Rocky VI
1986 sports movie
Rating: none
Plot: A parody of Rocky IV, Kaurismaki style! Our hero, who looks slightly different, battles a Russian boxer named Igor.
This is not actually a follow-up to Rocky V although I understand why you might think it would be. The VI is actually supposed to be a IV upside-down since Kaurismaki and company are poking fun at the Cold War propaganda that is that embarrassing-but-still-sort-of-awesome fourth Rocky installment. Aki Kaurismaki said that this film is "my revenge against on Mr. Stallone, who I think is an asshole." As satire, this is a little obvious, but it's still got your typical Kaurismaki deadpan humor that you just can't get enough of. The "Drago" character is played by a guy with comically thick eyebrows, Matti Pellonpaa makes some shadow figures on a wall, and there's an inspiring training montage featuring our Rocky, a scrawny guy wearing those ridiculously patriotic (though, if you know you're flag etiquette, not really kosher) red-white-and-blue Rocky trunks while riding a stationary bike. This is really just an extended music video for the Leningrad Cowboys (their first), a pretty great 80's techno song with yodeling and a growled "I must break you!"
The second one I watched was another Cowboys music video for a song called "Thru the Wire," something I had trouble even figuring out what language the lyrics were being sung in. It was English. This had a distressing lack of yodeling, but such a thick saxophone that you forgive it. The narrative for this one concerned a guy who looked a little like Curtis Armstrong from Revenge of the Nerds busting out of a prison somewhere between Utah and Alabama. Either that's representative of Kaurismaki's humor or the guy just doesn't know American geography very well. Of course, he goes to a "hampuris stand" for some food, so the whole thing's a continuity error anyway. This wasn't bad, but my favorite thing was the end that featured product placement for Coca Cola that was blatant enough to make me laugh out loud.
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