Page 53 - Introduction to Electronic Commerce and Social Commerce

42 • Sport, Media and Society

ANALYSING RAGING BULL
Raging Bull (1980), directed by Martin Scorsese, was selected by the American Film Institute as the
best ever sport fi lm in its ‘10 Top 10’ greatest fi lms list. At the 1980 Academy Awards, Raging Bull
was nominated for eight awards, winning Best Actor for the lead, Robert De Niro, and Best Editing for
Thelma Schoonmaker. In our analysis, we wanted to focus on the skilful use of sound and image in
the fi lm’s construction of the narrative of the life of the boxer Jake La Motta. We selected three fi ght
scenes from the movie, at different points during La Motta’s career, to show how signifying systems
were used to render the different experiences of the boxer. For each of the scenes we noted the
camera angles and position, lighting, editing, everything in the soundtrack and the mise en scène.
This process required us to replay the scenes many times, focusing on each of these dimensions
individually, and then in conjunction with each other. For example, we listened again and again to the
soundtrack—including sound effects, music and dialogue—to identify precisely the character of
the sounds. Then we noted the ways the sound interacted with the images. We then noted the ways
the varying use of audio and visual communication changed across the three scenes. Finally, we
considered the way that the viewer was positioned to make sense of the narrative constructed within
and between the shots.

Low sounds have become associated through convention with a sense of un-
ease. For Chion (1994: 108), ‘the impression of realism is often tied to a feeling of
discomfort, of an uneven signal, of interference and microphone noise’. In between
rounds seven and eight, a low-frequency rumble is heard. Although hard to distin-
guish, it has an animalistic quality that reflects La Motta’s nickname, the ‘Bronx

Bull’. Similar sounds become much more common in subsequent fi ght scenes.
In the second fi ght scene with Robinson, La Motta is beaten following a contro-

versial decision by the judges. In this scene, both audio and visual fields are altered
in various ways. A dense, smoke-fi lled atmosphere indicates La Motta’s blurred vi-
sion. The crowd sounds have increased bass frequencies, rising and falling in pitch,
creating a sense of disquiet. Low howls and animal screeching and roaring sounds
exacerbate the fearful mood and accentuate the brutality of boxing. In this fi ght La
Motta takes punishment throughout the fight but mounts one last desperate attack,

which is preceded by a sound like a skidding car. A high-frequency modulated sound
is used to accompany the announcement of La Motta’s defeat. The crowd sound is
distant and muted, rendering La Motta’s dislocation from the reality in the ring.
The fi nal fi ght scene with Robinson, when La Motta loses his world title, is shot
from two perspectives: ‘live’ and on television. Barred from the ringside, La Mot-
ta’s brother watches at home with his wife on a small television set. The mono-
phonic, tinny quality of the television sound is contrasted and mixed with the rich
stereo sound from the ring. The sound of the crowd on the television is heard as
indistinguishable white noise. A beer advertisement is superimposed on the image
of the fight, indicating the objectification of the boxer by the media spectacle. In

the ring, the same sound is in stereo but has a fluctuating presence, as though his fans
are leaving him for the soon-to-be-crowned new champion. The suppressed coverage