DISNEY'S THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME

 Well, I haven't reviewed a Disney film in a while, so here's a review on Disney's most darkest and risky film...


Based on the classic novel by Victor Hugo; the film tells the story about a deformed Bell-Ringer named Quasimodo, who's forced to live in the bell tower of Notre Dame by his master Frollo. Quasi, always dreamed of spending a day in the outside world; and during the annual Gypsy Festival, Quiasi decides to sneak into the festival and he immediately gets recognized and becomes the hit of the festival. However, the crowd turns on him, and a Gypsy named Esmeralda helps him, despite going against Frollo's wishes. The film is mostly Quasi's journey to become accepted into society, and his relationships with the characters he meets. For those who are expecting me to compare this film to the original story, well I'm not. This is Disney's take on the classic yet controversial story, and as you know changes are going to be made so it can appeal to its younger crowd. Not to say that this film doesn't have adult themes as well, it does, but will get to that when, when we get to that.


Our main character Quasimodo, my god is he just an all around sweet, innocent, and lovable character. I honestly, always felt an attachment to this character, even as a kid; and now I still do. He's the kind of character you root for throughout the whole film. You want him to be accepted in society; you want him to stand up to his wicked master, and in the end it all becomes worthwhile. His design is also cool too. I love that while he looks monstrous, his personality again is so lovable that you don't care if he looks hideous, because you're so in love with his innocent and sweet personality, which definitely hits the nail on the film's moral of "Don't judge a book by its cover". I was also surprised that, that was Tom Hulce, who does the voice of him. I mean connecting his performance as this character, to his previous performances in films like "Ammadeus" and "Animal House" is very hard for me to picture him voicing and putting tons of energy into this no non-sense misfit character.



Next we have Esmeralda who is just as sweet as our main character, and I love the many traits that they give her. She's rebellious, she's misunderstood, she's kind, she's smart, she's tough, she's fun, and there are times where she not only helps our characters, but also has some scenes and moments where she helps herself. To me, this is one of the best and strongest female characters that Disney's has ever created. Yeah, she can be a damsel in distress at times, but to be fair, so are most of the other main characters in this film, as well as trying to be as faithful as the film can to its source material. Demi Moore does the voice of her, and she's perfect for the role. She also has a beautiful design as well. Next, we have Phoebus who's the love interest for our leading lady, who's a very fun and heroic character, and Kevin Kline is just as great as all the others. Now there are people, who criticize this film for the good looking hero getting the girl, than our main character who's the opposite of good looking. While I see the argument, I never really found that to be distracting or going against the moral. The two characters already developed an interest in each other earlier on in the film before our hero even met the two, and the film not only gave the two time to fall in love, but the reason why it works for these two to fall in love is because Phoebus treated her like a woman. Quasi defines her as an angel, while the villain defines her as a demon; Phoebus never defined her as a character, he defined her as a woman which is why I think the love relationship works better between them. Also, the two were old and were enough to have a relationship. Quasimodo is not only 20, but he doesn't know the outside world; doesn't know or understand, what it's truly like to be involved in a love relationship; and quite frankly, despite Quasimodo being in love with her, I always saw their relationship as a Mother and Son relationship. Besides the main goal of our main character wasn't getting the girl, it was for him to become part of society.



Now we move on to the most talked about thing in the whole entire film, the villain. This is one of Disney's most darkest and adult villains that they've ever created since The Devil Chernabog in "Fantasia". He's a murderer; he's a racist towards Gypsy's; he treats Quasimodo like a caged animal than a person; Tony Jay gives a hauntingly menacing and fantastic performance as this dark and sinister villain; and the film tries to make him a complexed character by making him think he's doing this evil stuff in the name of the lord, that's pretty adult for a kids movie. I mean, that moment when he sniffs Esmeralda's hair; the infamous "Hellfire" sequence; the villain's plan to either have or kill the Gypsy girl, I can't believe I'm seeing this in a Disney film. They even say words like Hell and Damn, I'm surprised that it didn't receive a PG rating. Now to be fair, I didn't think they went all that far with its adult content. It's there, but it's not in your face, or as obvious to kids as you think. Some of it does look suggestive, but at the same time there is a toned down restraint to it. I also give them credit for making Frollo a Judge, than a Priest because let's be honest, there's no way Disney can ever get away with that. Like I said, the adult content is there and is very risky for a Disney flick, but it does fit with the story and its themes perfectly, and in my personal opinion it isn't as bad or taken as far as some people might think.

