  Sylvester Stallone as Rocky Balboa.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- After 30 years, Rocky Balboa's image was getting a little tarnished, his reputation a little tattered.
As a fictional character, as a movie series and as an American cultural icon, the Italian Stallion from the mean streets of South Philadelphia had been compromised. He had been diminished by too many sequels with too few qualities and too little to say.
Rocky's original movie debut remains an American classic but Rocky the franchise had become a tired cliche.
His creator, writer-actor and sometimes director Sylvester Stallone, had seen his career peak and begin to spiral down in a parallel pattern, inextricably linked to the character that had made him a movie star. So it seemed like the last act of a desperate man for Stallone to announce that he would write, direct and act in yet another instalment in the franchise, a movie he would call Rocky Balboa.
Funny how things turn out. The new movie, while incredibly sentimental and a little flawed, is enormously satisfying. It opens Dec. 20. It carries the potential to be a bona fide hit. It is already obvious that hardcore Rocky fans will love it.
Meanwhile, yesterday here in the U.S. capital, Stallone officially became part of the cultural history of his home and native land when he donated a collection of Rocky memorabilia to the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Now Rocky's pork-pie hat, Shamrock Meats robe, ring boots, gloves and trunks join Dorothy's ruby red slippers from The Wizard Of Oz. They are among 6,000 other objects from the entertainment world, a small yet popular part of the three million archival items in the museum's vast collection.
Just as critically in the rebuilding of Rocky's image, two DVD sets hit the streets yesterday, carefully timed in lockstep with the Smithsonian honour and geared to help promote the release of Rocky Balboa.
One of the sets is familiar. Sylvester Stallone: Rocky Anthology has been relaunched. It is a five-disc set containing all five of the Rocky movies from the past: John Avildsen's Rocky (1976), Stallone's Rocky II (1979), Stallone's Rocky III (1982), Stallone's Rocky IV (1985) and Avildsen's Rocky V (1990).
Rocky and Rocky II are offered in widescreen only (which is a good thing for we purists -- it is the way these movies were meant to be seen). The rest are offered in full and widescreen versions on flip sides of the same discs (flipping to full means missing up to 40 percent of what Stallone or Avildsen, as the directors, wanted viewers to see in each frame).
None of the discs has bonus materials. The selling point is the appeal of a complete set with decent digital transfers of each of the movies. With the arrival of Rocky Balboa, which Stallone promises really is the final instalment in the series, you can chart the entire arc of the character. He goes from a punk to a champ and now to an aging, wounded lion who still must prove one last time that he still has heart. At all times, Rocky Balboa the man was trying to be the best he could be, under the circumstances, against the challenges of life. It was the American Dream in action.
The first Rocky sequel was a logical extension of the original with our plucky hero getting a rematch against Carl Weathers as Apollo Creed, with predictable results. So far so good.
But the next two Rocky movies were lousy. Rocky III, the "eye of the tiger" instalment in which our hero fights Mr. T as Clubber Lang, is painfully superficial, a gimmick flick which reflects Stallone's preoccupation with fame and fortune in Hollywood at the time. Rocky IV, in which he tackles Dolph Lundgren as Drago, the hulking Soviet champion, is a Cold War spectacle. Absurdly, Rocky represents the American eagle fighting it out with the Soviet hammer and sickle for supremacy of the world. Except for flag-wavers who loved the propaganda, it did not work.
Then Rocky V -- which picks up where IV left off, with Balboa's return to the U.S. suffering from brain damage as the result of too many blows to the head -- turns it all maudlin. With Avildsen directing again for the first time since the original, it was a valiant attempt to ground the franchise again. But the story was "weak," Stallone now admits candidly. He would be forced to wait another 16 years, until now, to correct his mistake and wrap up the Rocky saga in a way that satisfies everyone.
The other DVD set is an absolute gem: It is the two-disc Collector's Edition of the original Rocky. This ranks as one of the year's truly outstanding DVD releases. Even if you buy the Anthology and already think you have the original Rocky, it is worth getting the Collector's Edition. This set is so loaded with high quality extras that it refreshes Rocky and properly underscores how and why it became a classic worthy of discussing among the greats in American film history.
