"I think we ought to knock his block off!"

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2010)

I have to make a bit of a personal confession here - if not for "Rocky II", (and had I not seen the original film more than once), I might have gone on thinking that Rocky Balboa won the match and the world championship the first time around. One gets so caught up in the euphoria of Rocky's own self-proclaimed recipe for success in simply going the distance, that it's easy to miss the ring announcer's decision that Apollo Creed was still the champion. With that said, it's a foregone conclusion that this sequel will bring Rocky the coveted prize and successful achievement of his original goal. That's OK though, as the film effectively delves further into the development of the characters and takes a glimpse into the personal lives of Rocky and Adrian (Talia Shire), now intent on marriage and raising a family. I had a hard time trying to recall the details of my own first mortgage back around the same time as the original Rocky, but sixteen grand at around nine and a half per cent sounds about right.
Once again, I find Burgess Meredith's role to be an anchor for the success of the first two films of the Rocky franchise. His character Mickey crystallizes the essence of the hard core boxing veteran, a gruff exterior to match the inner demons of a career that's never quite fulfilled. Mickey epitomizes the blood, sweat and spit of a profession that could be as down and dirty as that of Tony Gazzo, Rocky's hoodlum benefactor and local Shylock.
I guess it's fitting that the match at the finale brings Rocky the fame and glory that was long in coming but inevitable if the series was to continue. The fact that it had a pro wrestling type ending is about the harshest critique I can come up with, one of those concessions to the Hollywood Cinderella ending that films of this nature seem to rely on almost to a fault. But if you think about it, had Rocky knocked out Apollo in the fourth, fifth or sixth round, where would the emotional impact be? Better to get that adrenaline pumped up right to the max, and settle the score with no seconds to go.