1982 sequel sequelRating: 12/20
Plot: Rocky's now the champion of the world (see Rocky II, or just the beginning of Rocky III since it shows you the end of the second one anyway) and is fighting chumps. A new challenger with a mohawk bursts onto the scene. A blast from Rocky's past comes along to help train him for his big fight. Meanwhile, there are Adrian problems.
This is no worse than the last sequel, but as entertaining as things are--and they are mostly very entertaining--things are really starting to get ridiculous here. I do love the title crawl from the right in these. Iconic. After that, the movie goes downhill, but I'm glad I got to see the end of Rocky II again since I didn't notice blood on the referee the first time. Then, we get not just one montage but two, including an "Eye of the Tiger" montage with a Muppet sighting. The characters are as colorful as the storytelling is formulaic and clumsy. Mickey's in there to deliver his Mickey-isms, my favorite being "You ever fight a dinosaur, kid? They can cause a variety of damage." And there's Mr. T. whose Clubber Lang would be a really cool character if he wasn't just stealing Apollo Creed (love the names in these) dialogue from the other movies--my suspicions, at least--and if there wasn't all that cartoonish grunting. It takes away a little of his presence, I think. The Rocky character seems even less brain-damaged than he did in the first two movies which makes no sense at all. Stallone's writing makes it clear that he might not be all there, however. Adrian seems superfluous all of a sudden, and the less screen time for her, the better. And then there's Hulk Hogan as Thunderlips. What the hell is going on with that match with Thunderlips? And what the hell is he talking about most of the time? Love slaves? Punching cops? Who thought this scene was a good idea? Rocky's screaming of "Adrian!" (of course) and "Catch me!" when Thunderlips is getting ready to throw him into the crowd were funny though. And I didn't realize Hulk Hogan was so huge. Anyway, this is a fun enough little movie, but it's so cartoonish and doesn't have nearly the emotional impact of the others.
And nobody thought taking Mickey to a hospital would be a good idea? What's wrong with these people.
Ah Rocky III....where the series became completely unbelievable and pure cartoon. It does contain the most openly homoerotic scene in a PG movie, with the ocean hugging scene between the cropped shirted Apollo and greased up Rocky. (By the way, how do you improve your running speed so much that you are able to catch a guy who was beating you running BACKWARDS just a few weeks before?)
ReplyDeleteIts a fun little slice of 1980's cheese, and as I said earlier, I give it a 15.
The only 'Rocky' movie I was not happy that I watched was the fifth one. The others are either good or entertaining.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I watched that beach hugging scene seven times. Wait, no I didn't. Forget I typed that.
I agree with both of you, but this came out when I was 18, and besides being a film I have seen about 30 times, it is just one of those things I associate with friends and growing up. It is a cartoon, but with Mr. T and Hulk Hogan, it is an incredibly entertaining cartoon. You can make fun of it(montages, Stallone's short-shorts, Stallone straining to beat a clearly 3rd gear Apollo, fight scenes that look nothing like real boxing), but it is bigger-than-life, button pressing (love when Mr. T offers to show Adrian what being with a "real" man is like), popcorn entertainment where the good guy kicks the bad guys ass. An indefensible 18 for me.
ReplyDeleteOh, you don't have to defend your Rocky ratings, Cory.
ReplyDeleteI'll write about Rocky IV, a movie nobody seems to like, later tonight maybe. Sneak preview: I like it a little more than the fifth one.