How Scorsese’s Lowest Point Sparked ‘Raging Bull’

Martin Scorsese had just taken out the Palme d’Or at Cannes with Taxi Driver, but things took a sharp turn after his next project. When New York, New York landed, the reception was lukewarm at best. Critics who’d previously sung his praises now seemed unimpressed, leaving Scorsese scratching his head and wondering if he’d lost his touch. The musical, starring Liza Minnelli and Robert De Niro, didn’t hit the mark, and the director found himself questioning what had gone wrong. It’s a classic case of things going pear-shaped, but sometimes that’s what it takes to push someone towards their best work.

That rough patch sent Scorsese into a downward spiral. He was dealing with more than just a professional setback; his personal life was in tatters too, following a split from Julia Cameron after a brief marriage. The bloke wasn’t himself, turning to cocaine as a way to cope with the mess. But the real turning point came when he decided to get back behind the camera. With a nudge from De Niro, who handed him Jake LaMotta’s book, Scorsese threw himself into what would become Raging Bull.

From Setback to Self-Reflection

In Martin Scorsese: A Journey by Mary Pat Kelly, Scorsese opened up about this rough patch, which ended up fuelling a burst of creativity.

The motives for making a movie are very important—why you make a picture, why you go through the process. It’s a terrible journey each time you do it; it’s really a hard thing to do. And you have to have clear motives, and they have to be good motives. Between New York, New York and Raging Bull, in my personal life and also in my career, I was very disappointed.

He reckoned the critics might’ve been a bit harsh, saying that even if no one else liked New York, New York, he didn’t see it as a total disaster.

And I said, ‘Wait a second. This picture is not dreadful. I mean, there are some problems with it, but…’ I became very disillusioned with the whole process. Everything was very destructive, and it was very bad for me.

Channelling Pain into Art

Despite the setback, Scorsese had a string of solid films behind him, so he knew he could bounce back. He decided to pour all the frustration and disappointment into a new project, but this time, the story would centre on a boxer rather than a filmmaker.

In the fall of 1978, everything clicked together, and I kind of woke up and said, ‘This is the picture that has to be made, and I’ll make it that way. These are the reasons why it has to be made, for me anyway’

, he explained. The film became a way for him to work through what it means to be self-destructive, how that lifestyle impacts those around you, and what it takes to finally let go and find some peace.

I used Raging Bull as a kind of rehabilitation

, he admitted.

Redemption and Recognition

The gamble paid off. Raging Bull picked up two Oscars—one for De Niro and another for editor Thelma Schoonmaker. Scorsese himself scored a nomination for Best Director, proving he’d well and truly found his spark again by throwing himself into the project. Sometimes, hitting rock bottom is just the start of something brilliant.