Benjamin’s Stash
Before shouting at hokey Russian monsters from mountaintops, he was a scrappy underdog shouting at the love of his life.
Cast of Characters:
Rocky Balboa – Sylvester Stallone
Adrian Pennino – Talia Shire
Paulie Pennino – Burt Young
Apollo Creed – Carl Weathers
Tony “Duke” Evers – Tony Burton
Mickey Goldmill – Burgess Meredith
Director – John G. Avildsen
Writer – Sylvester Stallone
Producer – Irwin Winkler & Robert Chartoff
Distributor – United Artists
Running Time – 119 minutes
Rated PG
Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) is an amateur boxer from a small Italian neighborhood of Philadelphia. In between fights, he works as an enforcer for local loan shark Anthony Gazzo (Joe Spinell). Though regarded as a bum by many in his neighborhood, he’s a likable big lug with persistence, especially for winning the heart of shy, local pet shop worker Adrian Pennino (Talia Shire). Despite her shy demeanor, Rocky is gradually able to earn her trust and the two begin a relationship.
Meanwhile, the World Heavyweight Champion Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) has announced plans to hold his next match in Philly during the upcoming U.S. Bicentennial; however, he learns five weeks from the date of the match that his opponent, Mac Lee Green, is forced to withdraw due to an injury. With all other replacements either already booked or unavailable, Creed decides to shake things up with a publicity stunt that offers a local contender a chance to face him in the ring, and finally finds his opponent after catching the “Italian Stallion” in the paper.
Everyone born under the sun knows of Rocky Balboa as the definitive underdog, but that status isn’t just applicable for the character; the movie itself was also the underdog champ of 1976. In a year that boasted two of the greatest journalism movies of all-time, All the President’s Men and Network, and two of the greatest horror films of all-time, Carrie and The Omen, Rocky entered the ring and took home the title of box office champ ($226 million worldwide). Not only that, despite receiving mixed to positive reviews initially, it would also earn ten Academy Award nominations, winning three for Best Picture, Best Director (John G. Avildsen) and Best Film Editing.
Rocky’s earned accolades are quite a feat when you consider who and what the film was going up against. Its Best Picture contenders were Taxi Driver, All the President’s Men, Bound for Glory and Network. That is quite an impressive list. John G. Avildsen was certainly no slouch as a director, having directed Joe (one of Peter Boyle’s strongest performances) and Save the Tiger (which earned Jack Lemmon his second Oscar), but he was also going up against heavy hitters like Ingmar Bergman, Alan J. Pakula and Sidney Lumet, the latter of whom many pegged to win Best Director after already being nominated twice for 12 Angry Men and Dog Day Afternoon.
For my money, both Network and Sidney Lumet should’ve won, ’cause they were the best of their respective categories. Best or not, though, let’s not sell Rocky short. It’s still one of the best films of that year – of the entire ’70s even – and would ultimately set the bar for all underdog sports films to follow.
Rocky first came about after Sylvester Stallone watched the championship match between Muhammad Ali and Chuck Wepner. Wepner was TKO’d in the 15th-round, but the fact that he made it all the way to the 15th-round against Ali blew away everyone’s expectations. After Stallone finished the script in three and a half days, United Artists showed interest in it; however, they wanted a more established star to market the film around instead of Stallone. Robert Redford, Ryan O’Neal, Burt Reynolds and James Caan were among the top contenders for the role. Despite the studio and producers Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff’s hesitancy to have an unknown actor headline their film, Stallone eventually convinced them to give him a chance as Rocky.
Of course, looking back now, it’s impossible to imagine anyone else in Balboa’s shoes.
Rocky may first and foremost be a sports drama, but it succeeds and then some on multiple levels, mainly due to it concentrating on characters that happen to exist in the world of sports and not just entirely on the sport itself. As a sports film, the climactic match between Balboa and Creed makes for a thrilling third-act (having one of the most iconic montages, perhaps even the most iconic montage, doesn’t hurt either). As a romance, the relationship that develops between Rocky and Adrian is genuinely sweet and affecting. And as a rags-to-riches tale, Rocky’s drive to fight for something better is both inspiring and uplifting without feeling mawkish.
John G. Avildsen may not have the name recognition or distinction of the directing greats to come out of the ’70s (Spielberg, Scorsese, Coppola, to name a few), but by no means should his efforts here go unnoticed. The Oscar-winning director effectively captures the highs and lows of Philadelphia, establishing an excellent sense of place and community that feels immensely authentic. Just as Los Angeles based movies immediately have me thinking Michael Mann (Heat, Collateral), when I think Philly movies, Rocky shoots straight up to the top of the list. Come the closing-act, Avildsen masterfully fashions together a fully-adrenalized, down to the wire finale between Balboa and Creed that places us front-and-center of what feels like an actual boxing match, one that never loses steam and keeps us on the edge of our seats all the way to the final bell ring.
