The Quintessential Underdog Tale Whose Success Emulated Its Own Story

Rating: Null/10 (24 September 2015)

The quintessential underdog tale whose success emulated its very own story, Rocky didn't just became the highest grossing film of its year despite being made on a mere budget of a million dollars but also went on to win three Academy Awards including Best Picture, and is also responsible for launching the career of many, most notably Sylvester Stallone.
Set in Philadelphia, Rocky tells the story of Rocky Balboa, a small time boxer working as a debt collector for a loan shark who later gets a shot at the world heavyweight championship when the reigning champion, Apollo Creed, decides to give a local contender a chance of a lifetime. The plot then follows Rocky's training for the big night for he prepares to go all the distance against Creed.
Written by Sylvester Stallone & directed by John G. Avildsen, Rocky is crafted with a clear vision of what it's supposed to be and is totally devoted to its script & the characters who inhabit it. The screenplay is brilliantly penned down for each character plays a relevant role in the story's outcome but the focus is always on its titular character, who is fleshed out by Stallone amazingly well, both on paper & on the film canvas.
Shot on a shoestring budget which seems pretty evident from the set pieces its production design team puts up on the screen, the technical aspects here may lack the more polished, refined look when compared to other examples of its genre but its raw photography doesn't bother much for the film's heart is very much at the right place and it somehow manages to make each one of its shortcomings work in the story's favour.
The camera-work & lighting is crude but is expected, given its low budget. Editing is a mixed bag for few moments end up overstaying its welcome while it's absolutely perfect on other instances. But the biggest contributor of them all, in my opinion, is Bill Conti's magnificent score that elevates the experience to a whole different level with its pulsating, passionate & inspiration-inducing tracks and is single-handedly responsible for turning many sequences into instant classic moments.
Coming to the performances, Rocky features an interesting cast in Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers & Burgess Meredith, with all of them doing a terrific job in their given roles but it's Stallone who impresses the most and while he may seem off on few occasions, it's his performance only that made his character a cultural icon. Shire & Young have their moments, Weather does well as Apollo Creed while everything about Meredith is spot-on for the veteran actor steals every moment he's in.
On an overall scale, Rocky is the greatest sports film ever made that remains unsurpassed in the reach of its influence on its genre, pop culture & cinema as a whole. Catapulting the careers of many, turning Stallone into an overnight sensation and spawning a franchise that went on for 30 more years, Rocky isn't without its complaints but the plethora of positives, passion & motivation that oozes from every frame of this classic easily brushes aside those little nitpicks. Packing a heavy dose of adrenaline & providing a huge shot of inspiration, Rocky comes strongly recommended.