Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Rocky IV’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

‘I must break you.’
- Ivan Drago

​Friends are truly something special. These are people that randomly come into our lives and stay with us for either a short period of time, or if we are lucky, forever. Yes, those kinds of friends, the ones that we can consider family, are the most special ones of all because they are people we can trust through and through and we are always comforted by the knowledge that they would do anything for us. 

Of course, the right kind of friendship goes both ways and we in turn would do anything for them and often times the gestures we make to our friends to prove our loyalty are either something as simple as letting them vent or as complex as stepping in in a time of need. But what if we had to go beyond that? What if our friend's life was at stake? What if the only way to do them proud was to avenge their honor? Those are questions few of us have ever had to face, but in Hollywood, such questions are answered all the time, as was the case with the 1985 film... Rocky IV.

Following Rocky's incredible championship bout against the mighty Clubber Lang a new sensation has entered the world of boxing, Ivan Drago. While he has only won a few amateur fights in the Soviet Union, he is a physically intimidating boxer, but not to Apollo Creed. Creed sees an exhibition match with Drago as an opportunity to once again prove his worth and stay in the spotlight, but in this case, he has bit off more than he can chew. Drago's raw power is too much for Creed and the injuries he suffers in the fight costs Apollo his life. Now it will be up to Rocky Balboa to surrender the Heavyweight Championship title to avenge the death of his friend and restore Apollo’s honor by taking on Drago in the ring.  

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This is a decidedly different Rocky Balboa film and it’s a story that instantly pulls away from the saga's proud tradition of giving us a stellar character journey. Instead this entry in the franchise is basically the pinnacle of 1980's bravado and machismo. Everything here is over the top, and even the aspect of defending Apollo's honor and legacy by battling the big Russian is a simple idea handled in big time fashion. Not to mention, I've heard this film referred to as ‘The Montage Movie’ because of how many epic montages it features, which... it does have a lot of them.

Yet, this film still finds a way to draw you in. You quickly come to hate Drago despite the fact he is a big muscly pawn, and the film gets props for continuing to have Rocky deal with the loss of people he knows and loves in his life, it's just a shame that part of the story wasn't expanded upon further. But you are treated to the most epic and incredible fight in the entire series when it comes to Balboa vs. Drago. Everything comes to a head in that final battle and I’m not kidding when I call it epic, because this magnificent showdown will leave you on the edge of your seat.

But while this may not have the heart that the other films do in the series, and while the characters may remain stagnant in their growth, Rocky IV is still a blast to watch. It's a good old fashioned 1980's popcorn flick that works. Your attention will be held the whole way through, and you will be rooting for Rocky to avenge the fallen Apollo Creed. Thankfully, this is the only ‘one off’ in the series, since the franchise would return to its roots in the next film, but the fans would not be happy with how that, played out.

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