Revisiting "Rocky"
 

During a discussion with my roommate, I realized I'd only ever seen Rocky and Rocky Balboa, but none of the movies in between. I decided to watch the entire series in order over about a week, and since I was doing it, figured I'd post my thoughts here. Feel free to post your thoughts about the various Rocky movies as I watch them (but don't jump ahead since spoilers actually will be spoilers for me).

Rocky:
It's been years since I've seen the first Rocky. The things that hit me the most was how much of a sexual predator Rocky seems to be on his first date with Adrian, and how little time is actually spent focused on boxing. Also, I forgot how much Talia Shire plays Adrian like she's mentally challenged, like she's got the mental development of a six year old. The fight at the end is still a classic, though, and it's refreshing to see Stallone looking like a regular human being instead of a steroid commercial.

Currently watching Rocky II, will return with my thoughts tomorrow.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I think he's like that cuz of what environment he's popped out of. Deep down...he's a really kind and gentle guy but growing up in his surrounding and w/ what his previous employment was..it almost seems normal for him to be like that around that world.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Rocky to me is a stand alone film. It has a very distinct tone. Avildsen really did some nice work on this film. I've seen the rest of the series but they don't come anywhere close to capturing the magic of the original. In fact I find them entirely disposable.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

This is one of my favorite movies and Stallone one of my favorite actors. Not because of his skill (although he does show his talent in Rocky/Rocky 2/Copland/Rocky Balboa), but because he's just a likable guy with charisma. I see the movie differently than you do I guess because I disagree with most of interpretations...

Didnt seem like a sexual predator to me... to me he seems like the typical awkward/horny guy.

Basically, you're saying she's retarded lol. She was abused by Paulie. This made her the way she was. She was also awkward and quiet... but I wouldn't say "mentally challenged".

The only time I ever thought Stallone was on the juice/HGH was in Rocky Balboa and the last Rambo. He was huge in those movies. Everything before he was just ripped up which is achieved by diet and weight lifting. He was very strict with his diet during the making of Rocky 3, which is when he started getting very muscular. I read something about his body fat being down to like 3% for Rocky 3, which is crazy low. People who have never lifted a weight in their life automatically accuse muscular dudes of being on roids out of jealousy.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Rocky 5 was disposable, yes. All the others are not. You don't think Rocky Balboa recaptured the magic of the first one? How about the second to last scene after the fight when he's walking out of the arena and turns around for one last goodbye to the crowd? That scene almost has me in tears every time I see it lol.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

1,2, and Balboa make a trilogy for me. The rest are forgetable.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I love all of them (except for 5) and Stallone was must-see movie watching for me growing up. Actually, he's recaptured the magic IMO with his last couple of films.

As corny as it is, I watch Rocky IV EVERY SINGLE TIME it's on TV. I literally stop what I'm doing and watch it. Best training montage ever!

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

We'd all be speaking Russian right now if it weren't for Rocky IV. That movie single handedly ended the cold war.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I'm really really glad that Sly made Rocky Balboa to finish off the franchise properly. Rocky V isn't so bad when you realize that something much better will follow it. Great franchise!

"I should've broken your thumbs!"

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

'Rocky' is a classic American film that is fantastic, and deserved the Best Picture Oscar and the numerous other awards it won. That was Stallone's baby from the start, and he really gave a great performance in a great film.

All the other films were lousy and should not have been made.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Same here.

I'm not a big fan of II and don't like V at all, the rest I love.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Love 3 and 4 :up:

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Taxi Driver, dude. AND Network.

I like Rocky though.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

It was all those blows to the head from Carlo that did it.
Spoiled guinea brat.

http://www.wildsound-filmmaking-feed...alia_shire.jpg

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

"You're gonna love Picasso" shut the F up ya little douchebag

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

One of the 'too rare' times the Academy got it right. Neither stands up to 'Rocky' as a film. This is not the way it's widely perceived today, thanks to every other Rocky movie being tripe and tarnishing the first. Maybe that's what skews your perception of the film too?

I do agree that Finch and Dunaway gave stellar performances and deserved the awards they won for 'Network', and of course DeNiro gave a fantastic performance in 'Taxi Driver'. But terrific performances do not make a film the best in whole.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I know this has all been said before, somewhere, but when ROCKY came out, it was the first real crowd-pleaser to grip the nation in a very long time. After years of Vietnam, Watergate, '70s paranoia and counter-culture, and feel-bad movies about America (think the DIRTY HARRY movies, CHINATOWN, THE CONVERSATION, PARALLAX VIEW, etc. and even two other Best Pic nominees of '76, ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN and NETWORK), ROCKY was an old-fashioned story about a guy from the wrong side of the tracks who made good. Stallone had been bouncing around in supporting roles for years and finally showed up in a role he wrote himself that resonated with audiences and brought out the best in him. (Ironically, he only ever really clicked with audiences as Rocky and Rambo.) I remember seeing ROCKY at an advance screening at which Stallone and director Avildsen came out afterwards for a Q&A and there was real excitement in the room and he was genuinely charming and gracious. (How long did that last?)

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I know a lot of critics harped on Rocky for being so feel good. Others compared it (favorably) to Capra's work. I think the fact that it won over stuff like All The President's Men and Network shows that tastes were changing even before Star Wars ushered in the era of the blockbuster.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Rocky I is still a classic to me after all these years. Rocky II and III are enjoyable sequels, IV is ridiculous but Rocky training in Russia is still entertaining. V is terrible and should be put in the awful sequel landfill with The Phantom Menace and Superman IV. VI was pretty good, and sort of redeemed Stallone after the Rocky V debacle with many fans like me.

