Yet even then he realizes that he is going nowhere fast. Although he certainly isn't the brightest person around he has a big heart and does the best that he can. 'Rocky Balboa' (Sylvester Stallone) is a boxer who struggles just trying to make ends meets in the city of Philadelphia. Chartoff and Winkler mortgaged their houses for the last $100,000. When Winkler and Chartoff told United Artists that they could only get the screenplay if Stallone starred, United Artists cut the budget to $1 million and had Chartoff and Winkler sign agreements that they would be personally liable if the film went over budget. After Winkler and Chartoff purchased the film, they took it to United Artists, who envisioned a budget of $2 million with an established star, particularly Robert Redford, Ryan O'Neal, Burt Reynolds, Nick Nolte or James Caan. They agreed, on the condition that Stallone continue to work as a writer without a fee, and that he work as an actor for scale. He had $106 in the bank and no car, and was trying to sell his dog because he couldn't afford to feed him, but he refused to sell unless they agreed to allow him to star in the film.

Overall this isn't a classic but by repeating the basic formula of the first movie and taking Rocky back to the gutter, this remains an entertaining soap that is driven by mushy, if formulaic, emotion.After producers Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff became interested in the script, they offered Sylvester Stallone an unprecedented $350,000 for the rights. Carl Weathers is good as Apollo Creed and this is one of his best roles. Young is good and Meredith easily repeats his tour-de-force as the grizzled trainer.

Shire doesn't have much to do but she's good beside Stallone.

The fighting is, of course, nonsense even sillier than the first film, but with the raw emotion and use of music you can't help but get involved even if you don't want to! At times it goes a bit far and may look a bit like ego-massaging by Stallone, eg the scene where he is out on his training run and is followed by hundreds of supportive children! Stallone is good in all his roles, the playing of Rocky as a working class bum made good is bang on. As in the first Rocky movie, the fight is a huge thing, full of emotion and welling music. The fight however that's where the money is. The script has some good scenes and mixes in comedy my favourtie line being where Rocky is advised to invest his money in condominiums, to which Rocky replies `condominiums? But I don't use them.' This comedy helps endear Rocky to us despite being a bit `punchy'. This is all well and good, and Stallone doesn't let it get too mushy. Here the soapy mush is mostly about his loss of money and decline back into the gutter, while we have children and comas thrown in for good measure. The story covers similar themes it's a soap opera with a fight at the end. Stallone proves that he has got a money making brain in his head by basically remaking Rocky.

Meanwhile Creed, who should fight other fighters, is plagued by suggestions that the first fight was staged to go the distance. As the money fades he finds personal crisis is never far away and is tempted into a big money rematch against Creed. Immediately after Rocky's close contest with Apollo Creed, he is drawn into fame only to find it is a temporary thing.

Roki balboa film completo