Rocky symbolizes everything human (Rocky (DVD))

Member Name: Geneson

Product:	Rocky (DVD)
Date:	03/08/02 (673 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: One of the best boxing movies ever made and so much more than that, has something for everyone, brilliant soundtracks, brilliant acting, brilliant story, JUST A BRILLIANT MOVIE SERIES, a great motivator, you'll find yourself wanting to go out and train like Rocky does, watching all five films will prove that they are all different in their own way, not just the same movie over again

Disadvantages: Rocky IV is the dissapointing movie in the series, the beatings that Rocky take are something too hard to believe but does this ruin the movie at all? NO!, love story and acting start to die out with each movie

We all remember the first time we saw one of the Rocky's. We remember ourselves near tears watching Rocky's miserable life come crashing down on him, motivated by his incredible heart, touched by his love interest in Adrian, and found ourselves standing cheering for Rocky during the final fight.

My first Rocky was Rocky IV, concidentally, my least favorite one. I felt every emotion he did, every punch he did, and I felt I was right next to him, urging him on. Movies like this are obviously extremely powerful.

We saw Sylvestor Stallone, a slow guy but filled with heart. Not knowing how to read didn't stop him. Not being able to catch a chicken didn't stop him. By now, when we think of Sylvestor Stallone, we automatically think of Rocky.

We saw powerful supporting characters. Adrian, the love interest of Rocky, played by Talia Shire who couldn't have done it any better. We were so touched when we saw the memorable first date, and how they eventually became married. A beautiful love story in movies where boxing is supposed to be the focal point. Paulie, played by Burt Young, the stubborn brother of Adrian who maybe we hated sometimes but loved every other time. Micki played by the late Burgess Meredith as Rocky's trainer, was an absolutely brilliant motivator. We loved him so much most of us cried when his role ended in the series with an untimely death. Then there were the four villans, which I will go into more detail later on.

And of course! The brilliant soundtrack featuring the excellent motivator "Gonna Fly Now (Rocky Theme)", the catchy "Eye of the Tiger", and the heart-filled "No Easy Way Out" among others.

I won't go into detail too much on each movie in the five set series, but I will give my thoughts and opinions, and how it changed my life.

Rocky - ****1/2 out of *****
The first Rocky was released in 1976, and it won the Oscar for 'Bes
t Picture' in that year. It was no joke. Ask any great movie critic, and they will say Rocky is among the 100 greatest movies of all time. Americans love the underdog, and Rocky was the underdog the entire way in here. It was the little things that made this movie so special, watching Rocky and Adrian ice skating in an empty rink, Rocky pounding a slab of raw meat as training, and the heart-ripping sounds. I'm not just talking about the excellent Rocky Theme, there are little parts where the piano kicks in and just tears your heart apart. Rocky is a boxing movie though, and the end fight scene with Apollo Creed was not a dissapointment to the rest of the movie. Creed was an excellent antagonist in the movie, playing the arrogant heavy weight champion of the world that takes on Rocky. This is a beautiful movie that touches every emotion. Truly unforgettable.

Rocky II - *** out of *****
I did not expect such an excellent sequel to one of the best movies of all time. Stallone is as stupid as ever, and that adds to some of the humor to the movie. Rocky's love story with Adrian is not as entertaining as it was in the first movie, but it certainly is filled with more drama. Rocky is re-challenged by Apollo Creed, but is unmotivated to fight him. It is the words of his loving wife Adrian after giving birth that make him soar to the top. "You're gonna eat lightning and crap thunder". The fight scenes, wow, none of us really expected they would be even better than in the first one.

Rocky III - *** out of *****
I like the direction they took with this movie. Rocky is now off the streets of Philadelphia and is living large, which really takes away a lot of the dark mood the first two had. That is, until Rocky's world comes crashing down before him with the death of one of the biggest Rocky characters and losing his title to Clubber Lang. Can you say, best Rocky villan ever? "I pity da foo". Mr. T plays a powerfu
l puncher from Chicago that you could not possibly hate even more. He is unlike any other boxer and he messes with everybody both physically and mentally. Anyway, Rocky is forced to retreat to Los Angeles and train with Apollo Creed to regain the "Eye of the Tiger" (a phrase which is used way too much in the movie and gets annoying).

Rocky IV - ** out of *****
Looking back at this movie, I see how weak this one was compared to the others. My emotions were never touched, it resorted to action alone and that's not what the Rocky movies are about. Ivan Drago is Rocky's opponent this time, a giant 7 footer from Russia. Creed bites the dust in this movie, yet, the movie never made me feel sorry for him. Ivan Drago has no personality whatsoever and is as boring as Carson Daly of MTV. And when Rocky goes to Russia and has the Russians chant "ROCKY!" was just farfetched.

Rocky V - ***1/2 out of *****
Back to the streets of Philadelphia we go. I liked this movie because you get that feeling of the first two Rocky's, without the love story. What happened to such a strong love story? Why did Stallone just let it dissapear? We see Rocky Jr. having trouble adjusting to such little attention from his father. Good approach. He is played fantastically by what actor I don't know. Rocky is retired now because of that beating he took from Drago and trains a rising star Tommy Gunn. Eventually Gunn is turned over by a Don King impersonator and turns on his old trainer. Gunn claims the heavyweight title and wants to fight Rocky, and how they handled the big fight was genius. STREET FIGHT! No big lights, no rules, no referee, just an old fashioned fight. "Get him Dad, he took my room!" We see Rocky having memories of Mick, which was nice to see.

You need to buy the box set right now. The 25th anniversary special edition DVD is packed with special features, trailers, commentary, special tributes, and more. T
he Rocky fans of new and old will enjoy it. Even if you have seen all five movies already, buy this package. The transition to the DVDs is very smooth and you won't have any problems at all, although Rocky II lacks any special DVD features.

Rocky has something for everybody. If you haven't checked out one of these by now, you've been living under a rock your entire life. At first glance it looks like a boxing movie straight up, but it is so much more than that. It shows Philadelphia's favorite son overcoming all odds to become the best, a truly great motivator and in my opinion the all time best stand-up-and-cheer film ever made. No matter which way you look at it, the Rocky series is a classic, one of the best ever.

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