An ephiphany (sudden realization of objective truth) made me realize that so far,my articles are not just reviews but also vanity cards which creators of various shows attach at the end of an episode of their series.Usually,these cards are broadcasted for about 2 seconds on national television on which they share their thoughts.Chuck Lorre,the creator of ‘Two and a Half Men’, is infamous for using his cards to insult the broadcasting network,share a really awful joke and rant about an incident without using any punctuation in the entire passage(not even at the end).Nonetheless,this week’s review would be on the series which made Sylvester Stallone a household name-Rocky(covering every movie in the series will be really painful and this review/card will only cover from the first film Rocky(1976) to Rocky Balboa(2006) because Rocky 7 and 8 is a whole different thing ).The theme of the film is the rags to riches story of Rocky Balboa,an uneducated but kind man who initially worked as a debt collector for a loan shark but found his way to fame through boxing.Rocky(1976) introduces him,his boxing coach Mickey(Burgess Merdith),his love interest and wife(in further installments)Adrian(Talia Shire) and his brother-in-law Paulie(Burt Young) and how Rocky ALMOST defeats the heavyweight champion Apollo Creed but loses by unanimous decision.The first film received numerous accolades at the Academy Awards,including Best Director and Best Film.
The second film Rocky 2(1979) shows Rocky living a rich lifestyle which strains his relationship with Adrian who is expecting a child soon but slips into coma.However,the end is satisfying as Rocky learns his about his faults and defeats Apollo Creed in a second title bout while also realizing the joys of becoming a father.This film popularized the line “Yo Adrian,I did it!”
The third film contains one of the most emotional scenes where Rocky,having lost his title to Clubberlang(portrayed by Mr.T) in the second round via knock-out earlier in the film,comes to the locker room to see his coach Mickey lying down,having suffered a heart attack due to being shoved aside by Clubberlang in a backstage altercation.Mickey asks Rocky how did the fight go to which the latter replies that it ended by knock-out in the second round.Mickey believing that Rocky had won the fight,tells him that he loved him and peacefully passes away.The guilt of lying to his teacher and the crying makes it one of the most powerful scenes in the entire series.You will have to watch the scene to get the real essence.The climax sees Rocky defeat Clubberlang by KO with the help of his opponent-turned-friend Apollo Creed and Duke,the latter’s trainer.
The fourth film released in the year 1985 is a punch in the face of communism,probably made to serve the purpose of the Cold War but mostly to insult Russia and it’s people.The film literally landed dirty shots at the Russian characters and mocked them heavily throughout the film for their culture and stuff.It seems almost surreal that it was the States that was adding insult to injury but the premise makes you root for the American heroes and hope for them to prevail as if the real fight was one-sided.The film shows the scientifically advanced Russian boxer Ivan Drago kill Apollo Creed in an exhibition match,courtesy of Rocky who on the request of Creed does not throw the towel to end the fight even though Duke cries and screams for him to do so.Rocky had been requested by Creed earlier to not stop the match under any circumstances,resulting in Creed dying in the ring due to him not receiving any air due to the surrounding paparazzzi.Rocky gets challenged by Ivan Drago to fight him in Russia.The film then presents us flashbacks from the previous films followed by a training montage of Rocky in Russia followed by another flashbacks of the previous flashbacks along with the training flashbacks.The final fight sees Rocky fighting with such passion and vigour that the Russians favour him over Drago,disgracing the latter,his wife and their associates.Rocky ends up winning,having avenged his fallen friend.
Rocky 5 came out in 1990 but it was so bad that it can be skipped.It shows Rocky declaring bankruptcy due to some investment mumbo-jumbo,training another fighter only to knock him out in a street fight in the climax and mending his releationship with his estranged son Robert.
Stallone having felt that the 5th film did not do justice to the character and the way he went out,he carved out a comeback story in the 2006 film ‘Rocky Balboa’ which received critical acclaim.The film shows a retired Rocky,grieving over the passing of his wife Adrian who had died of woman cancer,make a return to face off against Mason ‘The Line’Dixon,a champion disgraced for facing weak opponents and showing no pride for his sports.A computer fight between Dixon and Rocky in which the latter wins,makes Dixon call out Rocky for one final ‘big-money’match.Rocky faces mockery and criticism for making the decision to face Mason who is superior in probably every aspect of the sport of boxing,including 30 Knock outs in 33 booked bouts.Rocky trains hard and takes Dixon to the limits.The slug-fest goes through all 15 rounds where Rocky loses by split-decision again,but having nothing to lose gains the support of his peers and respect of the people.Mason’s coach even tells the champion after the fight,”That’s the pride I was talking about.”This,according to me,is the best instalment in the series.There is a speech in the film where Robert,his grown-up son who works in a company and is scolded and teased by his superiors and friends for him not being like his father,berates Rocky for making such a decision which will make him a laughing stock.Rocky then gives a speech that is full of emotions and power that it speaks to the viewer itself, an important life lesson and I quote:-“You ain’t gonna believe this,but you used to fit right here.I’d hold you up and say to your mother:This kid’s gonna be the best kid in the world. This kid’s gonna be somebody better than anybody ever knew. And you grew up good and wonderful.It was great just watching.Every day was like a privilege.Then the time come for you to be your own man and take on the world, and you did.But somewhere along the line,you changed. You stopped bein’ you.You let people stick a finger in your face and tell you you’re no good,and when things got hard, you started lookin’ for somethin’ to blame.Like a big shadow.I’ll tell you something you already know.The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows.It’s a very mean and nasty place.And I don’t care how tough you are,it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it.You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life.But it ain’t about how hard you hit.It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep movin’ forward.How much you can take and keep movin’ forward.That’s how winnin’ is done!If you know what you’re worth,get what you’re worth,but you gotta be willin’ to take the hits and not pointin’ fingers,sayin’ you ain’t where you wanna be because of him or her or anybody!Cowards do that, and that ain’t you!You’re better than that!I’m always gonna love you no matter what,no matter what happens.You’re my son and you’re my blood.You’re the best thing in my life.But until you start believin’ in yourself,you ain’t gonna have a life.Don’t forget to visit your mother.”As before,you have to watch the scene to get the essence.What makes this series so special is how motivating the stories and the characters are.The fight scenes are so engaging that the punches and blows narrate an entirely different story.Other than that,most scenes are developments like Rocky adopting a dog,educating a kid to stay off drugs and climbing 72 steps in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Arts and Crafts where a statue of his character has been now installed to honor the legacy of the character.
Everything seems to work out in the films if Rocky wants to do without any difficulty.There are absolutely no major hurdles but considering the time the series was in it’s prime,people mostly stuck to the underdog cliché since it was new at that time and was highly successful. The quality of the films are not polished and emphasized upon but gets better over successive films.
FACT–>YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A FAN OF BOXING TO ENJOY THESE FILMS.
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