The original Best Picture at the Academy Awards. This success set the scene for several sequels that saw Rocky take part in an epic rematch against his rival and later friend Apollo Creed and face more foes like Clubber Lang and Ivan Drago.
Practically Rocky Balboa was an incredible epilogue to the mainline series.
Rocky Balboa Features Sylvester Stallone At His Best
Stallone Returned To Give Rocky A Proper Send-Off
While entries like Rocky II, Rocky III, and Rocky IV featured some of the franchise's most iconic moments, it was in Rocky Balboa that Sylvester Stallone was at his best. As a legacy sequel coming 16 years after the disappointment that was Rocky V, Stallone knew that if he was going to revive this long-dormant cinematic icon, he’d better have a good reason for doing it. While Rocky V ended with an embarrassing street brawl, Rocky Balboa offered a chance to redeem the character and give him the heroic send-off he deserved.
This was Rocky as we’d never seen him before, and he was all the more interesting for it.
As a mature film that was filled with emotion, Rocky Balboa checked in on an older Rocky who was approaching 60 years old and lived a quiet life as a retired widower following the death of his wife, Adrian, to cancer four years before. The cheesy 1980s aesthetic of many of the Rocky sequels was absent from this release, and Stallone delivered an impressive dramatic performance that was filled with emotion, humility, and wisdom. This was Rocky as we’d never seen him before, and he was all the more interesting for it.
The Relationship Between Rocky & Robert Was A Highlight
The Rocky Series Was Always About More Than Just Boxing
While many will Rocky Balboa as an older Rocky coming out of retirement to fight one last time, the truth was that the emotional core of the story related to his relationship with his son, Robert. As Rocky’s only son, Robert was seen growing up throughout the Rocky franchise and was previously played by Stallone’s late son Sage in Rocky V. However, in Rocky Balboa, Robert’s character was given a lot more time in the spotlight as the film explored the pair’s fractured father-son relationship.
Milo Ventimiglia played Rocky's only son, Robert Balboa, Jr., in Rocky Balboa.
Rocky Balboa revealed that Robert grew up to be a corporate ant at a big finance firm, although he always struggled with living in the shadow of his famous father. Rocky and Robert’s relationship eroded following the death of Adrian, with Rocky learning to reconnect with his son being one of the central themes of Rocky Balboa. While Robert was initially against Rocky’s decision to go back into the ring, the way he eventually came around to become one of his father’s biggest ers tapped into the subtle emotional nuances that made Rocky such a hit back in 1976.
Rocky Balboa Succeeded By Working Stallone's Age Into The Story
This Was The Story Of An Older Rocky Proving He Could Still Fight
One reason the Rocky franchise started to lose its way over the years was that Rocky was starting to turn into an almost superhuman caricature of the underdog hero we fell in love with in the original movie. By making Stallone’s advanced age a central theme of Rocky Balboa, the film was able to avoid looking ridiculous, as an older Rocky proving his detractors wrong one last time gave the story real emotional stakes. Rocky knew he was too old to be fighting, but the fact that he was doing it anyway was part of its appeal.
Rocky Balboa stood as a fitting epilogue to the story of cinema’s most iconic underdog fighter and ended this series on a high note. While Rocky did return in a mentorship role in the spin-off Creed series, this felt like a natural ing of the torch that elevated the series' legacy even further. Although Stallone made a name for himself as one of the all-time great action heroes through roles like John Rambo, Rocky Balboa stands as perhaps his most nuanced, mature, and self-reflective film.
Rocky Balboa
- Release Date
- December 20, 2006
- Runtime
- 102 Minutes
- Director
- Sylvester Stallone
Cast
Antonio Tarver
WHERE TO WATCH
- Writers
- Sylvester Stallone
- Franchise(s)
- Rocky
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