‘Raging Bull’ Scores a KO in Comeback

Like a prizefighter returning to the ring after a long layoff, “Raging Bull” has come back to movie theaters after a 10-year absence and scored a quick knockout at the box office.

Although 1980’s “Raging Bull” has enjoyed repeat appearances on television, cable and home video, the film grossed $16,311 over the last weekend while playing in just two theaters in New York and Los Angeles.

“It’s a good opening, and we’re very happy about it,” said Jack Foley, president of distribution for MGM/UA. “A lot of people haven’t seen the movie.”

Older films, such as “Laurence of Arabia,” tend to sit on the shelf much longer than did “Raging Bull.” The film’s prompt re-release is also unusual because the movie is so readily available elsewhere.

Foley said that he hoped to expand the film’s distribution to San Francisco, Washington, Boston, Chicago, Seattle and other key movie markets soon, and he said he hoped that it could move into scores of theaters in coming weeks.

Renewed interest in the film was sparked in part by the selection of “Raging Bull” as the best film of the 1980s, as voted by American Film and Premiere magazines and the film critics Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel, among others.

“Raging Bull” stars Robert De Niro as boxer Jake LaMotta in a dark drama of one man and his many demons. De Niro won a best actor Oscar for his work. The film was directed by Martin Scorsese, and co-stars Cathy Moriarty, Joe Pesci and Frank Vincent.

Foley said that MGM/UA has spent just less than $100,000 re-releasing the movie, and that “it’s going to take a long time to break even.” He said MGM/UA struck new prints of the film from the original negatives so that moviegoers would see the film in its pristine state.

When first released, “Raging Bull” was hardly a blockbuster, collecting $22 million, Foley said. But it has long been admired as one of the classics of contemporary American cinema.