While Martin Scorsese’s relationship with music is probably best exemplified by his obsession with groups like “The Rolling Stones” and “The Band,” one of his most iconic uses of music comes from his 1980 film “Raging Bull.”
The film stars Robert De Niro as boxer Jake LaMotta, the middleweight champion of the world between 1949-1951. As one of boxing’s more colorful characters in a world populated almost exclusively with colorful characters, LaMotta’s life was defined by complete chaos.
The scenes of violence in this film are brutal and still difficult to watch over 40 years later. But in two memorable scenes, Scorsese chooses music from Mascagni operas to portray calmer and happier aspects of the boxer’s life. First in the famous opening scene, LaMotta dances around the ring, warming up in slow-motion. The scene is accompanied by the entire Intermezzo from Cavalleria rusticana.
Later in the film, as LaMotta racks up win after win, there is a montage sequence (the only part of the mostly black-and-white film in color) that intersperses LaMotta’s victories with scenes of domestic bliss: weddings, children, birthdays, etc. This scene is accompanied by the barcarola from Mascagni’s Silvano.
Just as in these films, Mascagni’s Intermezzo gives the audience at Cavalleria breathing room in a world governed by violence and chaos.
Raging Bull: Opening Scene:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3N4uXfnH2aA
Raging Bull: Montage Scene:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2xD-HYTPPI
