Rocky Balboa

I finally watched Rocky Balboa last week. In case you haven't seen it and don't want the ending spoiled, don't read any further. I will be talking about the ending. I watched the original Rocky in theaters and I loved it. I am not a boxing fan but I thought the story was very well done. The only complaint I had was I felt the fight was not quite realistic. I have not watched many fights, but I felt if they punched the way the did there is no way they could have finished the fight. I also felt that no referee would have allowed Rocky to fight the 15th round considering the way he looked. Those however, were very minor quibbles and I still loved the movie.

Rocky 2 on the other hand was a bit of a disappointment for me. It felt too much like a soap opera to me. It was enjoyable but not great.

Rocky 3 is my favorite Rocky movie. I liked the scene where Adrian basically kicked Rocky in the butt and made him realize it was time to get serious. The fight was almost anti-climactic and very well done.

Rocky 4 was another disappointment. It was too heavy handed for my taste. I got the message, the Russians will do anything to win and in the end the American will be triumphant. I did like Rocky's training methods, but not much else.

Rocky 5. If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all.

That brings us to Rocky Balboa. When I heard that Sylvester Stallone was going to do both this movie and a new Rambo I wondered why. Did he just need the money? I can't judge the Rambo movie but this one far exceeded my expectations. Again, it is not a great movie but I felt it was better than Rocky's 2, 4, and 5. Rocky's motivation for fighting was believable.His never quit attitude was admirable. I fully expected him to lose the fight and I was not disappointed. The fact that he finished the fight was a theme borrowed from the first movie. The goal was as much to go the distance as it was to win the fight. In this respect Rocky succeeded. I had actually gone to the theater to watch this movie. About halfway though the film messed up. I had my money refunded. I wanted to go back and see the rest, but someone else was living with me at the time and she didn't want to so I never went back.

IMDB rating:7.5. My rating 8





Today's card is Jay Bell demonstrating a new way to go golfing. I don't think it will catch on.