Stallone is so good in this. I mean his Rocky has always been one of The Great Performances, but it‘s so great that he got to work with material this good again and damn does he rise to the occasion. Should have won that Oscar.

Interesting to rewatch this after the similar but vastly inferior Top Gun: Maverick. That’s a film about how Tom Cruise will never die and no one can ever replace him, whereas this is a young filmmaker and star claiming the franchise as their own, and Stallone gracefully handing it over. Which has so much more dignity and leads to a career-best performance, whereas Cruise hasn‘t done any real acting in a decade cause he‘s so busy proving that he‘s still »got it« or whatever.

Anyway back to good movies, this is one. You know every beat, you‘ve seen this before, but it feels brand new. Great final shot. Perfect use of Gonna Fly Now.