Now for the supporting characters. First we have, the Gargoyles, who are voiced by Mary Wickes, Charles Kimbrough, and Jason Alexander. I'm going to be honest, with childhood aside, I still get a kick out of these characters. Yeah, they do take away the seriousness of the film, but remember this is a Disney film, it can't be all serious; and for what they were created for the kids to enjoy, they are entertaining and fun for its target crowd. However, I do indeed would of loved the idea for the Gargoyles better, if they were all a part of Quasimodo's imagination, that would at least flow with the film's tone and atmosphere. Next we have the leader of the Gypsy's Clopin, who's an all around fun character and steals the show in every scene he's in. I just really love this character's fun and upbeat personality, and personally I get more giggles from him than I do with the Gargoyles, despite that I don't mind the Gargoyles. Now I'm going to be honest about the film's look on Gypsy's. While I think it does a fair job showing the complication to them, I do find it confusing for kids, especially if they do not know what exactly a Gypsy is. I mean, Esmeralda said they're not thieves, but they have a place full of stolen goods...kind of confusing isn't it. As for the other supporting characters like Esmeralda's goat, the two guards, and the Archdeacon voiced by David Ogden Stiers; they are good characters too, but not as fun, interesting, or memorable as all the other characters.

 

Let's talk about the songs, because what's a Disney movie, without its songs, well with the exception of a few. The song that opens the film is called "The Bell's Of Norte Dame", which opens up the film perfectly. The musical narration sung by the Gypsy Clopin is fantastic; it's storyline is a dark opening for a Disney film; and that choir not only makes that sequence feel gigantic and epic, but is also one of the major reasons that helps make the film feel gigantic and epic as well. Tom Hulce's singing is another reason why I was shocked to find out that, that was him voicing the character. He puts so much heart, emotion and energy in his songs like "Out There" and "Heaven's Light" that it makes it even more hard for me to connect his singing, to the actor himself. Then there's the comedy songs in this movie such as "Topsy Turvy" for the festival sequence, and "A Guy Like You" sung by The Gargoyles which are really fun sequences. Then you have some really sad and emotional epic songs like "Stay In Here" sung by Frollo and Quasi, and "God Help The Out Casts" sung by Esmeralda, which that song is not only powerful, but also plays a big role in the films religious themes. There's also the Gypsy's number "The Court Of Miracles" and while being a great upbeat, humorous, but yet being a really dark song at the same time; this is part of my reason why I think kids will be confused by Gypsies. Of course the best song in the whole entire film, hands down, is the villain's song "Hellfire" which is extremely dark, adult, scary, and risque for a kids film, especially for Disney. The only song I found very, very forgettable is the song played during the credits called "Someday", but then again, it's only a credits piece, and not the body or centerpiece of the movie.


Finally, we move on to the animation, and to be 100% honest, it's probably the best animation that Disney has ever created! I mean, just by looking at it along with listening to that choir and flowing with a Disney version of a classic story, it's the heart and the main reason why the film's so giant and epic. Notre Dame looks unbelievably amazing; the use of colors is perfect; the CGI is always used appropriately and blends in perfectly with the 2-D animation; it's dark and foreboding at times; and surprisingly the religious icons, symbols, and statues, that's presented in the film, is not only another risk that Disney made, but it treats them (Aside from the snapping Statues in the Gargoyles song) very maturely! Disney also handled and took the film's themes of Faith, Lust, Sin, Heaven, Hell, Acceptance, Good and evil, and Prejudice very seriously as well, even if it does get a little confusing at times.