Rocky I works for me everytime I watch it, as perfect as a movie can get for me.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I'm not ashamed to admit that the ending of Rocky makes me cry every single time I watch it. ```

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Rocky IV has a favorite sequence of mine, the Living in America portion; that shit was awesome. And I do like the stylized sped-up frames of the street fight in Rocky V but that's it.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

this...

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Rocky II:

Starting with a recap of the first film's fight that goes on way too long, Rocky II is an interesting examination of what happens to Rocky Balboa after he gets his shot at stardom. I found the bad eye plot point to be a good reason for Rocky not to return to fighting, but it gets glossed over once he decides he will start fighting (throughout the final fight Mickey keeps shouting at him to protect his eyes, but Rocky still gets beat to hell with no noticeable effect on his eye). Adrian becomes a more interesting character here, even if the coma subplot felt a tad melodramatic. The fight wasn't quite as thrilling as the one in the first film, but it ends spectacularly, with both Apollo and Rocky fighting to get up at the same time.

I did think the freeze frame shots were silly, as was the stuff with half the city running after him while he trains. But overall, I thought this was a very effective sequel that did a good job of giving closure on the first film's fight.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Are you watching the films on AMC? I only ask because it seems that they are running I-V one per night this week.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

No, I'm getting them on DVD from Netflix, except VI, which I own on Blu-ray already. Funny coincidence, though.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Yeah, I didn't think that you were watching them chopped up on cable, but I wondered if either you or your roommate noticed that they were on, and that is what sparked the initial conversation.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

What sparked the initial conversation is that I had just watched The Fighter, and thought it was okay, but didn't compare to something like Rocky. Then my roommate made a reference to Rocky IV, and that made me realize I'd only seen I and VI.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

growing up....II was the one for me. As an adult, I is the best. 2-4 are fun. 5 is horrible. 6 is good.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Watching Rocky III right now and enjoying it very much. The Hulk Hogan scene is great.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I've always loved the Thunderlips character - makes me die laughing every time

"The ultimate male versus the ultimate meatball"

"Hold on meatball!! Here we go! lights out baby!!"

Good stuff.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I like the "There's No Easy Way Out" scene better. First off, I really like the song--80's cheese at it's best and I love how basically the entire series up to that point gets recapped all while Rocky is driving around in a sweet ass Lamborghini Countach.

I think most people would agree that the original Rocky is by far the best of the series (just a great movie) but for me Rocky IV is the most enjoyable to watch. Like somebody else said, any time it's on I'll stop to watch for at least a little bit. The training montage is the best. The music is great. The fight scenes are over the top and awesome. Stallone is all juiced up to the max. The "villain" is the best of them all in my opinion. I mean I love Apollo but he wasn't really a villain and by the third movie became a beloved character. Clubber wasn't really a villain either. He was just confident. Tommy Gunn just plain sucked and Mason Dixon certainly wasn't a villain, which is why they went ahead and gave him a broken hand so it was somewhat more believable that a 60 year old guy could hang with him for 10 rounds. There was no reason to root against that guy. Drago was like the epitome of evil--he killed Apollo for Christ's sakes, plus he was a Commie bastard, but of course he's redeemed at the end. To me Rocky IV is like the ultimate over the top, cheesy, fun, 80's movie. And, like I said, it ended the Cold War, so that's a good thing.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

The original is one of my favorite movies. It's a little dated, but the story and acting still hold up.

I like the sequels to varying degrees, but Rocky Balboa is the only one to capture the feel of the first. The others are just rousing crowd-pleasers.

As preferred:
Rocky
Rocky Balboa
Rocky III
Rocky V
Rocky IV
Rocky II

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Wow. I didn't realize anybody actually thought V was anything other than the worst of the series. I'm really surprised by your ranking.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Yeah...Charlie Goose, could you tell us why?

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Clubber WAS A VILLAIN! Probably just (if not as worse) as Drago. He hit on Adrian and belittled Rocky at the press conference! He pushed Mick which caused him to have a heart attack and die!
Everything else you said I agree with.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Meh he didn't try to hurt Mickey. It was just an unfortunate mishap. And he wasn't REALLY hitting on Adrian...he was just trying to goad Rocky into fighting him. Clubber thought Rocky was scared of him and was ducking him and not giving him the chance he felt he deserved so he wanted to try anything to get him into the ring. He even said that he didn't hate him. "No I don't hate Balboa, but I pity the fool."

He wasn't a very likable guy...basically a total asshole, but he was just a competitive athlete that wanted the title.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Well, depending on my mood I guess V could slip below IV. I know V is not a good movie, but I liked Tommy Morrison as the foe. Plus, instead of another in-ring triumph, we get a good old fashioned street brawl.

The actual boxing of any Rocky movie is the weak part. No boxer could absorb that kind of damage, and no referee would allow those matches to continue.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

I cheered for Clubber during the final fight when I saw ROCKY III at an advance screening. My then-wife was with me and was appalled and told me to stop.

Re: Revisiting "Rocky"
 

Rocky
Rocky Balboa
Rocky 2
Rocky 4
Rocky 3
Rocky 5

It's really close between the original and Balboa for me. Love all of them except 5, but Balboa makes it really easy to pretend 5 doesnt exist.