Production Year: 1976 - Action/Adventure - Director: John G. Avildsen - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burgess Meredith, Burt Young, Carl Weathers more
Director John G. Avildsen's ROCKY is the stand-up-and-cheer saga of Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), an underdog boxer who gets his million-to-one shot at love, self-respect, and... more
Rocky [DVD] [1977]
The 1976 Oscar winner for Best Picture, John G Avildsen'sRockyis the story of a ... more
down-and-out club fighter who gets his million-to-one shot at a world championship title. In the title role, Sylvester Stallone (who also penned the screenplay) draws a carefully etched portrait of a loser who, in Brando-esque fashion, "coulda been a contender". Rocky then becomes one thanks to a publicity stunt engineered by current champ Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), while finding love courtesy of timid wallflower Adrienne (Talia Shire) along the way. Burgess Meredith revives the spirit of 1940's genre pictures through his scenery-chewing performance as Rocky's trainer. An enormous entertainment,Rockyis irresistible in its depiction of an underachiever who has the courage to start all over again--a description that could have been applied to Stallone's own life at the time. --Kevin Mulhall
Rocky [DVD] [1977]
The 1976 Oscar winner for Best Picture, John G Avildsen'sRockyis the story of a ... more
down-and-out club fighter who gets his million-to-one shot at a world championship title. In the title role, Sylvester Stallone (who also penned the screenplay) draws a carefully etched portrait of a loser who, in Brando-esque fashion, "coulda been a contender". Rocky then becomes one thanks to a publicity stunt engineered by current champ Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), while finding love courtesy of timid wallflower Adrienne (Talia Shire) along the way. Burgess Meredith revives the spirit of 1940's genre pictures through his scenery-chewing performance as Rocky's trainer. An enormous entertainment,Rockyis irresistible in its depiction of an underachiever who has the courage to start all over again--a description that could have been applied to Stallone's own life at the time. --Kevin Mulhall
Production Year: 2003 - Action/Adventure - Director: Jonathon Mostow - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring:Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nick Stahl, Claire Danes, Kristinna Loken, David Andrews
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
A review by welshwickedone on Rocky (DVD) October 10th, 2006
Author's product rating:
Did you enjoy it?
Loved it
Story
Outstanding
Characters / Performances
Outstanding
Special Effects
Good
Soundtrack
Outstanding
Advantages:
Great entertaining film with excellent storyline .
Disadvantages:
None
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Rocky I (Film Review Only). ===========================
The Plot. ------------------------- Street wise, down on his luck boxer Rocky Balboa is given the chance of a lifetime when his name is the one chosen by Apollo Creed. Creed is currently the world heavy weight champion at the time and when his planned opponent pulls out of a planned fight Creed pulls out this idea as a publicity stunt, but that's not what Balboa thinks.
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The Storyline. ------------------------- Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) is an Italian-American who works for a loan shark as a collector in the downtown streets of Philadelphia. He also enjoys his boxing and hopes that one day he will make it to the big time and get the credit he deserves in a Boxing career. He has a good friendship with many in the local community and has a close friendship with his long time friend Paulie Pennino (Burt Young). Paulie has a bad temper and gets drunk regularly and whilst drunk he regularly bullies his sister 'Adrian' Adrianna Pennino (Talia Shire). Rocky has feeling growing for Adrian as she works in his local pet shop and Rocky regularly visits the shop in the hope to win her affections.
Balboa is down on his luck, hates his job, and wants to work harder on his boxing in the hope of things changing, but things deteriorate when he visits his old Gym to start training again. Mickey Goldmill the owner of Mickey's Gym and Rocky's former trainer has given away Balboa's usually locker, as he believes Rocky will never succeed in boxing and tells him he should retire before he gets hurt. Rocky goes to his local pub to have a drink with Paulie and try to make himself feel better when he watches Apollo Creed on the TV.
