Thanks to an eventful train journey to work today, I had the pleasure of listening to the album "The Rocky Soundtrack", which encompassed a number of musical interludes from the first 5 Rocky films. This got me in the mood to watch what is one of the greatest films ever made (in my opinion, anyways), and what is my most faviourite film of all time: ROCKY IV.
As a kid, in our house it was Star Wars and Rocky that ruled the roost. Me dad got me into the first Rocky films at an early age, so I was on tenterhooks when the 4th Rocky film was released - by that point I had seen the unknown Italian Stallion take Apollo Creed all the way in the seminal Rocky. Then he finally beat Apollo in Rocky 2 to become heavyweight champion of the world, before finding that Mickey had fed him unworthy contenders and was refusing to allow Clubber Lang the chance to take on the champ. There were tears shed when Rocky lost and Mickey passed away, but thanks to the Eye of the Tiger Rocky was back on top!
By the time Rocky IV came out, I was not in a good way. As a kid I suffered from a fair few illnesses, some that put me in hospital. I was on medication for a while until I hit my teens, where a growth spurt and puberty helped me out somewhat (though even now at almost 33 years of age I'm still stuck with the babyface gene). At the time Rocky IV was released at cinemas I was too ill to attend. Thankfully some friends of the family had obtained a pirate copy of the film for me. And so it was that, in January 1986 at the ripe old age of 7 years old, I was huddled up on the sofa under a duvet with a sick bucket (as I couldn't keep anything down at that time - I was proper ill...) and a VHS remote control. Then I pressed PLAY...
As was always the case with Rocky films, the beginning was always the end of the last film. Again I got to see Rocky beat Clubber Lang, then the obligatory freeze frame on him & Apollo having their training match. Then I saw the one thing I always wanted in life...a robot. Not just any robot, but a fricking cool robot that played music through it (just seeing the thing lampooned on Family Guy recently made me realise how much of an impact this robot made on some people). I think I pestered my parents for almost a year to get me one...you can't imagine how dissapointed I was to not see a robot shaped gift at Christmas that year...thankfully that dissappointment went away upon opening the Rocky Sega Master System game and all was good in the world. For anyone that wants to get me a gift, please note that the robot is always on my christmas gift list!
I'd seen images of the "bad guy" in the film in the weeks leading up to the UK release of the film and could not believe the size of him. He wasn't as big as Rocky but he damn sure towered over him! Dolph Lundgren was a newbie to films at that point, but he had the look of a destroyer. I did wonder how Rocky would get the win (as all kids wondered in those days, as we defied disbelief back then), as the silent assassin proved to be a worthwhile opponent without saying anything.
Then came the moment that made me cry (and, if 'm honest) still gets me emotional at times. That was the death of Apollo Creed. Knowing Rocky could have saved him by throwing in the towel, but knowing that Apollo didn't want to lose like that. It was heart-breaking. What gets me everytime is seeing Apollo shake in the middle of the ring. These days they wouldn't let anyone move him, especially if they feared a broken neck could have occurred. But back then things were different I guess.
Rocky decided that he wanted revenge, and wanted to take Ivan Drago on in his homeland of Russia. Cue Adrian telling him he can't win, and Rocky responds the only way he can, by saying that maybe he can't, but if he's prepared to die for the cause, then so is Drago. As Rocky mourned his friend, we were able to see the highs and the lows in a fantastic flashback (Hollywood, take advantage of this) to the tune of No Easy Way Out, by the same guy who wrote the song In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida - Robert Tepper of Iron Butterfly). This song still gets me & I do appreciate the Bullet For My Valentine cover, even if it was Bullet For My Valentine playing it.
The story then moves over to Russia (or its substitute, Canada) with Adrian having left him at home. Then we get the first of TWO training montages (of which a mobile phone provider and Family Guy have both lampooned). Hearts On Fire highlights one of these training montages, and it goes to show that Rocky is the underdog with no real training facility, whilst Drago has the best facility & the best steroids known to man, constantly hitting higher & higher pounds per square inch amounts (apparently, he takes his spinach like popeye).
Through 15 rounds, we see the brutal beating that both men take, with Rocky booed throughout (until the latter rounds). Once the tide starts turning, the awesome soundtrack kicks in & Rocky wins with the patented left hook, knocking Drago down for his first professional loss (and probably a career outside of boxing). Cue the sappy annoying you can change ending (though this did get me spurred on as a youngster).
Why do I like this film? It has everything you want out of a movie - heartbreak, comedy, training montages & a fricking robot! I like it because the storyline was apt - east vs west lampooned the cold war between the Russians & the US, which was quite a topic in the mid to late 80s. Seeing Rocky go up against the immovable object was also a plus point, as this was the first challenger you thought actually had a shot. I was attached to this film (which, coincidentally, was the most profitable of all the Rocky films) as a kid, and almost 30 years on I can still watch this and experience the highs and lows.
Last year I had the honour of meeting someone special who understood my passion with Rocky IV (& who provided me with a poster of the Italian Stallion from that film, as well as a signed autographed picture of Apollo Creed & Rocky, signed by Carl Weathers - who I would also go on to meet alongside my someone special). Weirdly enough, she wasn't a Rocky fan, but was a Drago fan, seeing as he was played by one of her crushes in Dolph. Whilst we may not be together, we still share this passion and this film, and I thank god that she enjoys it, and that she understood why I did too. I don't watch this film much now, as I got used to watching it with her, and it just isn't the same these days, but I still love it, and my heart is still on fire. Thank you ROCKY IV, for being everything I ever wanted from a film...
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