10 Things You Didn’t Know About ‘Raging Bull’

The movie was based on the real Jake LaMotta’s memoir, Raging Bull: My Story. However, when he first saw the film, LaMotta was upset by its unflattering portrayal of him. Eventually he accepted that the portrayal was a somewhat accurate representation of his past self. According to ESPN, he said, “I was a no-good bastard. I realize it now.”

Do you know who didn’t take his portrayal so well? LaMotta’s brother, Joseph LaMotta (Joe Pesci). It’s hard to imagine the film without Pesci’s character, but when the script was originally written, LaMotta’s friend Peter Savage was written as De Niro’s righthand man. It was only during a rewrite that Peter and Joey’s characters were combined to the fictional Joey LaMotta we know today. The real-life Joey tried to sue the studio for defamation of character.

In 1978, director Martin Scorsese was at an all-time low, culminating in a life-threatening hospital visit. The speculated reasons for this visit have varied from Scorsese’s cocaine addition to sheer exhaustion, but one thing remains the same: doctors and loved ones were scared this would be the director’s end. It was at this point, when Scorsese was still recovering, that he asked to hear a visiting Robert De Niro’s Raging Bull pitch one last time. Though the director typically didn’t like sports movies, at this moment, when he was at this lowest, Scorsese saw the potential for this story.

To prepare for the role, De Niro went through intense physical training with the real LaMotta for a year. LaMotta estimated that the during the first six months, the pair boxed a thousand rounds, working half an hour every day. De Niro also entered three boxing matches in Brooklyn, and won two of them. Does it count as acting if you become a real-life version of the thing you’re pretending to be?

Paul Schrader’s version of the script had Jake LaMotta masturbate at his lowest point — when he’s in jail for allegedly providing underage girls for his customers and after losing his money, wife, and club. Scorsese found this vision of the character interesting, but De Niro was not on board. He thought it would be better to highlight LaMotta’s masochism, which is why the character bangs his head and fists against the wall instead of touching himself.

Most of the film takes place in flashbacks from LaMotta, but for the present day scenes, De Niro needed to be a bigger, less fit version of the character. After filming the past scenes, De Niro went to work consuming calories. The actor went from 160 to 215 pounds in four months by going to the best restaurants in France and chowing down. According to De Niro, the experience gave him insight into what a fat man goes through. He started developing rashes on his legs, and Scorsese was worried about his friend’s drastic weight gain, comparing De Niro’s breathing to how Scorsese sounds when he has asthma attacks.

Perhaps the most radical choice Scorsese made for this film as well as the biggest differentiator from similar boxing movies at the time is the fact it’s filmed in black in white. This was as much of a authenticity decision as well as a violence-based decision. During the movie’s time period, boxing was always filmed in black and white, but this coloration also helped with the amount of violence and blood Scorsese wanted to show. Also, Hershey’s syrup was used for blood because it showed up better on film.

It was during a sparring scene, and yes. They did use that take. You can actually hear Pesci groan, and he wasn’t acting on that one. The scene quickly cuts to another shot, so watch out. You may miss the painful moment. The fight happens around the 1:53 mark in the above clip.

Prior to filming the movie, Scorsese studied several classic boxing films and was bothered by the camera’s placement outside of the ring. However, there was one film, Robert Rossen’s Body and Soul (1947), that placed the cameraman on roller-skates, achieving a more intimate view of the fight. To achieve that aesthetic and to make the camera seem more like a third fighter in the ring, Scorsese put the camera on a dolly. The director would also change the frames per second without cutting. For its technical innovation, Michael Chapman, the cinematographer for Raging Bull, once called the movie, “the last great 70s movie.”

It’s depressing to think of a reality without Joe Pesci movies, such as Goodfellas, Home Alone, and My Cousin Vinny, but that may have been our fate if it wasn’t for Raging Bull. At the time of casting, Pesci performing in a comedy act with Frank Vincent. Scorsese knew Pesci from the act, but it was Pesci’s work on a short film that got him the job. Pesci was also instrumental in bringing newcomer Cathy Moriarty, who plays LaMotta’ wife, to the production.

Most of the time, post production drama is met with apathetic shrugs from fans, but not when Scorsese is involved. The movie was late in the post production phase, and the team was right up against the release deadline. All that was left was a minor shot that takes place in a nightclub and involves a minor character ordering a Cutty Sark. Scorsese complained of not being about to hear what the character was saying and started fiddling with the sound. The film’s producer, Irwin Winkler, finally stepped in and deemed one version good enough, but Scorsese demanded his name be taken off the film if that version was used. Later, after tempers had settled and everyone had presumably gotten more sleep, Scorsese changed his mind.

[Where to stream Raging Bull]

Photos: Everett Collection