Balboa admires Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) and wishes he could be in his shoes, but Creed has problems of his own. He has spent thousands promoting the next fight he has planned in which he hopes to keep his World Heavy Weight Champion status when he learns that his opponent has pulled out of the fight. Creed is desperate and with only five weeks, until the fight was planned Creed has the idea to give an underdog American the chance of the American dream of a chance at the boxing title.
Rocky's luck soon takes a change for the better when he is selected by Creed to have the chance of having a chance to try to win the title from Creed. Balboa is in shock but takes this opportunity very serious and begins training with the help f his old trainer Mickey. Creed however is just laughing it all off as the publicity stunt he believes it to be. Things are also on the up between Rocky and Adrian as they start a relationship and she moves in with Rocky when Paulie takes his violent outbursts too far.
The Arena is set and the contenders in the battle of Champion against Nobody enter the ring. Creed is continuing to laugh it up but his trainer 'Duke' (Tony Burton) has is concerns. The bell rings and the fight begins but who will win this battle that you will have to watch to find out.
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My Opinion. -------------------------- I have to confess this is one of my favourite films and I really enjoy all five films in the series of six. Sylvester Stallone gives an outstanding performance as the underdog with a fighting spirit and a kind heart It is interesting to see how rough and ready his appearance is in this film and to also have the pleasure of noticing throughout the five films I have seen, to see just how much his appearance changes. Ok we all know it is down to surgery and speak therapy but it is great to have an opportunity to see why he has developed so well into such an outstand actor. The fact that he came up with the idea for these films and that he actually wrote the storyline gives the film even more appeal and shows his true talent as a real underdog in the acting industry striving to succeed.
Talia Shire like Stallone is perfect for her role and again we have the pleasure of seeing how she has developed and grown through the five film series and she really does make a truly believable character of Adrian. We find ourselves actually feeling for her and enjoying her development of her character. Her performance in these films earned her the credits to star in hundreds of movies the most famous role other than that of Adrian being Connie Corleone-Rizzi in the Godfather Part III. Although it is understandable she would be perfect for that role as she played The Corleone Daughter Connie in the Godfather Saga (the TV mini series). Burt Young takes the role of Paulie truly under his wing giving an amazing and very believable performance. He allows you the chance to both loves, hate and pity his character and has had many acting roles both before and after the Rocky Films. His success was not at luck as Talia and Stallone for obvious reasons but he swayed more into making a success in TV performance rather than films. He did make one or two more films along side Talia Shire other than the Rocky series but that must be as the actors performance were not only brilliant but totally complimented the others.
Burgess Meredith, what can I say? He has come along way since playing The Penguin in the Batman series of the 1960's with Adam West as Batman. His list of films and roles would be impossible for me to list in anyway but this is due to the fact of his amazing talent for acting and his continuous outstanding performance and ability to blend to any role he is given perfectly. I love his character as Mickey in the Rocky films and have to say I had to shed a tear myself when his character is eventually killed off in Rocky Three.
Carl Weathers plays out a great performance of Apollo Creed making him the sort of person and you find yourself wanting Rocky to give him a good beating for you in the end. He must have given a fantastic performance to be able to have carried his character on to become very lovable in the end and having a high profile role in the first four Rocky films. His character is perfectly matched with the role of his trainer Duke played by Tony Burton and Burton gives a great performance as Apollo's Trainer. It is understandable why he was able to give such a convincing performance when you think that in real life Tony Burton was actually a professional Heavy Weight Boxer prior to his performances in all the Rocky films including the sixth in the series released this.
That's right for anyone who was unaware the sixth Rocky film has finally been released in 2006 and unlike the others numbered Rocky I,II,III,IV and V this film is titled Rocky Balboa and sees Rocky hit the ring again.
I have yet to see the sixth film I must confess and although they are probably really pushing there lucky in making another Rocky film I find myself saying I will have to watch it out of the principle of the matter. I have seen the first five and love them all in there own unique way and this will no doubt be the same for the sixth film. Rocky I is brilliant in my opinion giving a very factual and entertaining story of a kind-hearted man with a special talent and his fight to be at the top. It is understand by the quality of this film and the performances of all these actors why this film achieved and Academy Award for Best Picture in 1976.