This is perhaps one of the best Disney film's ever made! Yeah, it's not all that faithful to its source material, but when knowing that Disney is behind it, I think people will know what to expect. Yeah, at times it's a little too adult or scary for kids, and maybe a PG rating would be a lot more suitable; but like I said I didn't think they went too far with it. It's look on Gypsies is confusing for kids, but from what I understand there is a complication to the Gypsy culture, and the film again does a decent job showing it, even if it is still puzzling to kids. As for characters, voice acting, songs, animation, an epic and gigantic atmosphere, and being a major risk taker for Disney at the time; it indeed stands out as an all around powerful and groundbreaking Disney flick!

RATING 5/5

Rankin/Bass Here Comes Peter Cottontail

Well, another Easter has come and gone, but before we can officially kiss the Easter of 2014 goodbye, here's my review on an Easter Special that I said I might review this Easter. This is the Rankin/Bass Easter Special...



Now before I begin the review, I want to clear something out. If you read my review on the "South Park" Easter Special, then you already know that I'm not too fond of the idea of having an Easter Bunny on a religious holiday that has nothing to do with a bunny. Not to mention that a bunny doesn't represent or symbolize anything to the Holiday's meanings. I never believed in an Easter Bunny as a kid; it's evident that the Easter Bunny is just a commercialized figure as an excuse to get candy. With that said, that doesn't mean that I don't enjoy the tradition. Yeah, it's silly, it's dumb, and it's very commercialized; but it's still a lot of fun. It brings the family together; it has fun activities, even if they are childish; and the idea involving a bunny bringing eggs while being ridiculous is still a cute idea for kids. To me, as long as we know the true meaning of why we celebrate this Holiday, then I guess having an Easter Bunny isn't really hurting it. Now with my personal views of Easter out of the way, ON WITH THE REVIEW...

This Rankin/Bass Easter Special tells the story about an Easter bunny named Peter Cottontail, who is chosen to be the Chief Easter Bunny of April Valley. A land where Easter bunnies live and make material for Easter, such as painting eggs; sculpting bunnies out of chocolate; and making Easter Bonnets. However, a wicked Easter bunny named Irontail plans to take over Easter and ruin it for the kids. With the April Valley constitution saying that the bunny who delivers the most eggs on Easter becomes the Chief Easter bunny, Peter enters a constant against Irontail of who can deliver the most eggs. With full confidence that he'll win, he throws a big party on the night before Easter and goes to bed late. Irontail cheats by finding a way for Peter to oversleep and manages to deliver one egg. Irontail becomes the new Chief Easter bunny, and Peter leaves in disgrace. Fortunately, his magical Peddler friend gives him a holiday time machine to travel back to Easter, and defeat Irontail. Irontail though knows about the device and sabotages the machine, which sends Peter past Easter and into different Holidays. However, Peter finds out that the rules don't specifically say that he has to deliver the eggs on Easter, and he decides to try to give all his eggs in time before the next Easter. Irontail is still hot on Peter's trail and will stop at nothing to stop him and rule Easter.



Danny Kaye narrates the special as the magical peddler Seymour S. Sassafras, and he is just as perfect as the previous narrators from the Rankin/Bass Holiday Specials. He's tons of fun, likable, over the top, humble, and you can tell that Danny Kaye is putting all of his charm into it. Every time I hear his voice in this special, I get delighted and get into the amount of fun that he's having. As for his singing voice, it's beautiful and fits within the tone of this special. I also love that the narrator is also a character in the story itself, who also becomes a big help for our protagonist, that's pretty rare in the Rankin/Bass Holiday Special formula. What more can I say? It's an excellent vocal performance from a great performer. Oh, and to note, he does voice a few other characters as well, which I'll reveal to you later on.

