It's Boxing Day, so naturally I'll be sharing my ranking of the eight movies in cinema's greatest boxing-themed franchise. The overall quality and consistency of the Rocky franchise is amazing, especially when considering how indescribably little I care about boxing as a sport. Boring as the sport may be (in my subjective opinion, don't take it personally, I do appreciate the work put into it), this series of films is about a lot more than just the sport. The fighting sequences are also pretty cool when directed well and boosted with an epic soundtrack. Without further ado, here's my ranking of the Rocky films!
When I first watched the original Rocky film several years ago, my expectations were way off. Throughout pop culture references, I didn't know that Eye Of The Tiger and the famous Ivan Drago fight were from the sequels, and I thought they'd all be in the first film. And I had no idea that Rocky was such a critically acclaimed, Best Picture -winning movie. I thought I was in for a mere boxing movie, and ended up witnessing something much better.
Rocky is a powerful underdog story about the American everyman. Sylvester Stallone, who wrote the film in addition to starring in it (both feats earned him Oscar nominations), creates one of cinema's most likable and iconic characters in Rocky Balboa - a down-on-his luck fighter who may not have the biggest brain but has more heart than you could imagine. The supporting cast is nothing short of spectacular, with Talia Shire being amazing as Rocky's love interest Adrian, Burgess Meredith inspiring his way into our hearts as Rocky's coach Mickey, and Carl Weathers hitting a charisma maximum as Rocky's opponent Apollo Creed. Trust me, you don't have to care one bit about boxing (I sure as hell don't) to enjoy this masterful film.
8. Rocky V (1990)
"Fear is a fighter's best friend. You know, but it ain't nothing to be ashamed of. See, fear keeps you sharp, it keeps you awake, you know, it makes you want to survive"
None of the Rocky movies are downright bad, but Rocky V is definitely as close as it gets. The film has a lot of potential: focusing on Rocky's (Sylvester Stallone) relationship with his son (played by real-life son Sage Stallone), as the protagonist tries to enjoy retirement and takes up-and-coming fighter Tommy Gunn (Tommy Morrison) under his wing. The problem is, none of the elements in the film blend together well. While the movie has its moments, it largely suffers from being too much of a serious family drama to feel like a boxing franchise sequel, while simultaneously being too much of a boxing franchise sequel to feel like a serious family drama. Good concept, sloppy execution.
7. Rocky III (1982)
"Nothing is real if you don't believe in who you are!"
The third Rocky instalment, much like the fifth, is a mixed bag. The downsides are significant: as a sequel to the boxing film that famously isn't about boxing first and foremost, Rocky III is very much about the sport itself, at least when compared to the previous two. It feels less substantial and more generic. Also, Mr. T's over-the-top cheesiness as the antagonist Clubber Lang is a bit annoying at times.
But oh boy, are there some upsides. This is the film that first introduced Survivor's Eye Of The Tiger to the franchise, thus making the song into a universal anthem for motivation, working out and epic montages. For that alone, this film should be praised. I also enjoy the story direction of Rocky befriending former rival Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), which would become a staple of the franchise moving forward. Also, Mr. T's over-the-top cheesiness is absolutely fantastic when taken in small doses.
6. Rocky IV (1985)
"To beat me, he will have to kill me"
The Cold War, with its geopolitical complexities and ideological intrigue, is a fascinating area in history. Many movies have captured the unique nature of the era by painting complicated pictures of the ethical dilemmas, rhetorical nuances and many-sided realities of the Cold War.
Rocky IV is not one of those films.
In what is perhaps Hollywood's greatest over-the-top caricature of the Cold War era, our hero travels to Russia to fight against Soviet champion Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren). If you really start to think and take the film seriously, it is a bit upsetting how the film capitalizes on painting a complicated political conflict as a purely black-and-white good-vs-evil narrative. But one can't take the fourth instalment of a boxing franchise too seriously - and when viewed with a grain of salt, the film is great fun. If you allow yourself to suspend your disbelief and step into the shoes of Rocky, who just wants to avenge his friend and beat the bad guy, you can't help but feel extremely pumped up when Survivor's Burning Heart starts to play as the film launches into its second or third training montage. It's a simple film, but as a product of its strange time, it is quite glorious in its own way.
5. Creed II (2018)
"In the ring, you got rules. Outside, you got nothing. Life hits you with all these cheap shots. People like me, we live in the past. You got people that need you now. You got everything to lose"
On paper, Creed II had the potential to be a masterpiece. With the vast critical acclaim of the first Creed movie boosting the franchise to a new heyday, Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone returning as Adonis Creed and his coach Rocky Balboa, and the story focusing on Adonis taking on Viktor Drago (Florian Munteanu), son of Rocky IV's Ivan Drago, for a better-taste pseudo-sequel to Rocky IV, what could go wrong?
Basically, this film suffers from the same problem as Fast & Furious 6 (2013) and Avengers: The Age Of Ultron (2015). The previous instalment had such a delicate balance of impressively many dramatic elements, that when this one tried to do the same but bigger, the end result felt a bit too bloated. Creed II tries to be so many things at once - a rematch of Rocky IV, a sequel to Creed, a new chapter for Rocky, a spinoff of Ivan and Viktor, a money-making franchise instalment, a family drama et cetera - that it feels a bit overblown. Still, there are some fantastic moments, and the film is definitely worth watching - it's just not as thrilling as one might expect from the premise.
4. Rocky II (1979)
"Yo, Adrian! I DID IT!"