Stallone choose John G. Avildsen as the Director of this movie and I feel he made a perfect choice. Working along side Stallone as the director Avildsen gives this film life and great entertainment value at all times. He has given us other entertaining films to watch since directing Rocky I such as The Karate Kid Trilogy and The formula, but he chooses not to take up the role of co director in any further Rocky Films.
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Technical Information. ----------------------------------------- Sylvester Stallone Rocky Balboa Burgess Meredith Mickey Goldmill Burt Young Paulie Pennino Carl Weathers Apollo Creed Talia Shire Adrain Pennino Bill Baldwin Bill Baldwin (Fight Announcer) Tony Burton Duke (Creed's Trainer) Frank Stallone Street Singer Butkus Stallone Butkus the Dog
Director John G. Avildsen Certificate PG Year 1976 Widescreen 1.85:1 Anamorphic Languages English - Dolby Digital (5.1) Subtitles Danish ; Dutch ; English ; English For The Hearing Impaired ; Finnish ; Greek ; Hebrew ; Hungarian ; Norwegian ; Polish ; Portuguese ; Swedish ; Turkish Duration 1 hour and 59 minutes (approx)
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Interesting Facts for all you Stallone Fans. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- I know there are a few of you out there who, like me are Sylvester Stallone fans, so I thought I would do something a little different on this review and add a small Facts on the main actor in addition to my film review.
Fact File. ----------------- Although the following facts were posted on my review of the Stallone film Rambo-First Blood but the second paragraph are new additions.
Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone was born on July 6th 1946 and is of Italian - American origin. He has been married three times and has five children, two sons and three daughters. His son Sage Stallone starred as his son in Rocky V and appeared in another Stallone movie with his father called 'Daylight'. Sylvester Stallone's other son Seargeoh who was born to his first wife Sasha Czach and Sage's younger brother is autistic. Although married to Bridgette Nielsen, there marriage lasted only two years, they had no children together, Stallone is now married to Jennifer Flavin and has been since 1997, and they have three daughters Sophia Rose Stallone, Sistine Rose Stallone and Scarlett Rose Stallone. Sylvester Stallone is not the only member of the Stallone family to have reached fame and success, as his brother Frank Stallone is a previous chart topper and starred in as well as provided music for the Rocky Films.
Sylvester Stallone is very famous for his trademark sneer, Lazy eyes and slurred speech, but it should be known that these are actually paralysis of the left side of his face caused by Birth Complications. Sylvester Stallone was the writer of all the Rocky moves and was all his own original work, which he wrote whilst trying to succeed as an actor. The idea for the rocky movie came to Stallone whilst he was watching a boxing match between 'Muhammad Ali' and underdog 'Chuck Wepner'. The Dog in Rocky I and Rocky II named Butkus was actually named Budkus Stallone and was owned by Sylvester at the time although now it has sadly passed away.
Advantages: A true classic, well worthy of its three Oscars Disadvantages: Some of the fight scenes are very violent (if you dislike that sort of thing!)
...last film in the series, Rocky V. ~ ~ The Rocky Balboa story started with the original 1976 movie and ended 14 years (and five movies) later in 1990 with Rocky V.
The original Rocky film (1976), directed by John G. Avildsen and written by Sly Stallone, was probably the movie which more than any other launched Stallone on his path to super-stardom in Hollywood. Rocky was an unlikely candidate for success. It was shot in only 28 days with a tiny overall ... ...winning through against overwhelming odds.
Rocky Balboa is the 30-year-old son of Italian immigrants from the wrong side of the tracks. He has no education to speak of, practically no social graces, and ekes out a meagre living as a strong-arm man for a local Italian loan shark. He lives in a run-down, dingy one-room apartment along with his two pet turtles, where he keeps a picture of his boxing hero, Rocky Marciano hanging on the wall. His favourite ...