Our protagonist Peter Cottontail is a  lovable main character. He makes mistakes, but he learns from them as the Special plays on. He's funny; he's cute. If I were to picture an Easter Bunny coming to my house to hide the eggs that I've made (Even though this Special shows explicitly that the Easter Bunnies make the eggs, and give them away than hide him.) this is probably how I would have pictured him. He's voiced by Casey Kasem, who you may know him as the voice of Shaggy in the "Scooby-Doo," and while his voice is recognizable, he still does a great job convincing me that he's playing a different character. Instead of being over the top like he usually is, he brings such a great innocence and likability to his role, that you completely forget about the actor and the previous characters he's voiced and see the character come to life. Peter does have a funny and cute running gag in the Easter Special. Every time he tries to tell a fib, his left ear drops, and you hear the sound of a Trombone as it drops, which works in every scene that joke happens. I also love the lessons that our character learns, such as don't lie; don't let overconfidence consume you; and "tend to your duty before pleasure."

Next, we have our villain Irontail who is voiced by the legendary Vincent Price. Price is perfect as this nasty Easter Bunny, and he perfectly delivers the class, the evil, the madness, and the determination to his character. Just like the guy who voices our hero, Price's voice acting, while recognizable, is still a perfect performance when you can separate the actor from the character. The villain itself is straight out unlikable from beginning to end. He never smiles, hates children with a passion, despises Easter, and he'll never stop trying to foil Peter from becoming the new Chief Easter Bunny. This villain is also scary as well. Aside from being voiced by a sophisticated horror movie actor, his design is frightening; his evil laugh is eerie; and his personality is not only flat out unlikable, but he's the last Easter Bunny that you'd ever wish to encounter.

Now for the supporting characters, mostly throughout the film, Peter is accompanied by a French Caterpillar named Antoine, who pilots the time machine that Peter uses, who is also voiced by Kaye. Not only is Antoine an enjoyably smart character, but I didn't for a second realize that it was Kaye's voice when watching this special. I was shocked when I saw his name appear on the credits; I really couldn't connect Kaye's voice to the character at all. Kaye also voices the former Chief Easter Bunny, who is just as great as the previous characters he's voiced, even though I feel like that the character is a bit downplayed in the story. Peter also finds a love interest named Donna, who only appears during the Valentine's Day visit, and never appears again until the credits. This character serves no purpose to the plot at all; however, for some strange reason, I still feel the love between them in that Valentine's Day sequence. Maybe, it's because she's the only Easter Bunny who understands Peter's mistake and forgives him for it; you know like Clarice from "Rudolph". Peter also befriends the only talking Easter Bonnet made by the Easter Bunnies named Bonnie. Odd that she's the only talking Easter Bonnet; also, did Peter steal her from the shop she was in? Anyway, while being a lovable and cute character, I find it strange that Peter is closer to a talking Bonnet than he is with a female Easter Bunny.

With great characters voiced by great actors, along with an imaginative story, how about the songs? Well, Danny Kaye sings most of the songs in the special, and they are all wonderfully sung by this talented performer. There's the Special's theme song "Here Comes Peter Cottontail," a timeless classic Easter song that opens and closes the Special perfectly. There's "If I Can Only Get Back To Yesterday" as Peter and Antoine start time traveling, which is a magical song that always gives me chills, and is my favorite song in the entire Special. Then there's the song "In The Puzzle Of Life", and while not being very memorable, it's still a beautiful song. For some odd reason, Kaye doesn't do the singing for Antoine or the former Chief Easter Bunny. Instead, they are sung by Paul Frees, who nails the characters singing voices so well that I didn't know the difference. The Chief Easter Bunny's song, "The Easter Bunny Never Sleeps," fits that Easter feel just as well as the film's theme song, and Antoine's song, "When You Can't Get It All Together, Improvise" is very catchy and motivational. Vincent Price gets a song as well. He sings a darker version of "The Easter Bunny Never Sleeps" called "The Easter Bunny Always Sleeps", and while being a depressing moment in the Special, Vincent Price is still enjoyable to listen too. Finally, there's the love song "Be Mine Today", and again, while being a pointless love sequence, the song is still beautiful, and the love between the two is there.

