I spent a few days going through the ROCKY series.
ROCKY = 9/10
Still the champ of the series. Original, raw and moving.
ROCKY II = 7/10
Still has the basic vibe of the first film, but the originality and raw interesting low-budget style is gone.
ROCKY III = 5/10
Hair gel and body oil have taken over!
ROCKY IV = 4/10
Silly premise, bad script, missed opportunities, stupid robots, cheesy songs, No classic Bill Conti score, Rocky and friends are reduced to comic book characters. Worst of the series!
ROCKY V = 5/10
Rocky comes back to earth and falls on hard times. This film is a very mixed bag.
The premise is a bit more solid then the previous two entries and there are very touching moments. It’s just too bad there are too few of them. The casting is an issue for me. All the non-regular cast are just bad actors and the direction is very lazy. Rocky’s son is not that bad, but his lines totally suck! Just a by the numbers, get it out in theaters fast production that does not build enough empathy to make us care about the final fight. Another missed opportunity to have made a great film.
ROCKY BALBOA = 6/10
Another mixed bag. If you take half of this film and half of Rocky V, you get what should have been the best Rocky since the original. The classic Bill Conti music score works so well to invoke the emotions of the early films, I just wish the script did the same. There is a great monologue ROCKY gives to his son and that may be one of my most favorite moments in all the ROCKY squeals.
CREED = 4/10
I only liked the parts with Rocky. Nothing special.