SYLVESTER STALLONE

Bil’s rating (out of 5):  BB.5. 

USA, 1985.  United Artists, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.  Screenplay by Sylvester Stallone, based on his characters.  Cinematography by Bill Butler.  Produced by Robert Chartoff, Irwin Winkler.  Music by Vince DiCola.  Production Design by Bill Kenney.  Costume Design by Tom Bronson.  Film Editing by John W. Wheeler, Don Zimmerman.  

Commonly known as the one where he fights the Russian. How many times does this underdog have to go the distance before we get the point?  Sylvester Stallone has really overdone his most famous role by this point, a formulaic, by-the-numbers film that follows the paths of the equally forgettable sequels to the 1976 Oscar-winning original. Rocky’s old pal Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) gets killed in the ring against a formidable Russian boxer (Dolph Lundgren), prompting Rocky to take the guy on himself. He does, and the rest is predictable. Talia Shire returns as the ever-faithful Adrian, and Brigitte Nielsen (then Mrs. Stallone) appears as Lundgren’s wife.