by Nathan Braisted
The third “Creed” movie has been released, and to help increase the hype, Netflix added all 37 “Rocky” movies to its repertoire. Well, there’s only six, but it feels like there are just too many.
The only problem I have with both the “Rocky” and “Creed” franchises is that the filmmakers refuse to let sleeping dogs lie. But if the films continue to consistently make money, then I wouldn’t stop either.
The “Rocky” franchise is one of the most iconic movie franchises of all time, and absolutely dominated box offices in the late 70s / early 80s. With so many iconic plots throughout the series, it’s hard to pick the best film of the six.
Not for me and most “Rocky” fans, who know that “Rocky IV” is miles ahead of other installments, and that’s what we’re breaking down this week.
“Rocky IV” is a 1985 film written, directed and starring Sylvester Stallone. The film came out during the Cold War, and the film’s primary motif is America beating communism.
Russian super-athlete boxer Ivan Drago comes to America and is promoted by his manager to be unbeatable by the inferior American boxers. Rocky’s enemy-turned-mentor Apollo Creed sees these challenges and wants to prove himself as a true American patriot in the ring, so he agrees to fight Drago.
Rocky warns him against it but agrees to at least help him train for the match.
The fight is set in Las Vegas, and Creed’s entrance is an over-the-top display of American showmanship to psych out Drago, but he just stands there completely unphased.
This dude is a stone-cold boxing machine, and I don’t blame Rocky for sitting on the sidelines.
Creed gets absolutely demolished in the first round, leading Rocky and Apollo’s other trainer, Duke, to beg him to stop. Apollo is willing to die for his name and his country before a forfeit, and steps back in for round two.
Unfortunately, Apollo ends up losing his life at the hands of Drago by the end of the match. Apollo’s death is the motivation Rocky needs to fight Drago himself (and will be the motivation Donnie needs in Creed II).
Because of some league rules, Rocky will have to give up his championship if he wishes to fight Drago, which he does without care.
The fight is set in the Soviet Union on Christmas Day. Rocky flies out to a remote cabin in Russia to train, and we’re shown my favorite training montage of the whole series (I feel like it trumps the Philadelphia stair-climbing sequence) in which we have Rocky chopping logs with an ax, pulling sleds in the snow, and growing a cool beard in the process.
During Rocky’s training montage, we see Drago in a multi-million dollar training facility with dozens of researchers studying his every move. If the conditions weren’t unfair enough, we also learn that Drago has been pumped up with steroids the entire time. So not cool.
Now it’s time to fight. Rocky’s team decides their best way to win is to tire Drago out and strike when he’s vulnerable.
While the speech Rocky gives at the end of the film may not have held true in reality, it makes for a really good ending in-universe.
The Cold War aspect of the whole movie is probably my favorite part. Both fighters represent so much more than just themselves; they represent their entire country.
The story is really good, and it’s interesting how it indirectly sets up the Creed franchise. The pacing is great, and it’s such an easy watch with a ton of replay ability.
The villains of the movie are really well done. If you’re watching an 80s movie (or even an 80s-set movie), 90% of the time, the villain is going to be Russian. You think Red Dawn would have been half as good if Patrick Swayze was attacked by Antarcticians? Absolutely not.
Although it makes most of those villains seem a little less original, it shows just how influential the Cold War was in every aspect of American life.
“Rocky IV” is an absolute classic movie, and holds strong to this day. Like I said earlier, Netflix has picked up most of the “Rocky” movies, so give them a watch and see which you think is the best.
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