Posted: 12/23/2006

Rocky Balboa

(2006)

by Clint Fletcher

At last, after 20 long years, the Italian Stallion returns to the ring. The concept of a Rocky VI could’ve been turned into a complete disaster, given the fact that Stallone is now 60 years old. Thankfully, Rocky Balboa pulls all the right punches and allows the series to go out with class and style instead of the gloomy Rocky V.

This film wasn’t what I expected. I guess I expected a movie more along the lines of the better sequels of the series, but Rocky Balboa is mostly reminiscent of the original. To me, this is a good and bad thing. It’s good in the sense that it’s a character piece, but bad in the sense that it has very little boxing in it, and even the final fight wasn’t as exciting as it could’ve been.

It’s been five or so years since the death of Adrian. Rocky now owns a small Italian restaurant (called Adrian’s, of course) in Philly. He spends most of his days visiting Adrian’s grave, Mickey’s old gym, the pet shop, etc. Basically, this dude is seriously stuck in the past, and rightfully so. His son is estranged from him and he doesn’t know why, but the truth is, his son is sick of living in his father’s shadow and wants out. Paulie’s still around and still being the drunken bum he always was (and still hilarious, with all the best lines of the flick), and everybody in Philly still treats Rocky like royalty.

One day, ESPN runs a computer-simulated fight that has Rocky beating the current world heavyweight champ. This gets Rocky thinking—could he actually box again? Does he have one last fight left in him? Could he beat the current champ’s ass even at his overripe old age?

Stallone does a fantastic job with Rocky, and the scenes he has with his son and Paulie are some of the best of the series. One scene in particular, where he talks to Paulie about life after Adrian, is one of the most dramatic moments of the year in movies. You can’t help but feel sorry for the guy. He’s lost his soulmate, his son hates him, he’s too old to box and he has no idea how to live his life. Not to mention he’s still dumber than Paris Hilton at Harvard Law. But he still gives his charming, simple-minded wisdom to anyone willing to listen. This is what most of the movie focuses on. As a matter of fact, that computer-simulated fight with the champ doesn’t even take place until about an hour into the movie. It’s a very slow-paced film that lacks a bit in structure, but you don’t mind for the most part. Then, the current champ’s promotional people get involved and convince Rocky to take part in an exhibition fight in Vegas. While most of the Rocky movies spent half the time with training montages, it’s all about the character-piece here, as Rocky only trains for maybe about five minutes total in the flick. But you can’t help but cheer when that theme music starts to play.

Then we have the final fight. Stallone had an HBO crew shoot the last fight with digital cameras, so it really feels like you’re watching an actual match on television. I didn’t care for this. Shooting the fights on film, like the rest of the flick, would’ve given the fight a little more oomph, which it definitely needed. I applaud them for accuracy, but sometimes accuracy is boring. This is a movie—it’s all right to embellish a bit for dramatic effect.

The last fight was also a bit short for my taste, only going 10 rounds instead of the typical 15. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the ending and the way everything played out. Rocky literally got to walk out with class and dignity. And don’t worry about Stallone being too old. The dude is in great shape and looks like a 45 year-old. On the flip side, though, I didn’t care much for his opponent Mason Dixon (real-life heavyweight champion Antonio Tarver). First off, I didn’t find him menacing or threatening at all. Secondly, this character was developed, strangely, as someone who wants to prove to the world that he’s a serious fighter. It’s revealed to us early on that the only reason why he holds the title is because there are no great fighters out there to beat him. This is some odd writing for the film’s antagonist. He needed to be mean, ferocious and pose a giant threat to Rocky. I never felt that, especially compared to his opponents in the previous films.

To wrap things up, I really feel that Sly and Burt Young should get Oscar nominations. Their performances were superb and they should be respected for it. I also wouldn’t mind seeing a Best Picture nomination, seeing as how this has been a truly weak year with dramas. Even though I would’ve preferred a little less talking and a little more boxing, Rocky Balboa is one of the better installments of the series and a great way to end a legendary franchise.

Clint Fletcher is a writer and film critic living in Chicago.

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