Rocky (1976)
Decided to start watching all of the Oscar best picture winners, in order. I hadn’t heard of some of these movies, some I love and have seen multiple times already and I actively hate others, planning to never watch them again. Fair warning, there will be spoilers in these and other reviews to help explain my point of view.
THIS IS MY FAVORITE MOVIE OF ALL TIME!!!!
I really don’t know what else to say. I have seen Rocky more times than I can count. I have loved it since I first saw it when I was a little girl, which was around the time Rocky II came out. I have been a huge fan ever since. All of the sequels have their own place in my heart, all except V, I pretend it doesn’t exist. I have to say I don’t have the same love for the Creed films; my main beef with those films is the premise; why did Adonis have to be Creed’s illegitimate child? Why couldn’t he just be one of the kids he had with is wife who sought out Rocky’s help because he wanted it?
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Anyway, we’re here to talk about Sylvester Stallone’s masterpiece. Rocky Balboa is a waaay down on his luck boxer, in desperate need of a chance to do something, anything more with his life. He ekes out a living earning chump change boxing in nothing fights and collecting for a loan shark on the docks in Philadelphia. He has lost his locker at his neighborhood gym after not amounting to much in six years and he clumsily tries to flirt with Adrian, who works at the pet shop across the street from his gym. Apollo Creed, the heavyweight champ, needs someone to fight against, and they choose Rocky, since Apollo’s next fight in defense of his title is scheduled during the Bicentennial and Apollo thinks it is poetic to fight an Italian-American during that time. This is pretty much it; the majority of the movie concerns itself with introducing us to these characters, along with Adrian’s brother Paulie and of course, MICKEY, Rocky’s trainer, while showing us Rocky’s journey to becoming a worthwhile challenger to the title.
Stallone’s script is tight and tells the story he wants to tell perfectly. Sure, some of the dialogue is clunky and some of the acting isn’t quite where it needs to be, particularly from Burt Young and Carl Weathers, each for different reasons. Young depicts Paulie as a bit of a broken down man who hasn’t been able to live up to his own potential either, but unlike Rocky, he isn’t doing anything about it and can’t articulate what it is he wants. He also takes no responsibility, choosing to blame Adrian for his lack of success and happiness. He goes back and forth though, unable to convey the correct emotions at the right time. Weathers, in this film, is too much of a caricature of Muhammad Ali. Once he settles into the role in subsequent movies and makes him more of his own person, the performance is much better.
I am a sucker for Adrian and Rocky’s love story. They are both so sweet and unassuming; I want nothing more than for them to be happy together. From the corny jokes Rocky tells her to make her smile, to their shared affection for all of the pet shop animals (especially Butkis!) and their first date on the skating rink, you can’t help but root for them. Rocky’s good nature is just what Adrian needed; he literally brings her out of her shell. She sheds her glasses, goofy hats and oversized coats, realizing that she is a beautiful woman actually worthy of the love of a man. Adrian saves Rocky right back; he knows he isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed and isn’t afraid to let Adrian be the smart one in their relationship. Adrian is a realist who tries to ground Rocky out of desire to keep him safe. The support he knows she offers gives him the push he needs to keep going even when he begins to doubt he will be able to make it through the fight.
My favorite part of every Rocky movie are the training montages. Running through the streets of Philadelphia with Sylvester Stallone and the kids is something I still wish I could do. Rocky initially not being able to make it up all of the steps of the Museum of Art, with a hitch in his side, THEN having him do so triumphantly is great storytelling. Sure, it may seem obvious now, but it wasn’t then. While the Rocky theme is at its most subdued in this movie, and there are no additional pop songs, like we will see in III and IV, the score and theme are still hit the right note, no pun intended. The music is just uplifting enough, without getting in the way.
If this movie had been taken over by the studio, I am sure it would have ended with Rocky winning; especially since sequels weren’t a foregone conclusion the way they are today. The true brilliance of Rocky the movie is that Rocky the man did what he set out to do; he went the distance. The fact that he lost was basically an afterthought; the announcement that Apollo retained the title via a split decision was delivered as background, overshadowed by Rocky and Adrian looking for, needing each other once the fight was over. I especially love the softly delivered question Rocky asks once Adrian is able to step into the ring after the fight. He asks her what happened to her hat; her adorable beret was knocked off her head as she squeezed through the crowd to get to him. OF COURSE Rocky would notice that; his attentiveness to Adrian was on full display here and endured through every movie. The movie ending with their declaration of their love for each other, rather than anything having to do with boxing, drives home the fact that this is a love story first, and a boxing movie second.
Should this have won Best Picture? I cannot quarrel with it winning due to my undying love for this movie, but I am surprised it did so considering it was nominated in a very strong year up against Network, Taxi Driver and All the President’s Men. If they were nominated in separate years, each of those films surely would have won the top prize. Rocky is a wonderful movie, my favorite forever and always, 5 out of 5 stars!
