4dla">53rd Academy Awards</a> (tying with <a href="/facts/The_Elephant_Man_(film)/6j79D63w">The Elephant Man</a> as the most nominated film of the ceremony), including <a href="/facts/Academy_Award_for_Best_Picture/C6komTsX">Best Picture</a> and <a href="/facts/Academy_Award_for_Best_Director/3TuCQ2Sd">Best Director</a>, and won two: <a href="/facts/Academy_Award_for_Best_Actor/ESeGU7vo">Best Actor</a> for De Niro (his second Oscar) and <a href="/facts/Academy_Award_for_Best_Film_Editing/NLS8IHoh">Best Editing</a>.
After its release, Raging Bull went on to garner a high critical reputation, and is now often considered Scorsese's magnum opus and one of the <a href="/facts/List_of_films_considered_the_best/pGV2gfUG">greatest films ever made</a>. In 1990, it became the first film to be selected in its first year of eligibility for preservation in the <a href="/facts/National_Film_Registry/HGoP1Mre">National Film Registry</a> by the <a href="/facts/Library_of_Congress/TfB6dEN5">Library of Congress</a>, as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant", and the <a href="/facts/American_Film_Institute/DhNpmV60">American Film Institute</a> ranked it as the <a href="/facts/AFI%27s_100_Years...100_Movies_(10th_Anniversary_Edition)/IWoGaaTD"> fourth-greatest American movie of all time</a>.

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Raging Bull