The same goes for Raging Bull and Mike's mentor, Cus d'Amato. It was Mike’s favorite boxing film, coupled with his passion for and knowledge of one of its stars, that threw me into the turnbuckle.

I was raised by someone who loved cinema. Midnight Express, State of Grace, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. I always liked Raging Bull; that’s kind of a no-brainer. You know, Basquiat and Pollock are very influential to me.

favorite movie dr. strangelove, raging bull

“I’d love to do a boxing movie, if the right one came along,” he said. Like every other actor, he reveres “Raging Bull,” and also “Rocky.”

I was watching things like Kramer vs. Kramer [1979], Ordinary People [1980], and Raging Bull [1980]—all these movies that were getting made right around then that were amazing.

River began tutoring his younger brother about cinema. “My brother came home and he was like, ‘We need to watch this movie called Raging Bull.’ And I’m like, ‘What?’ Prior to that, I watched Caddyshack and Spaceballs. And Woody Allen comedies.”

While talking about his preferences, in an interview, Willis said: “Here are my top 5 or 6 movies, which I generally watch 3 to 5 times a year. Dr. Strangelove, Raging Bull, The first 2 Godfathers, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Spartacus, Bridge on the River Kwai, Bullitt, the Great Escape, On the Waterfront, Reservoir Dogs, Patton.“

My father was a huge cinephile. We lived across the street from a movie theater. So, "Raging Bull" was one of the first movies and so I started to get exposed all these films like "Apocalypse Now" and "The Deer Hunter".

And it's just beautifully shot. I love the music. I love the black-and-white, and it's also in the context of the other films that they were making around that time.