Rocky: 1976

I had to go out of order again, but this time it was not intentional like I did for The Godfather movies. My local library's copy of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest was checked out, again, so I skipped that for now (while I wait for my hold) and decided to watch Rocky. The timing was rather fitting as I watched the film last night and attended a body combat class this morning. I must admit, as I was throwing punches this morning, I was imagining myself in the gym prepping like Rocky. My class, though, was only an hour long and had more mixed martial arts than just boxing. And I'm definitely not anywhere near ready to take on Apollo Creed.

Even though Rocky is a famous film (not as much for winning Best Picture but more as cultural event and influence), I had only ever seen clips of the film. I knew the basic premise, underdog boxer who defies the odds against world famous boxer, and of course I knew he yelled the name "Adrian!" But that was really it. I didn't expect to see a film with a more developed story.

Rocky works for Gazzo, who was familiar to me but I had to check IMDB to see why (he's the guy who interviews Travis in the opening scene of Taxi Driver). Gazzo seems to be a mobster or something else that involves illegal activity, and Rocky is in charge of making sure Gazzo is paid by those who owe him. Naturally, Rocky uses any means necessary to do so, but he turns out to be kinder than Gazzo wants. In one scene, Gazzo criticizes Rocky for not following orders:

This scene made Rocky likable. He's portrayed as being logical, pointing out that the guy can't work and thus can't earn money with broken thumbs. Yet I think the real reason is his humanity. Although he fights in the boxing ring, Rocky is gentle in the real world. It's made even more apparent by his love for his pet turtles and later his love for Adrian.

Some of the movie is very 1970s in the way Rocky takes care of his body even though he's an athlete. He smokes a lot, and after a fight, when he comes home, he has beer for dinner. When he begins his serious training, we see a shift in his routines, so perhaps this isn't as 1970s as I think, but to me it seems like athletes today are better about their health. Of course, I don't have that much experience with that, so I could be wrong.

I enjoyed Rocky for what it is: an inspirational story about overcoming the odds and meeting goals. The story has some holes (I don't get why Gazzo gives Rocky money and then he kind of disappears or why Rocky just lets Paulie treat Adrian the way he does), but maybe those are resolved in Rocky 2 (which didn't win Best Picture and I have no interest in watching...but if you watch it, let me know how it is).