The Bronx Bull

When you click on this movie you expect more then 10 mins of boxing. It's not a good movie whatsoever. It is the worst movie I can remember watching since Batman and robin.

It's a biopic of the troubled boxing champ Jake LaMotta (William Forsythe). The story starts with him testifying against accusation of corruption and moves to 1937 Bronx where he's fighting in the streets. After his boxing ends, this troubles continue.

This was sold as the sequel to Raging Bull until a lawsuit forced the change. I can see a good reason for going to court. There is no way anybody from the first movie would want to be associated with this movie. The filmmaking is not even in the same league. It's a bad tracing job like a kid trying to draw the Mona Lisa. If one ignores the greatness of Raging Bull, this would be simply be a low rent indie. It does have some good actors and they do fine work here. On the other hand, the writing is very flat. The drama has no tension. There is no flow. It's just one scene after another. It's recitation of a life rather than a compelling story.

On the whole this movie isn't all bad, but if you want to watch the story of Jake Lamotta you have to see Raging Bull. More of the pain, more of the rage, more of the intrigue that was Jake Lamotta. The acting and directing in Raging Bull is miles ahead of this film, but it's hard to compare an A class big ticket movie to something that is a B class limited release feature.

This movie has it's moments, but the shadow cast by Raging Bull is too great to get away from.

Biopic starts with Lamotta testifying at a hearing on corruption in the fight business, skips back to his street fighting boyhood and his father's "tough love" to make him into a professional boxer, then jumps to his difficulties adjusting to ordinary life after being a star multiple time world middleweight champion. Good opportunity for character actors to really take the spotlight and shine, and they avail themselves to full advantage, with deep characterizations and good interactions.

Good watch.

I watched this movie that had some fairly well known actors in it and you would think it was their first role, the acting was so awful and wooden it beggars belief, the directing and producing was also equally awful, this had the potential to be so much better and it fails on every front, the story is all over the place, it jumps from one gap in Lamotta's life to another without bringing any of the parts to a meaningful conclusion, in the end you just give up with trying to follow it and feel like one of Lamotta's opponents, thoroughly demoralized and beaten.

2 out of 10, don't bother watching, Go and re-watch De niro's raging bull