As for the Stop-Motion, it's just as good as all the other Rankin/Bass classics. If you're not crazy about the Rankin/Bass Stop-Motion puppets or find them scary, well, this Special will indeed not change your mind at all. For me, for what they have, and for what kind of world and look they created for their Holiday Specials, I think it's excellent and artistic in its own right. Yeah, I can understand why some people might be afraid of these Specials, or even make fun of them, but for me, I love them. While having the traditional Rankin/Bass Stop-Motion style, I also adore the look to this special. The look is bright and colorful; the hand-drawn animated scenes look magical, and the environments are creative. What I truly love about the Special is the different Holidays that our characters visit. Each Holiday is not only represented well with its artistic Holiday look and feels but also makes the film more than an Easter film. Like "Nightmare Before Christmas" (Which I'm sure that Burton got the different Holiday worlds idea from this Special) where people like to watch it on both Halloween and Christmas; or the film "Holiday Inn" that has a variety of Holiday's that can be viewed on any of the Holiday's featured in the movie.  This Special, while mainly having Easter become its focus, it still has a re-watchable all-year-round value to it, since it depicts every Holiday accurately.

While the "South Park" Easter Special is my all-time favorite Easter Special of all time, I think this Special is the best one of all time. The story is creative. The characters are likable, voiced by tremendous actors, who bring plenty of life and energy to their role. The songs are memorable and still hold up. And the traditional Rankin/Bass Stop-Motion puppets still holds up and is just as good as all the other Holiday Specials that they've made. It's indeed an Easter treat for the entire family to enjoy.

RATING 5/5

Oh, and just for fun; if you want to get an all year around feel for this movie; try to follow these Steps.

STEP 1

On Easter, take whatever copy you own of the Special and watch it from the beginning, to the end of the song "If I Can Only Get Back To Yesterday".

STEP 2

Whenever a Holiday that's featured in the film arrives; get your copy of the Special, and watch each Holiday visit on that Holiday.

If you are still unsure of what I mean, or if you need guidance. Follow the directions below.

ON EASTER DAY

From the beginning of the Special, to the end of "If I Can Only Get Back To Yesterday" song.

ON MOTHER'S DAY

From Irontail discovery of the "Yestermorrow Mobile", to the line "And, whenever Peter went on Mother's Day, the reaction was exactly the same".

ON THE 4TH OF JULY

From Antoine trying to fix the time circuits, to Antonie's line "Nothing justifies a fib".

ON HALLOWEEN

From Peter asking what's happening, to Antoine saying that they can't go back to the Holiday Halloween.

ON THANKSGIVING

From the narrator clarifying what Antoine is saying, to the line "Everybody, everywhere was so stuffed that Peter couldn't give a single egg".

ON CHRISTMAS EVE

From the December Calendar, to the line "I sure do miss Antoine".

ON NEW YEARS EVE

Just play it only for the Narrators bit.

ON VALENTINES DAY

From Peter's line "It's no use", to the end of the narrator talking about the Green Eggs.

ON PRESIDENTS DAY (FEBUARY 22ND)

From The George Washington green eggs gag, to the song "In The Puzzle Of Life".

ON ST. PATRICK'S DAY

To Peter vowing that he won't give up, to the fade out after Peter makes his St.Patrick's day appearance.

ON EASTER

From the narrator talking about the outcome of St. Patrick's Day visit, to the end of the Special.

 And that's how you can get an all year around experience of this movie. If you want to try it, go ahead, and let me know if you tried it. This is Tyler Michael, hoping that you had a wonderful Easter!

ROCKY 5

We now launch into the 5th installment of Rocky, which a lot of people call the black sheep of the franchise including Stallone himself. Is it really that bad? Let's take a look at...