In the grand tradition of Back To The Future Part II (1989), Halloween II (1981) and Home Alone: Lost In New York (1992), this is one of those sequels that is exactly one notch down from the original, meaning that it's still very good, just not quite as good as its predecessor. The first Rocky film to be directed by Stallone himself, this sequel is a nice continuation of the story that begged to be continued - what went on in Rocky Balboa's life after his underdog draw with heavyweight champion Apollo Creed?
The first half of the film is just Rocky being Rocky, as Stallone is hilarious, lovable and emotional in the role he was born to play as his character navigates through all sorts of challenges. The second half hypes up the rematch between Balboa and Creed, through a training montage that is one of the best in a franchise filled with training montages. The final fight is tied with Creed II's final fight as the best-directed and most entertaining fight sequences in the whole franchise.
3. Rocky Balboa (2006)
"It ain't about how hard you're hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done"
Released 30 years after the original Rocky and 16 years after the previous Rocky film, this pseudo-sequel was all about bringing the original saga to a fitting end. Sure, the story of Rocky Balboa would go on to continue in the Creed movies, but this is the final film to have Rocky as the main character and in the ring. The character has finished his career and is running a restaurant, when a series of events leads to him donning his gloves for one last time, as the world begs to see a match between current heavyweight champ Mason "The Line" Dixon (Antonio Tarver) and the past-his-prime all-time-great Rocky Balboa.
After the sequels had steadily declined in quality, Rocky Balboa brought back the cinematic value of the original film, which is primarily thanks to the return of the original film's pivotal element - it isn't about boxing, first and foremost. While this film deals with different themes than the first one, it feels very much like a return to the roots of the franchise, as we follow a character-driven story where the boxing of it all is just a part of the big picture. The film deals with loss, aging and ego in a deep manner, hitting just the right mellow note for the Rocky saga to bow out on. A graceful and fitting end.
2. Rocky (1976)
"It really don't matter if I lose this fight. It really don't matter if this guy opens my head, either. 'Cause all I wanna do is go the distance. Nobody's ever gone the distance with Creed, and if I can go that distance, you see, and that bell rings and I'm still standin', I'm gonna know for the first time in my life, see, that I weren't just another bum from the neighborhood"
When I first watched the original Rocky film several years ago, my expectations were way off. Throughout pop culture references, I didn't know that Eye Of The Tiger and the famous Ivan Drago fight were from the sequels, and I thought they'd all be in the first film. And I had no idea that Rocky was such a critically acclaimed, Best Picture -winning movie. I thought I was in for a mere boxing movie, and ended up witnessing something much better.
Rocky is a powerful underdog story about the American everyman. Sylvester Stallone, who wrote the film in addition to starring in it (both feats earned him Oscar nominations), creates one of cinema's most likable and iconic characters in Rocky Balboa - a down-on-his luck fighter who may not have the biggest brain but has more heart than you could imagine. The supporting cast is nothing short of spectacular, with Talia Shire being amazing as Rocky's love interest Adrian, Burgess Meredith inspiring his way into our hearts as Rocky's coach Mickey, and Carl Weathers hitting a charisma maximum as Rocky's opponent Apollo Creed. Trust me, you don't have to care one bit about boxing (I sure as hell don't) to enjoy this masterful film.
1. Creed (2015)
"One step at a time. One punch at a time. One round at a time"
Yes. I said it. As much critical acclaim as this reboot film has, I know that claiming Creed to be even better than the original Rocky may be considered heresy by some. But I'm sticking to it. This movie, that centers on Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan), son of the late Apollo Creed, is much like the first Rocky movie, but even a tad better in my opinion. This is largely thanks to three qualities, all of which were excellent in the original Rocky, but are somehow outdone by Creed.
The directing. Between this film and Marvel's Black Panther (2018), Ryan Coogler has become one of Hollywood's most promising directors during the last decade. The fighting sequences are built so well that even I found them quite exhilarating to watch, even though (and I can't stress this enough) I really don't care one bit about boxing. The scenes taking place outside the ring are even better, as the film truly feels like an Oscar-worthy drama much more than the seventh instalment in a blockbuster franchise.
The story. Adonis Creed is a well-written, fleshed-out protagonist whose inner conflict and tragic past make him into a character to root for, as the struggles to make a name for himself beyond his father's legacy. Rocky Balboa, played here by a nearly 70-year-old Stallone, becoming his coach is a great way to further tie this film in with the Rocky franchise, and he isn't in the film just for fan service - Rocky faces his own struggles with aging and health throughout the film, and this parallels the main character's story beautifully. Rocky driving Creed to fight better in the ring while Creed drives Rocky to fight through his own struggles is poetic and powerful.
And finally, the acting. Sylvester Stallone became one of the very few actors in the world who have gotten more than one Oscar nomination for the same role, as he was once again nominated for playing Balboa - this time in the Best Supporting Actor category. Michael B. Jordan was robbed of an Oscar nomination for himself in my opinion - sure, 2015 was a competitive year in the Best Leading Actor race, but I would've definitely given him a nomination above most others. Jordan is simply fantastic in the lead role, proving that he's the man who can carry this franchise forward for the years to come (personally, I'm not sure we need a Creed III, but given this franchise's history of sequels that are better than they should be, I'll give it a chance for sure).
There you have it! Thank you for reading. Next week's Thursday is New Year's Eve, so I'll be posting the big one - my ranking of 2020's greatest films. Stay tuned!
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