Rating: PG
Genre:
Drama
Release Date: 04/24/2001
SubTitles: French/Espanol
Dubbed: English/French/Espanol
Sound: 5.1/1
Run Time: 119 Minutes
Distributor/Studio: MGM
Rocky Balboa (
Sylvester Stallone), a Philadelphia boxer, is but one step removed from total bum-hood. A once-promising pugilist,
Rocky is now taking nickel-and-dime bouts and running strongarm errands for local loan sharks to survive. Even his supportive trainer,
Mickey (
Burgess Meredith), has given up on
Rocky. All this changes thanks to
Muhammad Ali-like super-boxer
Apollo Creed (
Carl Weathers). With the Bicentennial celebration coming up,
Creed must find a "Cinderella" opponent for the big July 4th bout -- some unknown whom
Creed can "glorify" for a few minutes before knocking him cold.
Rocky Balboa was not the only Cinderella involved here: writer/director
Sylvester Stallone, himself a virtual unknown, managed to sell his
Rocky script (one of 35 that he'd written over the years) on the proviso that he be given the starring role. Since the film was to be made on a shoestring and marketed on a low-level basis, the risk factor to
United Artists was small. For
Stallone, this was a make-or-break opportunity -- just like
Rocky's million-to-one shot with
Apollo Creed. Costing under a million dollars,
Rocky managed to register with audiences everywhere, earning back 60 times its cost. The film won several Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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