6 Black And White Movies That Should Never Be Colorized

4) Raging Bull (dir. Martin Scorsese)

The Plot: The aggression Jake LaMotta (Robert De Niro) wields in the boxing ring takes him to the top of the sport throughout the 1940s and ‘50s. But when he’s unable to contain it to the ring alone, he becomes a destructive force to his family and friends, empowered by his jealousy-consumed mind and his sexual insecurities.

Why Black and White?: The title sequence alone seals the deal when it comes to keeping Martin Scorsese’s classic in its monotone form. LaMotta spars in his robe by the corner of the ring; his body seems to be in a trance as it bobs up and down from the mat, illuminated by the violent flashes of antique cameras. LaMotta is waiting for an opponent who never arrives. He’s fighting himself.

The bold black and white cinematography here presents LaMotta as a man constantly in battle. Whether it’s against himself, his brother (Joe Pesci), or wife (Cathy Moriarty), LaMotta’s paranoid mentality drives the boxer into isolation, striking him down from his heavyweight throne and eventually leaving him with nothing more than his anger.

Scorsese’s use of black and white adds directorial comment to LaMotta’s trivial, pathetic existence. It exemplifies the image of grief and missed opportunity that LaMotta represents; instead of a world-class boxer, the man shown on the screen is desolate, held back by the anxieties he will never overpower.