8.3 | / 10 |
Users | 3.4 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.2 |
Rocky Balboa is a Philadelphia club fighter who seems to be going nowhere. But when a stroke of fate puts him in the ring with a world heavyweight champion, Rocky knows that it's his one shot at the big time - a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to go the distance and come out a winner!
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, Burgess MeredithSport | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-2
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: Dolby Digital Mono (Original) (224 kbps)
French: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
Spanish: Dolby Digital Mono (224 kbps)
Mono=2.0
English SDH, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
When we were kids, my cousins and I were fortunate enough to have access to a trampoline and two sets of boxing gloves. You can see where I’m going with this. We didn’t know any real boxers, besides Mohammed Ali, so our bouts were always re-enactments of the climatic, David versus Goliath battles from the Rocky series. Since I was oldest, I got to play Rocky, dodging and weaving and taunting my tiny opponents with a piss-poor, pre-pubescent Stallone imitation. My grandparents trash-binned the gloves one summer after I cold-clocked a cousin into unconsciousness (he’s still a bit loopy), but our Rocky-inspired fantasies lived on. And in pop-culture, the Rocky legacy has also been a survivor, enduring parodies, imitations, and, let’s face it, some poor to middling latter-day sequels. But there’s something about the original film, about the down-and-out character of Rocky Balboa, which still resonates and inspires.
Rocky Balboa vs. Apollo Creed
Fox's Blu-ray division winds ups, swings, and misses—by just a hair—with this lackluster 1080p, MPEG-2 transfer. Don't get me wrong, Rocky looks better than ever, but this is one film that calls out for restoration, and a cleaner, more vivid print would go a long way in getting Rocky back in fighting form. Dull is a good way to describe the transfer, as colors seem weak (except for reds), textures are frequently soft, and black levels sometimes obscure detail. This is a hard film to judge, however, as a lot of these traits do seem to stem from the source material. That said, as it was filmed on location in Philly's sagging south side, Rocky has a wonderful late 1970's grit to it, and the grain on display in this transfer is characteristic of its time and serves to heighten the film's sordid, seedy look. Director John Avildsen also uses some pleasingly shallow depth of field in many scenes, giving the picture a dreamy, look-back-in-time sense of depth.
Rocky steps into the HD home theater ring wearing a newly minted DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 track that, like its video quality, lacks polish and shine. While sounding obviously fuller than the original mono track (which is also included), the 5.1 mix lacks bottom end density and comes off hollow and thin. It does give the film some added directionality—particularly with trains passing on the tracks overhead and street kids singing around barrel fires—but if it's a choice between immersion and fidelity here, I'd rather have a more balanced, crisper sound. Voices are strong in the mix, but do sound occasionally lost and muffled; just listen to the scene with Rocky and Paulie in the meat packing plant. Foley sound effects and looped-in dialogue also have an obvious artificial quality at times, particularly punches, which should be meat-bruising and bone-cracking, but sound more brittle than a bundle of cracked sticks. The only time the audio track really gets to boom is during the "Gonna Fly" theme, but even here it seems weaker than it could be.
Sadly, this Blu-ray release contains none of the features from the 2007 2-disc Collector's Edition DVD, and it's apparent that we'll see a studio double-dip in the near future. This disc contains only an assortment of theatrical trailers in 1080p.
A friend of mine told me the other day that he'd never actually seen Rocky, and he wasn't sure how he'd feel about viewing it for the first time after thirty odd years of similarly inspirational sports stories cluttering up the genre. I felt no qualms about recommending it though, as it still makes me want to go to the backyard and trade blows with my cousins. More than that, it's a powerful character-driven story that's built around a backbone of authentic moments and details, a true American classic that has heart without schmaltz. Unfortunately, however, I can't recommend this Blu-ray disc unless you're absolutely rabid for a Rocky fix. Good things come to those who wait, and I have a sneaking suspicion we'll be seeing a better Rocky release in short order.
DVD Packaging
1976
1976
1976
Remastered | Limited Edition
1976
Remastered
1976
Remastered | VUDU Digital Copy
1976
1976
Remastered | Awards O-Ring Slipcover
1976
1976
Limited Edition Collectible Cover Art | Remastered
1976
40th Anniversary Edition
1976
Comic Con Exclusive
1976
1976
1976
1976
1985
1990
1979
1982
Theatrical & Director's Cut | Limited Edition
2006
2015
2015
2018
2011
2023
10th Anniversary Edition
2004
1985
1989
2006
2008
2010
1987
2006
2011
2023