Rocky Balboa
This triumphant sixth entry in the series rights the mis-steps of Rocky V, and gives the Italian Stallion the farewell he deserves.
PRE-GAME 🥊
Welcome back to Balls on Film! 👋🏻
It’s Oscars weekend, and I’ve been trying my best to watch as many of the big contenders this year as possible. I had the pleasure of being part of a wonderful Academy Awards roundtable put together by
this week. Myself and a some other writers from the film community here on Substack all got together to share our thoughts and predictions, and I wrote about the Best Actress race and my thoughts on who should win, and who I think will win. The whole thing has been lovingly crafted as a digital magazine, and you can check it out below:
Many thanks to John Lees for stopping by again this week for the next instalment of our Rocky review series. As I’ve mentioned before, John writes comics and his work includes And Then Emily Was Gone, Oxymoron: The Loveliest Nightmare, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe #6 and Glasgow-based crime thriller Sink, all to critical acclaim. His horror anthology series Hotell has been optioned for film, with an adaptation from writer/director Elle Callahan currently in development.
With that, I’ll hand over to John. I’ll be back at half time!
FIRST HALF 🥊
John: I'm so glad that Rocky Balboa is a film that exists. It would have been very easy for the last word on the Rocky saga to have been the ignominy of Rocky V, but Rocky Balboa manages to right the wrongs of that series low-point, re-attempting the ideas that film touched on but doing them so much better. Again, we look at Rocky Balboa dealing with retirement and leaving the fantasy life he led as champion behind, but rather than going into implausible extremes of misery and poverty, we see him living a modest but fairly content life running a restaurant, still held in high regard by locals and the boxing community at large. Again, we explore the bond between Rocky and his son, but here the tensions feel more nuanced and less cartoonishly contrived, with Milo Ventimiglia bringing more to the character than Sage Stallone did. And really, this brings a warmth, a charm, and a respect for the characters and their world that just felt lacking in part five.
Sylvester Stallone is back on directing duties here, and it's probably his strongest work in that role. Gone are the reliance on montages and melodrama, instead opting for a quieter, more low-key approach to letting the drama unfold. Perhaps too low-key, as this does feel like a slight film, the drama never quite reaching a boiling point where you're truly gripped. And yet I find it's hard to not like this film, especially if you're a fan of the series, as it's such an affectionate, tender yarn.
One could argue that, by this point in its lifespan, the series is suffering from a depletion of its ensemble cast. Over the course of the series the films lost Burgess Meredith and Carl Weathers, and now Talia Shire is notably absent due to Adrian's death of cancer between this film and the last. That's a loss that really is strongly felt, as Adrian and Rocky is one of the great cinematic love stories for me, and seeing Rocky as a widower now retroactively adds a poignant layer to their story over the whole series. But some attempts are made to replete the ensemble by exhuming bit part players from the first film like Spider Rico and Little Marie. And Burt Young, after descending into caricature in the later sequels, is at last allowed to bring some gravitas again to Paulie, giving a strong supporting performance.
A big part of the series has been its antagonists - also a big part of why Rocky V sucked so hard - and you could say I have mixed feelings on Mason "The Line" Dixon, as played by real-life boxer Antonio Tarver. He doesn't feel particularly developed, and doesn't have a big personality or particularly imposing presence like Apollo Creed, Clubber Lang or Ivan Drago. But on the flipside, I don't think he is really intended as a villain. It's underplayed in the film, perhaps a little too much, but I think the point of the film's resolution isn't just that Rocky finds some closure for himself. It's also that he makes Mason Dixon. Before the fight, Dixon as world champion is disrespected, considered weak and untested by a poor heavyweight division, and by extension the whole sport is seen as in a slump. By going the distance with him, and at the end giving him his stamp of approval, Rocky is showing that Dixon does have heart and is a worthy champion, and tellingly, at the end of the match the crowd are cheering for Dixon when before they were booing him. The film offers a redemptive arc for him too, even if it doesn't dig into it as much as it could have.
The film chugs along nicely and is a pleasant, if lightweight viewing experience. But what really elevates it is the climactic fight. The presentation is like that of a real-life live PPV boxing event for the first couple of rounds, before steadily building up to that classic Rocky fight scene style. And it tells an immensely rewarding story, as we see Rocky going from hopelessly outmatched to maybe-just-maybe having a shot, all while being intense and hard-hitting. It's probably the best fight the series has produced since at least the battle against Apollo Creed in Rocky II.
