Review of Rocky II (1979) by Bloodmarsh K — 19 Feb 2012

Rocky II is not as great as the original, but its still a great film that lives up to this great franchise. Rocky Balboa is a hero is a way, his kindness, his love for his family and friends, and his pure love for boxing make him incredibly likable and very few people do not recognize the name that is Rocky. Everyone was blown away with the first tale of the Italian Stallion and it became an Oscar winning masterpiece, it spawned many sequels with this being the first and is a very good film. Every person needs to see the inspiration in the Rocky films and this one proves that its always possible to go the distance again.

The story follows Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) after his match with heavy weight champion Apollo Creed. He is now living the dream with money, his new marriage with Adrian (Talia Shire), and a baby on the way, everything is looking up. As for Apollo, everyone believes he lost the fight and this makes him want a rematch with the Italian Stallion, which makes Rocky laugh. However, Rocky runs into financial troubles and decides he needs to rematch Apollo to help his new family and to support his new life.

The plot basically adds on to the first movie I think as its another match with Apollo Creed. I enjoyed watching Rocky's new popularity and how everyone liked him thanks to him going the distance, and it put a huge smile on my face. It really did not have the same great themes as the original but that did not bother me too much. As for the characters, they stayed the way you remember them and I loved how I am getting to know these characters espically the incredible and brave Rocky Balboa. I was glad to watch more in the story of the most famous fictional Boxer of all time.

The cast consists of a pretty fantastic cast that we remember and they all still live up to how I remember them. Sylvester Stallone will always be remembered for two roles in his life, as Rambo and more importantly he will be rembered for his great hero Rocky that was what he was born to play. Talia Shire is also remembered for two roles, as Rocky's wife Adrien and Micheal Corleone's sister Connie in The Godfather films, both were incredible performances. Burt Young is just a funny guy, which makes him always enjoyable as Rocky's best friend. This cast will stay great in each film and they are all memorable if you ask me.

Rocky II was a great sports film and although its not as good as the original due to its lack if themes that the first had, its still a good sequel that I really enjoyed. Any fan of the first film will enjoy this movie and its great extension of the first films great story of this brave and inspiring boxer. I am excited to see the rest of the Rocky series and I hope its able to live up the start of this famous series that has inspired so many people.