Posted by
Emmett of the Unblinking Eye on Wednesday, December 20, 2006 8:26:58 PM
When I first saw the trailer for Rocky Balboa, I had the same reaction as everyone else -- ooohhhhhhhh NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! The concept of Rocky returning at his advanced age to do anything except clip coupons and fill out Medicare forms was too horrible to contemplate. Given the downward spiral the Rocky franchise has experienced since the original
Rocky, expectations were low. Or perhaps nonexistent.
Yet much to my surprise, Rocky Balboa is a well made, well written, well acted return to the roots that made the original Rocky such a great people's movie. Rather than battling a super villain, the aged Rocky is facing his mortality, the death of his wife, and his estrangement from his son. Joined by returning vets from past Rockies (Burt Young as Paulie, Tony Burton as Duke, and Pedro Lovell as Spider Rico, an early opponent of the Rock), and a touching, ambiguous performance by Geraldine Hughes as a woman from Rocky's past, Sylvester Stallone manages a nuanced, effective performance as Rocky. Watching him perform is like putting on an old favorite sweater. It just feels comfortable and right.
The climactic fight is well done, but an afterthought. The meat of the movie comes before. And although the film makes one too many trips to Adrian's grave, all in all it makes a fine Christmas meal. Highly recommended, and a must for any fans of the first Rocky.