review

rocky

from the moment the brass section starts playing the iconic theme we know we are in a familiar place. just over 30 years ago sly played a down out luck pug who was given a one in a million chance to make something of his life. he does. the first of the rocky films turns rocky balboa from underdog to everyman hero.

the latest film, cunningly called “rocky balboa”, takes up the story several years after rocky has quit the fight game, his wife has died, his son is distant from him, his best friend no longer wants to live in the past with rocky. all rocky has is his restaurant in which he entertains the clients with well-rehearsed stories of his years in the fight game.
two chance incidents conspire to get rocky back into the ring. firstly he meets a barmaid, marie, who reignites his love of life. secondly a computer simulation claims that rocky at his prime would beat the current world heavyweight, mason “the line” dixon.

to be fair the plot is not overly complex. it doesn’t need to be. this is an old fashioned film. it is a character study. it is rocky proving that he is still alive and he is still worth something to himself and to those who matter to him.
it pretty much follows the format of previous rocky movies. here is rocky in the community trying to make his life work, here is being dismissed in some form or another, here he is in the gym and then he is in the ring battling his demons and earning respect and redemption.

the fight when it comes is silly and the result is never really in doubt, but somehow it still has you on the edge of your seat as the two boxers whale into each other in way that has rarely ever been seen in a boxing match.

sylvester stallone has been a much maligned actor, true he is no sir larry but he mostly provides very watchable performances. with rocky he excels.
burt young’s misanthropic turn as paulie is priceless, he gets a few class lines and he provides the shade to rocky’s upbeat view of life.
one of the key aspects of the film is the gritty urban setting of the film, a shabby run down inner city location, that still shows its proud past and pointing towards its possible future.

this is a film that will play well to the 40 plus male viewer. this is our film; this is our clarion call that we still have it in us. as rocky says it is “not how hard you can hit, it is how hard you can be hit and still keep moving forward.”

the character of rocky is a complex one: an uneducated bruiser who has a complex worldview and a broken heart. a man who has an iron will but still has doubts about his place in the world.
at its heart it is a film about achieving your dream regardless of the obstacles in your way. when rocky stops and raises his arms aloft to accept the adulation of the crowd, you know it is also an acceptance by sly of the cheers of the fans as he, for a short time, re-establishes himself as a hollywood a-lister.

i enjoyed the film immensely.
i am not ashamed to admit there were a few moments when i teared up (of course it was in a manly way), nor am i ashamed to admit that the film reminded me that there are still things to be done, and i need to get doing them.
(no worries come tomorrow i will have forgotten that…)