Rocky (1976)

Written by Nathan on March 3, 2023

Rocky is an inspiring story about an ordinary man who takes advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

I do have to say, the movie has a rocky beginning, as the dialogue is pretty clunky and awkward at times. But after about twenty minutes, the movie really gets into its groove and had me locked in till the end. My favorite aspect of this film is the humanity it has; it takes a look at a big and intimidating fighter in Rocky and explores his emotions and insecurities. My favorite scene is when he lays in bed next to Adrian with the sudden realization that he cannot win this fight. It was an incredibly vulnerable moment for him and worked really well.

As I said before, the dialogue is very inconsistent, especially in the scene at Rocky's house with Adrian. It was very unsettling to watch because she is written as if she does not want to be there, but then the next second she is in love with him. It was very weird and creepy. On the other hand, in some scenes, the dialogue is written very well, which lends itself to boosting the actors' performances. But when it is off, the acting on display is negatively affected. Despite that, this movie gets a lot more right than it does wrong in the script department.

Technically, this film excels. The score is fantastic, with one of the most iconic songs in cinematic history. The cinematography is top-notch, with some incredible shots in the city and very creative angles used during the training sequences.

Overall, this film lived up to every ounce of hype it had behind it, and I thoroughly enjoyed every second spent with these characters.

Score: 98% | Verdict: Masterpiece