Rocky Balboa: At Least It's Better Than Rocky V

When I rented the latest and (apparently) final Rocky installment, I was just thinking "Please don't let this be worse than Rocky V." Thankfully, it wasn't. Not even close.

"Rocky Balboa" is the movie that should have been called "Rocky VI." For some reason, Sylvester Stallone decided to give it a name that breaks tradition and makes it confusing to talk about. Although even "Rocky Balboa" is much better than "Puncher's Chance," which Stallone almost decided to call it. Before we get into it, let's reflect on how the series has evolved since 1976.

With the exception of "Rocky II," each sequel in the franchise was a huge step down from its predecessor. The journey from "Rocky" to "Rocky V" is truly the most extraordinary decline of any movie franchise in history. The original "Rocky" was an instant classic that received ten Oscar nominations and beat out "Taxi Driver," "Network," and "All The President's Men" for Best Picture. "Rocky V" is arguably the worst movie ever made. It's hard to believe that two movies can be so different when they have the same producers, director, writer, and main cast members, but there's a day and night difference in so many areas:

Anyway, the point of all this is to explain why "Rocky Balboa" really needed to step it up to save the franchise. Apparently, 16 years was enough time for Stallone to finally turn it around. And while the movie may not have been great, it was more than good enough to reverse the horrible trend Rocky was on and let him finish with some dignity.

Milo Ventimiglia plays Rocky Jr., who has surprisingly aged the right amount since "Rocky V" (Rocky Jr. has been played by different people over the years and his age has been ridiculously inconsistent with the passage of time). Adrian is, well, different (don't want to give a spoiler). Paulie seems to be even more of a jerk than he used to be. Duke is back and as good a trainer as ever. We're surprised with the return of little Marie and Spider Rico, whom we haven't seen since the original. Archive footage brings back several blasts from the past, and even Stu Nahan appears once again as a fight commentator.

I was wondering what story they could possibly come up with at this point that would get Rocky back in the ring for "one last fight," but that part was actually believable enough, if a bit tired. Real-life world light heavyweight champion Antonio Tarver plays Mason "The Line" Dixon, the world heavyweight champ in the film. Dixon is much more realistic than Apollo Creed, Clubber Lang, and Ivan Drago were, both in the boxing scenes and in his character. He's basically a regular guy suffering from a lack of respect because he's never fought anyone who can fight back. And all the punches are real, along with real refs, real announcers, and a real crowd (who didn't know a movie was going to be filmed that night).

While in "Rocky V" he was brain-damaged, penniless, and hopelessly struggling with fatherhood, Rocky starts out in this one pretty normal. He's stuck in the past and a bit depressed, but things pick up when he starts getting back into what he was born to do. He's gotten significantly cheesier over the years, but manages to give a decent speech to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission after they deny his request for a boxing license, and a very good one to his whiny son:

"Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place, and it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't how hard you 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. Now, if you know what you're worth, then go out and get what you're worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain't where you want to be because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain't you. You're better than that!"

In the end, Rocky defeats his demons and makes peace with himself (as do Rocky Jr. and Mason Dixon). The movie did what it needed to do; it let an American icon retire the way he should be remembered. And they had a great idea for the ending—letting the credits roll while showing Rocky fans running up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. One of Rocky's last lines is "I gotta go out the way I gotta go out." America thanks you, Sly, for not going out with "Rocky V."