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Advantages: Great story and a fantastic finale Disadvantages: none
...**BRIEF PLOT**
Rocky Balboa, (played by Sylvester Stallone), nicknamed the 'Italian Stallion', is an amateur boxer from Philadelphia ,working as a debt collector for a loan shark, is struggling to make ends meet.
Meanwhile, on the richer side of the boxing fraternity, the manager of Apollo Creed, (played by Carl weathers), the then fictional Heavyweight champion, likes the nickname of Rocky and decides to match him with the champ for a publicity ... ...training away from the gym Rocky heads off down to a meat packing plant where his friend Paulie Pennino's, (played by Burt Young) works, here is where he can practice his punching power on the slabs of raw meat hanging from the hooks.
During the training Rocky becomes very friendly with Paulie's sister, Adrian Pennino, (played by Talia Shire), a rather shy and naïve woman, the total opposite of Paulie, who works in a pet store.
With Creed misjudging ...
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Advantages: Good story, good acting performances Disadvantages: Slighty over-sentimental
Rocky has been much maligned over the years and in view of the increasingly inferior sequels it is easy to forget how well received it was when it first came out. This is a simple tale of a nobody having one last chance to become a somebody and it is also a touching love story of two outsiders coming together by accident and falling in love against all the odds.
THE STORY
Rocky Balboa is on the face of it one of life’s losers. He earns a living, ... ...Philadelphia boxing gyms they find Rocky and feel that he would be the right man. Although no one believes Rocky has a chance he realises that this is his only golden opportunity to prove himself to Adrian and make something out of his life.
CAST AND OPINION
Sylvester Stallone .... Rocky Balboa Talia Shire .... Adrian Burt Young .... Paulie Carl Weathers .... Apollo Creed Burgess Meredith .... Mickey Goldmill Thayer David .... Jergens Joe Spinell ...
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Advantages: Feel good film Disadvantages: over the top fight scenes but who cares
...of the legendary boxer named Rocky Balboa, even if you have never watched a Rocky film. Think of Stallone and what character springs to your mind first? For most people I guess, it is probably the down and out fighter with the wonky eye and the slurred speech. Why? Well Rocky symbolises the little man that takes life's punches on the chin and refuses to be beaten. You can't help but admire the spirit in which he takes on the world. Stallone will ... ...lived, but in Rocky he found his calling. Perhaps he tried to milk it too much, sequels 2 and 3 were fine but by the fourth it became a bit stale, by the fifth, well just out and out embarrassing. Today I am reviewing the first film, the place where it all started. Written in 3 days by Stallone himself, it may have its faults, but has still earned a place in the all time movie hall of fame, at least as far as I am concerned! Cast/Characters Sylvestor ...
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Advantages: Awesome story, great acting, a truly inspirational film Disadvantages: None. This is one of the best movies you'll ever see
...in life can relate to. Rocky is a film which tapped into that universal longing to succeed, and did it with such passion and honesty that it's still remembered more than thirty years later. Looking back now, it's hard to believe that this film almost never came to be. Stallone, an unknown actor in 1976, had to fight as hard as the title character to get this film made. Studio executives wanted an A-list actor in the title role, but Stallone held ... ...it exceeded all expectations, cemented Rocky as a pop culture icon, and even scooped an Oscar for best picture. Rocky himself is an unknown club fighter from a rough neighbourhood in Philadelphia. He lives in a run-down apartment and has to work as an enforcer for a local loan shark to make ends meet. Along the way, he hooks up with Adrian - a shy pet store worker that he's had a crush on. But his quiet life is changed forever when the heavyweight ...
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Advantages: rocky horror - Very original, funny, good soundtrack. Disadvantages: Shock treatment = v poor in comparison to rocky horror. just weird.
