Wednesday, January 10, 2007, posted by Q6 at 11:00 AM
Sylvester Stallone has redeemed himself in my eyes.

I didn't want Rocky Balboa to suck. I grew up thinking of Rocky and Rocky II as excellent films. I saw what later films in the franchise did to the story, and though I didn't think it could get any worse, that was my concern. So I did my homework. I watched trailers, read scripts and script reviews, and checked the blogosphere for information. I found a really good one that made me breathe easier.

I went to see the film last week, and I'm glad I did. I don't necessarily agree that this film could be a stand-alone film; but if you see only the first and second films in the franchise, you've seen enough to understand this one. I appreciate not only the effort Stallone went to in demonstrating the internal struggle Rocky faces, but also the artistic way in which the film was shot. (It was a very different approach for the fight sequence in this film: angles, use of color and B&W, camera distance. I think it was very powerful.) And I'm really glad the film didn't suck.