Product Description
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The underdog. The champ. The icon. Sylvester Stallone is the
illustrious boxer Rocky Balboa, in a role all of his own. Now,
the O-winning (1976) original and its equally powerful and
action-packed successors are presented with their best-ever
picture and sound in Rocky - The Complete Saga. Rocky Balboa is
an unlikely winner. At the outset, hes a second-rate boxer whose
trainer has given up on him. That all changes when he "goes the
distance" with the reigning champ. In the ensuing saga, Rocky
battles the toughest of the tough and weathers even harder bouts
outside the ring. With its riveting fight sequences and stirring
performances, these six films tell the awe-inspiring story of one
heros unforgettable journey.
.co.uk Review
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Rocky - The 1976 O winner for Best Picture, John G
Avildsen's Rocky is the story of a down-and-out club fighter who
gets his million-to-one at a world championship title. In
the title role, Sylvester Stallone (who also penned the
screenplay) draws a carefully etched portrait of a loser who, in
Brando-esque fashion, "coulda been a contender". Rocky then
becomes one thanks to a publicity stunt engineered by current
champ Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), while finding love courtesy
of timid wallflower Adrian (Talia Shire) along the way. Burgess
Meredith revives the spirit of 1940's genre pictures through his
scenery-chewing performance as Rocky's trainer. An enormously
entertaining film, Rocky is irresistible in its depiction of an
underachiever who has the courage to start all over again--a
description that could have been applied to Stallone's own life
at the time. --Kevin Mulhall
Rocky 2 - The Italian Stallion returns for a rematch with Apollo
Creed, hoping, finally, to capture the heavyweight title. This
time, even his girlfriend, Adrian, gives Rocky her blessing.
Sylvester Stallone wrote and directed this exciting follow-up,
with Burgess Meredith, Talia Shire, Carl Weathers, and Burt Young
all reprising their roles from the first film.
Rocky 3 - Rocky's lifestyle of wealth and idleness is suddenly
shaken when a powerful fighter challenges him to a fight for the
championship. After being beaten, the previously over-confident
Rocky resumes his training in preparation for a re-match.
Rocky 4 - A World Heavyweight Boxing contest is to be staged
between the champ, Rocky Balboa and the Soviet amateur champion,
Ivan Drago. Both men know that this is more than just a tough
contest of strength and skill.
Rocky 5 - Times are hard for Rocky Balboa. A lifetime of taking
punches has terminated his boxing career and a crooked accountant
has left him in financial difficulties. The Balboa family moves
back to its roots in a downtown neighbourhood where an aspiring
boxer turns to the champ for training...
Rocky Balboa - The sixth installment of the Rocky series picks up
the story of the Italian Stallion 16 years after the morose Rocky
V. And sure, at his advanced age, Sylvester Stallone now looks
like one of those sides of beef his character used to pound on.
No matter. Somehow you buy the premise after all these years,
even if it takes forever for Rocky Balboa to stop wallowing in
self-pity (Adrian is dead, his old haunts are demolished) and get
down to the business of drinking raw eggs and running up steps.
The business at hand is an unlikely exhibition fight with
champion Mason Dixon (Antonio Tarver), which the
near-sexagenarian Mr. Balboa has no business accepting. Of
course, just as sure as the horns of Bill Conti's theme music are
even now trumpeting through your head, the ol' Rock might have a
punch or two left in him. Stallone wrote and directed, and there
isn't much to say except that the movie steps in its
pre-determined paces with a canny sense of what has come before
(it's practically an homage to all the previous Rocky pictures,
complete with fleeting flashbacks). Burt Young is around again,
and Geraldine Hughes makes an appealing, rather chaste female
companion for Rocky. Stallone's Rocky has gotten suspiciously
articulate over the years, but he still knows how to slouch. If
Stallone never forgets that, he can probably keep the franchise
rolling. --Robert Horton