Rocky II

Rocky II

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Sylvester Stallone
Produced by
Written by Sylvester Stallone
Starring
Music by Bill Conti
Cinematography Bill Butler
Edited by
Distributed by United Artists
Release dates
  • June 15, 1979 (1979-06-15)
Running time
 119 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Italian
Box office $200.1 million[1]

Rocky II is a 1979 American film written and directed by, and starring, Sylvester Stallone.[2] It is the sequel to the 1976 film Rocky, and was the last installment in the film series that was distributed solely by United Artists.

Stallone, Carl Weathers, Tony Burton, Burgess Meredith, Burt Young and Talia Shire reprised their original roles. The Ring Magazine heavyweight championship belt makes its first appearance in the series.

Plot

On New Year's Day, 1976, Apollo Creed has successfully defended his heavyweight title in a split decision, he and Rocky are taken to the same hospital. Apollo challenges Rocky to a rematch, but Rocky declines and announces his retirement. His girlfriend Adrian supports this choice, as do his doctors, who reveal he will require surgery for a detached retina, which could lead to permanent blindness. In a private moment, Rocky goes to see a recuperating Apollo, and wants a truthful response if Apollo gave his all in the fight, to which Creed says yes. After Rocky is discharged from the hospital, he enjoys the benefits of his life's changes: Rocky's new fame attracts an agent who sees Rocky as a potential endorsement and sponsorship goldmine, and his sudden wealth encourages him to propose to Adrian. She happily accepts, and they marry in a small ceremony. Soon after, Rocky and Adrian happily learn that Adrian is pregnant.

Meanwhile, fueled by hate mail, Apollo becomes obsessed with the idea that a rematch is the only way to prove that Rocky's performance was simply a fluke. Determined to rectify his boxing career's only blemish, Apollo ignores all pleas by his friends and family to forget the fight and move on to other potential opponents, and instead demands his team do whatever necessary to goad Rocky out of retirement and into a rematch with him.

Rocky at first seems unaffected by Apollo's smear campaign, but his inexperience with money causes him to run into financial problems. After largely unsuccessful attempts to find employment, Rocky visits Mickey Goldmill, his trainer and manager, at his gym to talk about the possibility of returning to boxing. At first, Mickey declines, concerned about Rocky's health, but he soon accepts after Apollo publicly insults Rocky. Adrian confronts Rocky about the danger of returning to fighting and reminds him of the risk to his eyesight. Rocky argues he knows nothing else so this is the only way he can provide. Adrian, furious at Rocky for breaking his promise, refuses to support him.

Rocky and Mickey begin training, but Rocky is not focused on the job at hand due to Adrian's disapproval. Adrian's brother, Paulie, confronts his sister about not supporting her husband, but she faints during the confrontation and is rushed to the hospital, where she goes into labor. Despite being premature, the baby is healthy, but Adrian falls into a coma. Rocky blames himself for what has happened and refuses to leave Adrian's bedside until she wakes up, and will not go to see his new baby until they can see it together. When Adrian comes out of her coma, she finds Rocky by her bedside, and the couple are shown their new baby, a boy, which they name Rocky Jr. Adrian gives her blessing to the rematch, and Rocky quickly gets into shape for the fight. When he makes the same training run that he did in the first film, ending at the "Rocky Steps" at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, he is now followed by a crowd of children, some of whom followed him with his consent near the start of his run.

The night of the fight arrives and Apollo has made a public goal of beating Rocky in no more than two rounds to prove the first fight going the full fifteen rounds was a fluke. Rocky, fighting right-handed to protect his eye instead of his natural southpaw, is not able to mount much of an offensive effort through the first two rounds but manages to survive them, disproving Apollo's theory that the first fight's result was a fluke. Although the fight once again progresses to the full fifteen rounds, the judges have given Creed so many points Rocky would once again lose if the rounds expire. However, Apollo's obsession with knocking Rocky out (against the advice of his corner men) leads him to trade blows with Rocky rather than play it safe and win by decision.

In the final round, Rocky, who switched the tactics and is fighting left-handed again, lands a devastating blow on Apollo that knocks him down, but an exhausted Rocky loses his balance and collapses as well. Just before the fight is about to end in a draw (titles cannot change hands in this manner), Rocky manages to stand up by the count of nine. Rocky wins the fight by a knockout and becomes the heavyweight champion of the world. In his post-fight announcement, Rocky, who has won back the respect of his fans and Adrian, humbly thanks Apollo for the match and ends by hoisting the world championship belt and screaming, "Yo, Adrian, I did it!"

Cast

Jeff Temkin portrays the ring announcer. Appearing as themselves are referee Lou Filippo and commentators Stu Nahan and Bill Baldwin.

Production

An estimated 800 school children were used as extras in the scene in which Rocky runs through Philadelphia.[3]

Music

Rocky II
Soundtrack album by Bill Conti
Released 1979
Length 35:04
Label United Artists Records - LP
EMI Manhattan Records - CD

Just as in the previous installment, Bill Conti composed the film's music. A soundtrack album containing Conti's score was released on August 25, 1979, and charted on the Billboard 200 for five consecutive weeks.[4]

  1. "Redemption" – 2:34
  2. "Gonna Fly Now" – 2:35
  3. "Conquest" – 4:42
  4. "Vigil" – 6:31
  5. "All of My Life" – 3:56
  6. "Overture" – 8:38
  7. "Two Kinds of Love" – 2:37
  8. "All of My Life" – 2:27
Personnel

Chart positions

Chart (1979) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[5] 147

Reaction

Critical response

Rocky II holds a 73% approval rating on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes; out of 26 reviews, the average rating is 6.5/10. The site's consensus reads: "Rocky II is a movie that dares you to root again for the ultimate underdog – and succeeds due to an infectiously powerful climax."[6] The film won Best Picture at the American Movie Awards[7] and won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Motion Picture.[8] Dre Rivas of Film.com included it in his list of top ten films of 1979.[9]

Box office

Rocky II finished in the top three highest-grossing films of 1979, in both the North American market and worldwide. The film grossed $6,390,537 during its opening weekend, $85,182,160 at the U.S. box office, and $200,182,160 overall.[10]

Other media

Novelization

A novelization was published by Ballantine Books in 1979. Sylvester Stallone was credited as the author.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Rocky II, Box Office Information". The Numbers. Retrieved January 27, 2012.
  2. ↑ "Rocky II". TCM database. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 27, 2016.
  3. ↑ Maslin, Janet (1979-06-15). "Screen: 'Rocky II' Fights a Rematch: Second Stanza...." (Subscription required). The New York Times.
  4. ↑ "Filmtracks: Rocky II (Bill Conti)". Filmtracks. 15 December 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  5. ↑ Rocky II (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) - Bill Conti - Awards. Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Accessed on August 9, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Rocky II Movie Reviews, Pictures". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Alan Alda, Sally Field Earn Outstanding Acting Awards". Toledo Blade. Associated Press. February 12, 1980. p. P2.
  8. ↑ "Rocky II (1979)". The New York Times. Retrieved December 2, 2015.
  9. ↑ Rivas, Dre (June 8, 2007). "The 10 Best Movies of 1979". Film.com. Film.com. Archived from the original on December 10, 2008. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
  10. ↑ "Movie Rocky 2 – Box Office Data, News, Cast Information". The Numbers. Nash Information Services. Retrieved September 1, 2010.
  11. ↑ http://www.worldcat.org/title/rocky-ii/oclc/5280245

External links

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