In the end, Rocky Balboa is an enjoyable, rewarding viewing experience, and the fitting end to the Rocky Balboa story the series had been waiting on for 16 years. The last moments, bringing us back to the Rocky and Adrian relationship that was the heart of the whole story and letting us watch Rocky walk off into the sunset and literally fade away into myth, is the ideal end of the series. I know we have Creed now, but if Rocky Balboa had never appeared on-screen again after this, it would have been the perfect ending.
Rocky Balboa is available to rent or buy via most digital stores.
HALFTIME 🥊
Let’s take a break for halftime.
Here’s what else we’ve been watching and enjoying this week:
This is the Tom Green Documentary
James: Tom Green was a huge part of the pop culture zeitgeist when I was growing up. As a young, impressionable teenager at the time, I thought that his show was the funniest thing and unlike anything else I’d ever seen before. When I heard about this documentary, I knew I had to watch. It’s a great look at Tom life and career, but also a fantastic piece of nostalgia for anyone like me who grew up around that time.
Available to stream on Prime Video.
Long Shot
James: Earlier this week, I shared a note recommending The Turnaround on Netflix. I’ve recommended it here before, but it’s so good that I watched it again. Reader
suggested Long Shot off the back of this, as another short baseball-related documentary worth watching - and oh man, he was right! It’s the story of a man arrested for murder, and how the case for his innocence is built in some very unexpected ways. I had no idea what this was about going in, and let me tell you - I immediately sat up in my chair and my jaw dropped when a certain well-known figure appeared on screen! I don’t want to say too much - just go in blind and enjoy!Available to stream on Netflix.
Dark Match
John: A horror about a group of indie wrestlers who take a gig in a remote compound which turns out to be occupied by a band of Satanists, who expect them to fight for real to the death as part of a ritual. Honestly, it's not that great. The plot is pretty daft and uneven, and the direction means that certain narrative turns and character moments fail to land with the impact that they should But I'm a sucker for a wrestling movie, especially a wrestling horror movie, and there are some great characters here.
Available to stream on Shudder.
Let us know what you’ve been watching in the comments, or in the subscriber chat.
Let’s get back into the ring.
SECOND HALF 🥊
Let’s jump into some awards and bonus content.
BEST SCENE 🏆
One of my favourite scenes from the franchise:
IMDB TRIVIA HIGHLIGHT 🏆
Per iMDb:
Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed) was meant to appear in several flashback scenes but Weathers then filed a lawsuit against Sylvester Stallone and MGM over alleged unpaid royalties from previous "Rocky" films and producers were therefore forbidden from using his image.
BEST LETTERBOXD REVIEW 🏆
Beautiful.
BONUS FEATURE 💿
Here’s Sylvester Stallone talking about what went into making the movie.
POST-GAME 🥊
James: Thanks to John for joining us again this week! Let us know what you thought of the movie in the comments. If you agree, disagree, love the movie or hate it, let us know.
I was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Gene Hackman this week. He was one of the all-time greats, and always felt like such a powerhouse on-screen presence. He’s appeared in some of my favourite movies - his roles in Crimson Tide, Enemy of the State and Runaway Jury in particular have always stuck with me since I saw them growing up.
I did have a movie lined up for next week already, but I’d like to celebrate the career of Gene Hackman instead, and turn to one of his most beloved roles with Hoosiers.
See you guys then! 👋🏻
~James
Rocky Balboa: great movie, or just a great two-hour motivation speech?
I AM DIVIDED.
I think the Mason Dixon storyline dovetails with the dopey videogame simulations, and how sports and tech have allowed people to indulge in nostalgia over following the sport today (true twenty years ago, true today). Dixon is battling to be known as a serious boxer TODAY, and instead everyone just wants to talk Rocky, Rocky, Rocky.
Surprised you didn't make mention of the series-defying cameo of Mike Tyson as himself. Um, Tyson and Balboa's careers happened more or less simultaneously. Have they crossed paths? They had to have crossed paths. Takes me right out of the movie, that one.
Fromtheyardtothearthouse.substack.com
Thanks for the shout out to the Round Table! So glad to have your writing on here. My heart is broken about Gene Hackman, but I'll be rewatching HOOSIERS this week to prep for your next article!