Rocky Balboa was a risky prospect - revisiting the franchise sixteen years on could just seem like an attempt to cash-in - but Stallone's clear passion for the project smashes through the scepticism. Rocky VI was a touching exploration of the past, overriding the mess of Rocky V and giving the franchise a satisfying conclusion (or now, with Creed, next step). There's bits that honour each previous movie - the character development across the first four comes to its natural conclusion and there's a nice use of the eighties filmmaking style that punctuated the later sequels (lots of slow motion and fades) - but what Balboa gets right is its focus on what made the original so great. The story is subtle, character-driven and, crucially, isn't just about boxing (oh, the final fight with current champ Mason Dixon is great, but it's not just an empty action scene); like the first movie, this is not about winning, it's about some trickier questions of self-worth. Stallone pours himself into the film, using the character of Rocky to explore pressing concerns of age and relevance against a familiar backdrop. It's not a question of if Rocky is great. He is great, we all know that. It's about him wanting to be great again. And he (and the franchise) is.