 

After the fight between Rocky and Drago, Rocky suffers from severe brain damage from the fight and now he can't fight anymore. Rocky also goes bankrupt and now has to go back to his original roots and start his life all over. However, Rocky inherits Mickey's Gym and plans to train a street bum named Tommy Gunn (Tommy Morrison) to become the next champion. However, Rocky neglects his son, and a boxing promoter named George Washington Duke (Richard Gant) tries to turn Tommy against Rocky, so Rocky can fight in the ring for Duke to make money. The film is written by Stallone, the film stars Stallone, but instead of Stallone directing the fifth film, he decided to let John G. Avildsen direct the film, who also directed the first film. Bill Conti also returns to compose the film. So where does the film fall flat? First of all, the previous Rocky films always had an energizing and feel good feel to them. This film on the other hand is very sad and depressing.



In the previous film, while Stallone still kept the likability to his character, I felt he wasn't putting as much effort and charm into his performance as he did in the films before the 4th film, and was just heavily relying on the montages and fights. Does he do the same here? Actually, no, I actually do sense effort in his performance. OK, granted, he doesn't bring the same charm as he did in the films before "Rocky 4". As a matter of fact, I think he slurs more words in this film than he did in the previous film. Also, some of the scenes where he shows his signs of brain damage are more silly then it is sad. Rocky also has a gimmick in the film, where he would play the behind the ear magic trick to his son, which was cute at first, but then it got corny and old real fast. With the negative aside, behind the word slurring, unintentional silly moments, and gimmicky moments; I still see that Stallone is trying to bring back his Rocky charm even if it doesn't fully come through. He does get some really good emotional and sad moments, it's nice to see him in his old clothes; the likability and pity for his character is there; and I actually like seeing the former Champion take his trainers place. Again, not a great performance, but it's not god awful either.

 

Now we move on to the supporting cast. Talia Shire as Rocky's Wife Adrian is nearly on the same level as Stallone is. Her performance and the relationship between the two characters, don't have the same charm as the first couple of Rocky films, but the effort is there. In the 4th film, the relationship wasn't as there as the previous films, but this film in my opinion brought it back. They're back to where they started; Adrian is back to working at the Pet Shop which is right across from the gym that Rocky owns, so they can be close to each other even when they're working; there are a few beautiful moments with the two together (My favorite being the scene when Rocky finds her old glasses); She helps Rocky avoid the fight promoter; and she helps motivate Rocky to start paying attention to his son. That to me is better than rehashing Adrian's not supporting Rocky subplot from "Rocky 2". Burt Young as Paulie, I don't know, sometimes he tries, but for the majority of the film, he doesn't seem to care or put the same amount of effort as Stallone and Shire did. Though to be fair, Paulie doesn't really get much to do in the film, thus giving Young very little to work with. However, I do like that he wises up a bit and the fact that he's not as goofy as he was in 3 and 4. Where's his robot girlfriend, WHO CARES! The actor who actually does manage to bring the same charm as he did in the previous films is Burgess Meredith as Mickey. No, they didn't fake his death, or bring him back from the dead, THANK GOD! He actually appears in a flashback as he's training Rocky to fight Apollo Creed. This moment and performance is so beautiful and so heartwarming that not only did I get a sense of nostalgia from the previous Rocky films, but personally this is my all time favorite scene with Rocky and Mickey.



Now we move on to the next problem with the film, Rocky's son played by Stallone's real son Sage Stallone. Let me just get this out of the way, I DON'T think Sage is a bad actor! He gives a good performance in the film, and it's nice to see Stallone and his son working together in a film, which makes the relationship seem real. With that said, I do have some major issues with the casting and subplot revolving around Rocky's kid. First off, the casting. Again, not a bad performance from Sage, but casting him breaks some really serious continuity from the previous film. In the last film, Rocky's son was a kid around 8 or 9; in this film, he's a pre-teen around 13 or 14 and it takes place RIGHT AFTER THE FIGHT FROM THE LAST FILM! There's NO excuse for it at all! It's unprofessional and very, very distracting! As for the subplot of Rocky neglecting his Son, while cliche, its done effectively enough and fits with the story; however, the lame and cliche subplot of the kid getting bullied by the stereotypical school bully is forced and lame. I mean, HOW MANY TIMES HAVE WE SEEN THAT IN SPORTS FILMS?! So the plot and casting of Rocky's son in the film is a mixed bag.



