| Rocky V (1990) Cast:Sylvester Stallone,Talia Shire,Burt Young,Sage Stallone,Tommy Morrison,Richard Gant,Burgess Meredith When Rocky suffers brain damage from his bout with Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) he finds himself ready to retire, unfortunately Rocky is penniless thanks to a corrupt accountant, Rocky of course can settle all this with just a few fights, but he's too weary for it, that's when he decides to train Tommy Gunn (Morrison) who ends up turning ingrate and challanging Rocky to a street fight in this entertaining sequel which has more heart than usual. Of all the Rocky sequels, this one is my favorite because it's the one that really gets to the heart of Rocky, after he embarrassing Rocky IV, this one tries for a more human approach and typically works. Indeed the script is more ambitious, adding in subplots about Rocky and his wayward son, his brain damage and of course the hostility that starts between Rocky and Tommy. All of this Stallone handles with depth, indeed there is more here to like than really any of the sequels, as Avildsen invests more heart in the project. Still the predictablity is a factor and yes Morrison isn't much of an actor, but when the streetfight came, I myself was cheering. D.John G Avildsen *** |