ROCKY III was a big improvement over the second Balboa scrap: trimmed down to a lean, mean 99 minutes, this 1982 shot of testosterone gets my ringside holler as the most entertaining sequel in the seemingly eternal series. Made for $17,000,000, it socked 4th place for the year (not everyone was held spellbound by E.T.), taking $121,400,000 from aroused Americans; the full global gross clobbered $270,000,000. The get-up-and-fight song “Eye Of The Tiger” was Oscar-nominated; for sure it beats the uniform off treacly winner “Up Where We Belong” from An Officer And A Gentleman. Yo, Adrian, I am calm! I just pity that fool song…*
Coasting on his rematch victory over Apollo Creed, Rocky Balboa enjoys newfound wealth and fame, with the occasional bump like a charity match with a titanic wrestler. Meanwhile, with Rocky and the title belt in his sites, exceptionally brutal ‘Clubber Lang’ (Mr. T, debut) demolishes every foe in his path. On his side, Rocky has his loyal wife Adrian, old pro Mickey, former opponent Apollo and ever-truculent Paulie. But this Clubber Lang is a tornado of unrestrained ferocity. “Pain.”
Besides starring, Stallone wrote & directed, with expert help from cinematographer Bill Butler and editors Don Zimmerman and Mark Warner. He got into outstanding condition, and is backed by returning castmates, glove fit for their demi-iconic characters. Massive 300-pound, 6’7″ Hulk Hogan goes full-crazypants as ‘Thunderlips’ in the rules-what-rules? charity free-for-all. As for the fire-breathing, Mr. T, what can you say about such a force of unbridled un-nature? Once again the amiable all-hands-on-pecs star choreographed the fight segments, which kick rumpus from here to Sequelville. The furious finale is a get-out-of-the-lounger-and-bellow windmill of catharsis.
With Talia Shire (beseech Rocky), Burgess Meredith (give your heart, literally, to Rocky), Carl Weathers (teach Rocky how to dance), Burt Young (remind Rocky he’s alive), Tony Burton, Bill Baldwin, Stu Nahan, Dennis James and Leroy Neiman.
* With occasional exceptions (the Bond flicks, the Fast & Furious fleet after the first three) sequels too often go big but head downhill. They may be flashy and fun but rarely surprise and surpass: note, for a sampling, the offspring of Dirty Harry, Die Hard, Death Wish and Raiders Of The Lost Ark. Rocky‘s “kids” follow formula faithfully: you just have to decide which repeat character who dies will twinge your sad bone and which ominous bad guy will be the one you’d most like to see Stallion-stomped into oblivion.
Oh, yeah, fools, “Eye Of The Tiger” (sung by Survivor) was the #2 single in ’82, spending 15 weeks in the top ten, five of them at the #1 slot.
Movies ala Mark 