A Classic Boxing Story
Rocky
Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Burgess Meredith
Director: John G. Avildsen
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Plot Summary: The ultimate underdog story, a low-grade boxer is picked by the heavyweight champion as a PR stunt, but the underdog definitely has some teeth.
Rocky details the rise of a simple, south Philadelphia boxer (Stallone) as he struggles through his low-grade life, dreaming of much more than what he is. He is a boxer, as we see at the beginning of the movie, but not one with a lot of skill. His trainer (Meredith) thinks he can be much more, but doesn't have the drive.
Rocky meets a very shy woman named Adrian (Shire) in a pet shop. Her brother, Paulie (Young), tries to push them together. Their romance is sweet and unaffected, and forms the heart of the story. Rocky obviously has heart. This is in contrast to the champion, Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), who is very intelligent but slick, caring more for his image than anything else.
This is the classic boxing story, the first of many sequels (all pretty much the same thing, only not as original, nor as good). The pacing is slow, stopping to really develop the character of the Italian Stallion. Adrian and Paulie are also fleshed out, as well as the location. Philadelphia is showcased here.
Overall I would recommend this as a case study of a solid, simple story — a tale of the underdog taking on the king. And the ending is surprisingly real.
