Rocky V
Dir: John G. Avildsen
1990
****
Rocky IV was awful. I think maybe people like it because it was so awful though. It had more 80s cheese in it than most people could stomach, making it an easy target for spoofing and making fun of and being the first film that suggested that maybe great films shouldn't have millions of sequels. It is slice of the times though, full of politics, patriotism, revenge and talking robots. Utter nonsense but it's what some of us grew up with, it is often fascinating to look back at. I'm still not a fan. However, most people will agree that Rocky V is the worst of the series hands down. Everyone but me that is, as I actually really like it. For me it sees Rocky go back to his roots, to go back to where it all began. He looks back at his career, his triumphs and his regrets but also makes whole new mistakes. The fighter becomes the trainer but can never escape the legend. It was a little bit more raw like the original film, it had a lot of feeling to it and the conclusion was a little more basic rather than the usual over the top fight. It wasn't perfect but I think it went in a really interesting direction. The original script had Rocky die in the street after fighting his would be protege but thankfully Stallone asked to rewrite it as Rocky is about perseverance and redemption, and having him die in a street brawl would be against the roots of the series.I think what I love most about the film is the Burgess Meredith cameo. I'm not embarrassed to say that when Meredith's ghost said 'Get up you son-of-a-bitch cos Micky loves ya' it brought a tear to my eye. It is always nice when an actor involves his own family in a project and it was lovely to see Stallone try to bring his son into the series but Sage Stallone was annoying here. It's also a bit odd how he went from being nine to fourteen within a few days (as the film leads on days after the last one finishes). Again, not perfect but really not as bad as everyone remembers.