As I noted on Monday, Rocky just turned 40, and it's a movie (like so many from previous decades) that is sadly forgotten, or even ignored, among today's younger viewers. I'm amazed at how many of my students have not seen it. So I wanted to take a moment to argue why the 1976 Best Picture winner is not only my favorite film, but it's a great film for anyone.
When the film first appeared, it did receive some praise, but it also received immense criticism. Some felt it was overly shmaltzy, a saccharine and unrealistic departure from the gritty flicks of the '70s. It was often labeled as Capra-esque, which wasn't a kind adjective in an era of Taxi Driver, Network, All the President's Men, and The Godfather saga. After unexpectedly winning the Oscar as the top film of the year, Rocky has appeared on lists of the worst films to win Best Picture. For such an iconic film, it elicits noticeably mixed reactions. But what makes Rocky great is not its (sort of) happy ending, that he gets the girl, or that a collection of sequels emerged in which Rocky becomes the heavyweight champ. It's a great film because its message is one everyone can learn from, and as all great literature and film should do, it presents a truth that can actually be lived in the real world.
Rocky Balboa is a man who exists--like many of us--in two spaces simultaneously: one in his practical life and one in his mental and emotional life. He is an uneducated, inarticulate thug from the inner-city. But he is also aware that his life could be much more. He is violent when he needs to be. But he is actually one of the most compassionate and tender characters in film. He puts on toughness like a costume, and it fits so well because he's been immersed in it since his youth. But that is not who he really is. He doesn't yet know another way to be, but he doesn't accept that life as his fate. Rocky has a feeling--again, like many of us--that life could be different.
Rocky is constrained by the real world, a fact of life we all must face. He represents anyone that lacks--money, intelligence, skills, opportunity. And he knows he will never be a great success. He simply wants to be better than "just another bum from the neighborhood." And that goal is worthwhile for us. Many of us will never be rich or famous. We may never do great things. But if we can face life head on, take its punches and stay standing, and be more than the bums that surround us, we will be successful. Perhaps the world won't recognize our accomplishment, but we will know. We will know that we did the best we could with the limitations nature has placed upon us. And that is all we can do.
Sure, Rocky gets the fluky chance to be put in the spotlight by fighting the champ--an opportunity that is unlikely to fall in any real person's lap. But we all have opportunities in life. We meet people by accident, we have job interviews, we have creative ideas that need action. We may not be prize fighters, but we are all fighters in life's ring. And Rocky reminds us how to respond when the punches are coming at us.
Rocky is an inspirational movie not only for its powerful music or for its characters' likeability. Rocky is a story for the ages because it illustrates the eternal struggle of humans: how to be great in our own lives when greatness in the eyes of the world is not likely. While the ending of the film ends on a frame of Rocky's satisfied face, in the original script, Rocky and Adrian walk out of the ring after the fight and disappear down a darkened hallway, ignored by everyone. That is how many of our lives will turn out to be. Rocky doesn't win, and we may not either. We will likely be forgotten, and we probably won't change the world. But while we are here, we can seek our own definition of success. And when the final bell sounds, how will we look back upon our lives? Will we be proud to still be on our feet? Will we use every ounce of grit and effort and love that we can muster to fight against failure?
Rocky may seem corny or overly optimistic in a world of cynicism and blame. But it offers us a model to follow. We can live that story in our own lives. And few films anymore offer that kind of opportunity.
When the film first appeared, it did receive some praise, but it also received immense criticism. Some felt it was overly shmaltzy, a saccharine and unrealistic departure from the gritty flicks of the '70s. It was often labeled as Capra-esque, which wasn't a kind adjective in an era of Taxi Driver, Network, All the President's Men, and The Godfather saga. After unexpectedly winning the Oscar as the top film of the year, Rocky has appeared on lists of the worst films to win Best Picture. For such an iconic film, it elicits noticeably mixed reactions. But what makes Rocky great is not its (sort of) happy ending, that he gets the girl, or that a collection of sequels emerged in which Rocky becomes the heavyweight champ. It's a great film because its message is one everyone can learn from, and as all great literature and film should do, it presents a truth that can actually be lived in the real world.
Rocky Balboa is a man who exists--like many of us--in two spaces simultaneously: one in his practical life and one in his mental and emotional life. He is an uneducated, inarticulate thug from the inner-city. But he is also aware that his life could be much more. He is violent when he needs to be. But he is actually one of the most compassionate and tender characters in film. He puts on toughness like a costume, and it fits so well because he's been immersed in it since his youth. But that is not who he really is. He doesn't yet know another way to be, but he doesn't accept that life as his fate. Rocky has a feeling--again, like many of us--that life could be different.
Rocky is constrained by the real world, a fact of life we all must face. He represents anyone that lacks--money, intelligence, skills, opportunity. And he knows he will never be a great success. He simply wants to be better than "just another bum from the neighborhood." And that goal is worthwhile for us. Many of us will never be rich or famous. We may never do great things. But if we can face life head on, take its punches and stay standing, and be more than the bums that surround us, we will be successful. Perhaps the world won't recognize our accomplishment, but we will know. We will know that we did the best we could with the limitations nature has placed upon us. And that is all we can do.
Sure, Rocky gets the fluky chance to be put in the spotlight by fighting the champ--an opportunity that is unlikely to fall in any real person's lap. But we all have opportunities in life. We meet people by accident, we have job interviews, we have creative ideas that need action. We may not be prize fighters, but we are all fighters in life's ring. And Rocky reminds us how to respond when the punches are coming at us.
Rocky is an inspirational movie not only for its powerful music or for its characters' likeability. Rocky is a story for the ages because it illustrates the eternal struggle of humans: how to be great in our own lives when greatness in the eyes of the world is not likely. While the ending of the film ends on a frame of Rocky's satisfied face, in the original script, Rocky and Adrian walk out of the ring after the fight and disappear down a darkened hallway, ignored by everyone. That is how many of our lives will turn out to be. Rocky doesn't win, and we may not either. We will likely be forgotten, and we probably won't change the world. But while we are here, we can seek our own definition of success. And when the final bell sounds, how will we look back upon our lives? Will we be proud to still be on our feet? Will we use every ounce of grit and effort and love that we can muster to fight against failure?
Rocky may seem corny or overly optimistic in a world of cynicism and blame. But it offers us a model to follow. We can live that story in our own lives. And few films anymore offer that kind of opportunity.