It’s a given that any scene set to ‘Gonna Fly Now’ will be thoroughly enjoyable and writer/director/star…Oscar Nominee? Sylvester Stallone knew better than to tinker with greatness. You don’t need that when you have Survivor.Sure, I could make an entire list just of Rocky movies, but if forced to pick two, I’m sticking with the vintage training montage decade-the ‘80s. Just a lot of the themes and charm of the characters. This has Survivor’s Eye of the Tiger, though. They would have to wait until revenge ( Rocky IV ) or age ( Rocky Balboa ) factored in to give the story that little something extra. ![]() He cannot prove himself again if he is already at the top of his game. The beauty of that arc within the first two films is that Balboa had yet to prove himself by the end of the second film. They lose the weight of the unlikely champion being given a second chance. Something between the two sequels changed him, and it is never acknowledged, aside from a quick montage to catch us up to speed with his many accomplishments.įeeling more like a sequel than a continuation of the story so far, the only real connection to the strong predecessors is character. The desire for money did not compel him, he was happy to work in meat-packing plants. It undoes much of the work that portrayed Balboa as a simple, likeable man who competed because he had to and needed to. Where Balboa now loses that image as the plucky up-and-comer, the replacement brand of superstar loved by all is the natural progression, but not an interesting one. It does not quite work when the whole point of the superior second film was that Rocky could not live that life. ![]() He is still the likeable underdog, despite becoming a premium advertising mogul living the high life. But the issue is how we get there and the changes made to the character of Balboa. Somewhere in the downtime between the second and third film, the two must have reconciled and overcome the differences they seemingly faced. Balboa and Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), for instance, are together again, but as allies rather than enemies. There is a sense that placing characters in familiar scenarios but in different roles will aid the struggling story. We are here to revel in the work Stallone and Weathers can provide. His performance could use some work, but we are not here to pity such a foolish role. T) knocks some sense into him and some movement into the story. Balboa is the cream of the crop, hand-picking easy opponents to keep a hold on his title. No longer was the series an underdog punching up, it was the famed fighter hitting down. We cannot fault him for trying, but where can Rocky Balboa (Stallone) go if he has already reached the top of the food chain? That is where we left him, and from here on in, the staple style of the franchise was lost. Inevitably, then, he would wish to strike the same notes of success again. ![]() It showed Sylvester Stallone could star and direct with competence. One of the many differences between the two is that Rocky II had heart. ![]() Who’d have thought Bill Conti’s immaculate soundtrack could sound so drained of life? Rocky III is the sequel that never needed to be, following on from Rocky II, a sequel that wasn’t particularly necessary either.
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