my first release of adrenaline!

Rating: 8/10 (12 May 2006)

Critics often refer to Rocky IV as being one of the worst of the series, but I remember going to the odeon cinema November 1985 as a 7 year old with the worst cold ever and coming out 90 minutes later oblivious of my illness. Never have I witnessed a film get so much involvement from an audience as this one(inc me). People were leaping out of their chairs throwing air punches and willing Rocky to win, like you might expect from a real boxing match!! Contrary to critics unnecessary remarks about the films social comment, what sly cleverly did was create possibly his greatest money-spinner.At that time he was at the height of his popularity,everyone already loved the character so he took these factors and used them to great effect to create a winning formula pitting Rocky against an invincible opponent, not only that but a Russian one at a time when America was fragile and needed inspiration to look to with all the goings on of the cold war. So he tapped into the peoples zeitgeist - winning ingredient number one.
Secondly he took Rockys best loved friend Apollo and had him killed off by the deadly russkie. Having this advertised on the trailer was a masterstroke because by then people were baying for Dragos blood and willing Rocky to destroy his soviet foe. To put the icing on the cake at the end he gives the film an anti-war message to ease the conscience of the politically correct. Superb.
Dolph Lundgren is terrific as drago, with limited speech and no signs of human feeling projects the idea that he has been locked up in a training facility as kind of an experiment and used as a pawn in the east v west struggle for the title of super-power.
With a pumped up soundtrack and excellent fight sequences,albeit over the top Rocky IV was the highest grossing film of the entire series. Pure entertainment.