One of the many things I like about this film are the opponents that Rocky faces. The main opponent and villain of the film is Richard Gant as Boxing promoter Duke. This guy literally steals every single scene he's in, with his over the top personality, and the actor playing him seems to be having fun playing the role as well. On top of it, this guy isn't someone that Rocky can versus in the ring; this is a guy that plans to screw his fellow boxers over when they're nothing to him, which Rocky most avoid every temptation that this guy throws at him. Furthermore, I love that this guy is a parody of Don King, because this guy acts just like him as well. Next, there's Tommy Gunn played by real life boxer Tommy Morrison, who brings a decent performance as this poor hungry young fighter that befriends Rocky. I honestly do enjoy watching the relationship between him and Rocky, it's like watching the relationship between Rocky and Mickey, only with a tragic end to it. They go from a rough start; to slowly becoming good friends; to Tommy becoming the next Rocky; and it all ends when Tommy turns on Rocky to get bigger and better things, which sadly in the end he'll just be another puppet for Duke to control. It's indeed a really good and tragic relationship.



Now for the montages. Well, as you probably guessed, the montages aren't Rocky training, it's Tommy and Rocky's son training. While the editing, fight scenes, shots, and all that other good stuff that make a Rocky montage so great, THE MUSIC SUCKS! Instead of getting cool or rockin motivational music, or heck an original score by Bill Conti, we get crappy 90's Hip-Hop Music. First of all, the film takes place the year after the fight with Drago, so the film should be playing 80's music, then lame 90's Hip-Hop. Second, Hip-Hop and Rocky doesn't go together. Rocky and the band "Survivor", YES!  Rocky and Hip-Hop, NO! To me, it's a real downer that the music sucks, because to me 50% of a great montage is the music, because that's what really brings the motivation.



Now, there are two big fights in the movie. The first big fight is Tommy fighting a boxing champion, which is cooly edited and shot; but the fight that everyone remembers from watching this film, is the climatic fight between Rocky and Tommy. First off, the idea of Boxer against Trainer is a great idea, because seeing Rocky versusing the guy he trained is not only sad, but it's also like seeing Rocky fighting a clone of himself. Second, instead of taking place in the ring, it takes place on the street, which not only brings a new angle to a Rocky film, but it's also a street fight instead of a professional boxing match. As for the fight, the hype is just as there as all the other climatic Rocky fights. It's shot great; the lighting is perfect; the choreography is great; the fighting looks brutal; and it's really entertaining. While enjoying the fight, there's really no point to it at all. On top of it, I feel like the original ending, where Rocky gets killed off and dies in Adrians arms would indeed give this fight more of a purpose, thus adding a sad and dramatic conclusion to the Rocky franchise. With that said, I still enjoy the positive outcome of the fight, even if it is pointless.

And that's "Rocky 5", and while being the worst of the franchise, I really don't think it's all that bad. Don't get me wrong, the film is indeed heavily flawed, but with that said, I did sense enough effort to make it watchable. The actors are trying; the opponents that Rocky faces are great; the fight at the end is awesome; and the film does bring plenty of nostalgic value of the previous Rocky films. While thinking the original ending would give the film more of a point and purpose, I still love the ending that Stallone had to go with. When I see that last shot of the Rocky statue looking over the Philadelphia skyline, and then see the credits roll as pictures from all the Rocky films are shown, while Elton John's song "Measure Of A Man" is playing, I personally feel that this film would make a satisfying cap to the Rocky franchise.

RATING 2/5