More Polished, and Consequently Less Poignant, Than the Original

Rating: 7/10 (12 April 2020)

Picking up right at the conclusion of the first film, the Rocky sequel follows our thick-witted (but lovable) prize fighter through the lesser explored consequences of his life-changing title bout. It's a struggle for both participants, with Rock suffering both physical and emotional scars while champion Apollo Creed grapples with a crushing sense of inferiority.
There's a great point to unearth here, a deep dive into the unseen trials that occur after the crowds have gone home, but Rocky II never quite hits that paydirt. It asks the right questions, spends a lot of time digging, but lacks the raw, self-aware poignancy of the original film and ultimately falls back on many of the easier tricks that served it so well the first time. We get a laundry list of reasons why the inevitable rematch shouldn't even be competitive - lack of motivation, physical shortcomings, personal distractions - but that's quickly smoothed over by a reheated training montage and the climactic fight scene plays out like a well-rehearsed dance number.
It wants to be potent and powerful again, to hit just as hard as that loaded first punch, and it gets close. But close isn't always good enough, especially when you're trying to one-up an all-time classic.