Cinematographer James Crabe (Save the Tiger, The China Syndrome, The Karate Kid) also helps bring Philly to life through a suitably gritty and wintry gray backdrop that complements the film’s rough-edged title character. Between the grainy film stock and washed-out color, you almost wonder what this film would look like in black-and-white (a stylistic touch that worked beautifully for Scorsese’s boxing picture Raging Bull). One innovative technique from Crabe Rocky should get more credit for is that it was one of the first films, along with the aforementioned Bound for Glory, to utilize the steadicam, which allowed for longer, fluid tracking shots through the rough terrain of Philly’s seedy side. When Rocky runs up the city’s museum steps and dances in victory at the top (while Bill Conti’s rousing score blares in the background), we’re right there by his side every step of the way.
As already stated, though, it’s the characters that truly make this film special, with Stallone giving great care and attention to each of these roles. They’re greatly flawed, but they also contain admirable traits that provide them with extra dimensions. Rocky’s the hero we’re rooting for, but at the beginning, he’s just a boorish Philly goon that, as Mickey rightfully pounds into his thick head, is wasting away what talent he has. Over the duration of the film, however, we see him mature as a character, and that maturation to Rocky’s arc is every bit as compelling as the film’s final match, if not even more so. In the end, it’s not about whether he wins or lose; in fact, he openly admits to Adrian that he doesn’t expect to win. To him, just going the entire 15-round distance against the champion Apollo would be enough of an accomplishment in his mind.
And speaking of Apollo, one of the big reasons Rocky IV, V and to a lesser, not as horrible extent Rocky III failed was ’cause they felt they needed some big, dopey villain to pit against Rocky. First it was the obnoxious loudmouth Clubber Lang, then the emotionless machine Ivan Drago, and then whatever the hell Tommy Gunn is. What resulted were films full of goofy, cartoonish caricatures that stripped the franchise of all emotional honesty and authenticity that made the first two films great (thankfully, Rocky Balboa and the Creed films rectified those issues). Here, Apollo Creed, though the one we’re rooting against, isn’t treated like a villain. Sure, he’s brash, cocky, confident and an opportunist, much like his inspiration Muhammad Ali, but Stallone treats him like a human being and not just some monster for us to boo.
At the time, this was Stallone’s big breakthrough as an actor, and to this day it’s still his strongest performance to date (Creed and the criminally underrated Cop Land come pretty close, though). For all the character’s faults, Stallone injects him with enough grit and honest likability for us to invest a rooting interest in him. Much like Mickey, we see Rocky’s naivety and stubbornness, but we also see his potential and are pulling for him to finally make something of it. Regardless of the match’s final decision, when he yells out for Adrian at the end, it’s hard not to be moved. Say what you will about Stallone. I get that his resume contains many stinkers that may make you question his ability as an actor, but give that man the right material and director, and he’ll give you back a tremendous performance like he does here.
Talia Shire was already an established star through the first two Godfather films, but most viewers still always associate her with Adrian Pennino, which actually says quite a lot when The Godfather series ends up being your second biggest accomplishment. As the love of Rocky’s life, Shire is sweet and shy (though, during one great scene, Paulie is able to push enough of her buttons to bring a fierceness out of her), and shares terrific chemistry opposite Stallone. Sure, their interactions may play as awkward at times, but that’s what makes their romance beautiful. They’re both outsiders in their own way. She’s withdrawn and he can’t string an articulate sentence to save his life, but dammit if that doesn’t make them such an adorable duo.
There’s a small, gentle moment between the two that speaks the most about their relationship. Amid all the crazy hustle and bustle following the end of the match, Rocky reunites with Adrian and the first thing he says to her is, “Where’s your hat?”. Again, it’s a small moment, but it’s one that greatly shows how much even the littlest details about his beloved Adrian mean to Rocky. The big fight, who won or lost, all the hoopla going on around him – none of that matters to him in that moment. There’s no big, sweeping romantic gesture made to his one, true love. No epic statement on how he went the distance with the champ. In that moment, he sees only her, and immediately takes notice of something that would seem small and insignificant to anyone else. To Rocky, though, that small and insignificant detail is everything, ’cause, even after going the distance, Adrian still comes first.
And that’s what makes their love so endearing.
The remaining supporting players are equally strong. Burt Young is all piss-and-vinegar as Adrian’s drunk, resentful brother who mistreats her, but also has a vulnerable side that reveals more to him than his crude, drunken exterior might show. Burgess Meredith (fans of the Batman TV series will remember him as The Penguin) is growly greatness as Rocky’s trainer Mickey, a mantle that Rocky himself would end up taking on with Apollo’s son Adonis in the Creed films. When he’s not trying to take down Predators with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers will always be Rocky’s most formidable opponent and he brings great swagger and charisma to the Ali-esque rival.
The standard-bearer for all underdog-themed films, Rocky delivers a hefty emotional knockout punch by way of John G. Avildsen’s subtle approach, a great supporting cast and Stallone’s impressive double-act in providing both a strong, character-centered script and heartfelt performance. Rocky’s final round destination may offer little surprise to those that know the underdog formula, but it is the character’s journey from hometown bum to lovable hero that makes this the ultimate champion of the sports film genre.
Stash Tier: Diamond Stash
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