To quote that great pugilist Terry Malloy, this is a one-way ticket to Palookaville.
Rocky Balboa (2006)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:169
Fresh:129
Rotten:40
Average Rating:6.6/10
Consensus: Implausible but entertaining and poignant, Rocky Balboa finds the champ in fighting form for the first time in years.
Rated: 12A [See Full Rating] for boxing violence and some language
Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:19-01-2007
Synopsis: ROCKY BALBOA, the sixth installment of the long-running film franchise, should amount to nothing more than a lame punch line to a TONIGHT SHOW monologue joke. However, just as his longtime corner... ROCKY BALBOA, the sixth installment of the long-running film franchise, should amount to nothing more than a lame punch line to a TONIGHT SHOW monologue joke. However, just as his longtime corner man Paulie describes the Italian Stallion himself, this movie is all heart. Thirty years after Sylvester Stallone first introduced the underdog backroom brawler from Philadelphia in the Oscar-winning ROCKY, Rocky Balboa returns for one last dance. Speculation as to whether Balboa, in his prime, would have been able to defeat lackluster champ Mason "The Line" Dixon spurs Dixon's management to set up an exhibition fight between the two. That Balboa is in his 50s in the film and wouldn't be sanctioned to fight anyone, let alone a man 30 years his junior and in the prime of life, must be left up to the viewer's ability to suspend disbelief. To its credit, however, the movie addresses at every turn the insanity of a man approaching 60 getting back into a boxing ring, and Balboa's impassioned explanation of his motivations is just believable enough to give all other improbabilities a free pass. Though it may sound like faint praise, this is the best ROCKY movie since the original. It's very much a love letter to Philadelphia, and Stallone, who wrote and directed the movie, shoots everything with an unflinching eye that humanizes the mean streets of the City of Brotherly Love and evokes the gritty dignity of the original film. And while Burt Young's cantankerous Paulie and Tony Burton's Duke both return, Talia Shire, sadly, does not reprise her role as the beloved Adrian. It's revealed early in the film that Adrian has died of cancer, and it's the pain of that tragedy that ultimately fuels Rocky. Boxing as a metaphor for life is certainly nothing new, but Stallone makes a legitimate contribution to the tradition with ROCKY BALBOA. Life hits harder than any man can, and one's ability to keep getting up until the final bell rings is the true measure of self. Corny? Perhaps. But when Bill Conti's legendary score kicks in and Rocky starts pounding the heavy bag, the metaphor feels truly profound. [More]
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Antonio Tarver, Burt Young, Milo Ventimiglia
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Antonio Tarver, Burt Young, Milo Ventimiglia, Tony Burton, Geraldine Hughes, James Francis Kelly, Bert Sugar, Max Kellerman, Larry Merchant, Jim Lampley
Director: Sylvester Stallone
Director: Sylvester Stallone
Producer: William Chartoff, David Winkler, Robert Chartoff
Composer: Bill Conti
Studio: Columbia Pictures
Reviews for Rocky Balboa
The film meanders along this path for a long, slow while, a primitive soap opera dressed up as street poetry.
The unfortunate effect is that of an invisible angel of death hooking Rocky's mouth with a fishing line and implacably reeling him in.
Ridiculous, but nonetheless enjoyable, this drags a lot for the first half but rallies for the final act with a crowd-pleasing one-two of training montage and fight sequences.
Even goodwill can’t make this look like anything more than a glorified TV special. Surely it’s time for the audience to throw in the towel?
The Rocky Balboa you were hoping for, dreaming for, and an astonishing personal triumph for Stallone. Bring on Rambo IV?
If geriatric turtles and a dead wife sound like a slow start, that's the point. Rocky films are essentially exercises in delayed gratification.
If you hear the Rocky theme and think ‘118 118’, you might wonder what all the fuss is about. For the rest of us, this is a reminder of why we fell in love with the character in the first place.
Fits perfectly into the world created by the first five movies: sentimental, formulaic and effective.
Stallone wrote and directed this cinematic ride down memory lane that puts a final grace note on his indelible creation.
With "Rocky Balboa", Stallone's created the first real "sequel" to his original, a deserving bookend that recaptures that film's sense of character and realistic detail.
Stallone, now 60, has something in common with Rocky - he's an awkwardly bulked-up dinosaur, fighting to prove that the game hasn't passed him by. On that level, he succeeds.
There’s nothing particularly memorable here -- no profound triumphs or lasting rallying cries.
For a series that seemed out of gas decades ago, Rocky Balboa is a knock-out.
One of the best of 2006, and a wonderful last hurrah for a character that deserved a proper send-off...
Though technically the sixth in the series, this sure seems an awful lot like a remake of the first film in the storied franchise, as it somehow manages to tug at the heartstrings in a way likely to leave you wiping away tears afresh.
Rocky se retira con dignidad en este broche de oro de una saga que %u2013con sus puntos altos y bajos- debe considerarse un triunfo personal en la carrera de Sylvester Stallone.
Latest News for Rocky Balboa
May 28, 2008:
More Rocky Sequels for MGM? ![]()
In its continued quest to leave no franchise dormant, MGM is apparently considering ways of coming up with more Rocky movies. More...
February 19, 2008:
Stallone Prepping Cliffhanger 2?
He's already resurrected two of his most successful film properties with Rocky Balboa and Rambo -- could Sylvester Stallone be contemplating a third? More...
January 31, 2008:
Box Office Guru Preview: Montana Hopes to Win Super Bowl Trophy
While Brady and Manning duke it out in Phoenix, the $15 movie ticket aims to conquer the multiplexes over Super Bowl weekend. That's the admission price that theaters are... More...
January 24, 2008:
Box Office Guru Preview: Rambo Leads Army of New Films Into Battle
The resurrection of yesterday's movie heroes continues with Sylvester Stallone's new film Rambo which finds the vet in Southeast Asia where he is pulled into another battle with... More...
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