Rocky (1976)
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A struggling small-time fighter gets a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to compete for the world heavyweight championship.
The story
To mark the upcoming United States Bicentennial, heavyweight boxing world champion Apollo Creed plans to hold a title bout in Philadelphia. However, he is informed five weeks from the fight date that his scheduled opponent, Mac Lee Green, is unable to compete due to an injured hand. All other potential replacements are either booked or unable to get into shape in time. Having invested heavily into the fight, Apollo decides to give a local contender a chance to challenge him. He selects Rocky Balboa, an Italian-American journeyman southpaw boxer living in poverty, who primarily fights in small gyms and works as a collector for a Mafia loan shark.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Apollo Creed selects Rocky Balboa, a local underdog, to fight for the world heavyweight championship after his original opponent is injured. Rocky, a man living in poverty and working as a loan shark collector, accepts the fight for $150,000. He undergoes intense, unconventional training and begins a romance with Adrianna "Adrian" Pennino. On New Year's Day, the fight takes place. Rocky manages to knock down the overconfident Apollo in the first round. The fight continues for fifteen rounds, with both men sustaining significant injuries. Despite the physical toll, Rocky shows immense stamina and will. As the final bell sounds, Apollo admits he won't offer a rematch. While the referee declares Apollo the winner by a split decision, Rocky ignores the result to embrace Adrian in the ring.
- First release year
- 1976
- Runtime (minutes)
- 119
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- John G. Avildsen
- Writers
- Sylvester Stallone · writer
- Cast and characters
- Sylvester Stallone · Robert "Rocky" Balboa; Talia Shire · Adrianna "Adrian" Pennino; Burt Young · Paulie Pennino; Carl Weathers · Apollo Creed; Burgess Meredith · Michael "Mickey" Goldmill
- Genres
- sports drama
- Themes
- rags to riches; American Dream
- Tone and mood
- sports drama
- Premise and plot tags
- sports; boxing; underdog
- Franchise connections
- Rocky
- Reception
- The film received critical acclaim for its performances, direction, and score, and was widely praised as a classic of the sports genre.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 93% · scale: percentage · review count: 75; Metacritic · score: 70 · scale: 100 · review count: 14
- Awards and nominations
- Best Film of the Year · Directors Guild of America · 1976 · win
- Production trivia
- The film's production budget was approximately $1 million.; The film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry in 2006.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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