...I watched the rocky horror picture show at a friend's house and immediately loved it! Whilst looking to buy the DVD for myself, i came across this dvd set, with rocky horror and the added bonus of a related "sequel" to rocky horror called Shock Treatment. I hadn't seen Shock Treatment but thought I'd like it, with it being so closely related and with a lot of the same cast.
Firstly, I must say that I loved rocky horror. Despite it being so popular in the past, I only watched it for the first time recently and realised i had been missing out! It's a very strange storyline and downright weird at times, but in a cool way - newlyweds Brad and Janet become stranded whilst driving on their way to their honeymoon (i think that's where they were going..but it doesnt really matter if not). Anyway, to get help, they approach a castle they passed...
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Advantages: Great story, good acting, excellent fight scenes Disadvantages: None from me
...I have never really been a fan of Sylvester Stallone but I have to say he did do an amazing job with the Rocky films. I have watched them all several times over the years but only just got the DVD, this one being the first.
Stallone plays the role of Rocky Balboa who is a boxer but failed to make t to the big time. He fights in small matches and if he wins he only makes just over $40 so he also works for a debt collector. He uses a gym which is run by Mick but as Mick is angry that Rocky never tried to make it big he looses his locker and the pair have a fight.
In his private life Rocky likes Adrian who works in the local pet shop and he tries to talk to her ever day but she is just too shy. Rocky is friend with her brother and he arranges a date for the pair.
Apollo Creed, the heavy weight champion of the world is due to...
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Advantages: fairly good acting, finished off the story, great soundtrack Disadvantages: weaker than the previous ones, lack of fighting with Rocky, Pauley was annoying
...were just not the same without Stallone fighting. I found Tommy to be too hard and despite being excellent in the ring they were all lacking the emotion which Rocky put into them.
The running time of this film is 99 minutes and it has a certificate of PG, there is some violence in the film but I think this is nothing which would upset of distress children. I managed to get this DVD for just £3 in Tesco which I felt to be a great price. There are no bonus features on this DVD.
Overall I will recommend this film as it does end the Rocky story in a good way, so we thought until Rocky Balboa came out! But there just wasn?t the magic which the other films had and I think the lack of Rocky in the ring really didn?t help try to improve this film....
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Plot: Sylvester Stallone stars—in his signature role—as a small-time boxer regains his self-respect by taking on the challenge of the heavyweight championship. Written by the actor, ROCKY stands as the ultimate underdog story; a feel-good drama that continues to strike a chord even today.
Director John G. Avildsen's ROCKY is the stand-up-and-cheer saga of Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), an underdog boxer who gets his million-to-one shot at love, self-respect, and the world heavyweight title. Rocky is a down-on-his-luck Philadelphia southpaw who works at a meat-packing factory while fighting at a local club. He's given the chance of a lifetime when the world heavyweight champion, Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), chooses him as an unlikely opponent in his championship bicentennial fight. What was originally planned as a publicity stunt becomes a chance for Rocky to prove himself as a prizefighter while training with his cantankerous manager, Mickey (Burgess Meredith), to rise to the challenge. Thrilling scenes of Rocky's arduous training, including his unforgettable run up the Philadelphia Art Museum steps, are interspersed with a sweet and touching love story between the fighter and his best friend's shy sister, Adrian (Talia Shire). With the love of Adrian on his side, Rocky struggles to overcome the odds, fighting with all his heart in the glorious and brutal finale. Shot with gritty realism on the mean streets of Philadelphia, ROCKY introduced a new American cinematic hero, spurred on by rollicking action sequences and a rousing soundtrack. A triumph for star and screenwriter Stallone, who himself came from nowhere to reach the top, ROCKY is crowd-pleasing entertainment at its finest.
Technical information
Special Features: 8 Page Making Of Booklet, Chapter Search, Original Theatrical Trailer
Aspect Ratio: 1.85 Wide Screen
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital Mono
Dubbing Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 English Mono German Spanish
Award information
OSCAR: Best Director 1977 (John G. Avildsen)
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