The opening sequences of the film itself, despite the modest budget and stressed working conditions, are perfect as a setup to who Rocky Balboa is: A big-hearted loser who is throwing his life, and his talent, away. We watch him win his $40.55 in the ring at the Resurrection Athletic Club while the painted face of Jesus Christ stares down from the rafters. We watch him walk through the decaying Fishtown neighbourhood, past the a capella street singers led by Frank Stallone, bouncing his Indian rubber ball, eventually home to his pet turtles, Cuff and Link, and his goldfish, Moby Dick.
"If you guys could sing and dance," he tells his aquatic friends, "I wouldn't be doing this, you know." The scenario is set. A movie that would rock Hollywood, and eventually the world, was beautifully set in motion.
The DVD's bonus materials are extremely well organized, breaking down each component of the filmmaking and delving into the lore and legacy of the film and the character. It is worth getting specific:
* Commentary by Sylvester Stallone: In his folksy, self-depracating-yet-assured manner, Stallone articulates his dreams at the time and explains how they become realized in the film project. In addition, his insights on detail are delicious. For example, for the opening fight scene, a pathetic spectacle with "fans" throwing tomatoes at the two boxers, Stallone explains how he had to become his own heckler on the soundtrack because there was not enough in the budget to pack the audience. On other occasions, Stallone uses the opportunity to poetically analyze the character. The reason Rocky loves turtles, Stallone says, is because they represent him: "Hard on the outside, at least what people look at: Rocky's leather, his hat, his gloves, it's like his armour. But inside, quite impressionable, pliable."
* Boxing commentary: Legendary trainer Lou Duva and boxing author/commentator Bert Sugar break Rocky down.
* Group commentary: Commentary by director John Avildsen, producers Robert Chartoff and Irwin Winkler (who discovered Stallone as a screenwriter and enabled his project), Steadicam inventor Garrett Brown, plus actors Talia Shire, Carl Weathers and Burt Young exists from a past DVD and it is being recycled. Group hugs like this one are interesting but rarely as good as the solo efforts, like Stallone's in this case.
* Three Rounds With Lou Duva (4 minutes, 33 seconds): Duva returns, explaining his philosophy as a trainer with an emphasis on motivation and playing the role of the surrogate father.
* Interview With A Legend: Bert Sugar (6:47): In a rambling monologue that starts poorly but ends strongly, Sugar pays tribute to Rocky and then expounds on boxing itself. "At it's worst, it's brutal. At its best, it's balletic. It's an excellent sports with a lot of shortcomings. I'm an advocate but not an apologist. But, damn, it's great!"
* Rocky Balboa Sneak Peek (3:36): Stallone & friends talk to the camera as themselves, hyping the new film with interesting insights, including how Joe Frazier's return to the ring in his 50s inspired and legitimized the aging Rocky's return.
* Rocky: Teaser (1:37): This is the early teaser ad for the original Rocky, with the announcer pretentiously yet effectively comparing the then-unknown Stallone to Nicholson, De Niro and Brando. This teaser also starting building the mythology of the character and of Stallone: "He's every nobody who ever needed somebody. He's every man who ever settles for something less. He's the man who never had the chance ... until now! His whole life was a million to one shot. His name is Sylvester Stallone but you will always remember him as Rocky!"
* Rocky: Original Trailer (3:35): This is an extended version of the teaser and you see how the campaign builds.
* Introducing Sylvester Stallone (0:33): This brief TV spot was linked to the effort to sell Stallone as an exciting new talent, a real risk in 1976 when Ryan O'Neal, James Caan, Robert Redford and even Burt Reynolds were considered better bets for the role screenwriter Stallone insisted on keeping for himself.
* Critical Acclaim: TV Spots (1:03 and 0:33): These two ads cite the strong reviews the opening of the original Rocky got, despite its modest launch in only two theatres.
* In The Ring: Three-Part Making-Of Documentary (1 hour, 15 minutes and 42 seconds): This is the major and thorough doc which provides the background for how an unlikely film from an unlikely source launched an unlikely career. "This picture was simply a miracle," says producer Robert Chartoff. "Something was just right in the stars," says Carl Weathers. "The angels were working with this particular piece," says Talia Shire. This is a must-see on the second disc.
* Steadicam: Then And Now With Garrett Brown (17:27): Brown, who invented the steadicam camera to shoot hand-held action without a rocking motion, explains how the device changed Hollywood shoots and how his own experiments changed Rocky. His test footage took place on the famous 72 steps up to Phillie's art gallery. Avildsen was impressed with the idea as well as the Steadicam when he saw Brown's test, which had his then girlfriend (now wife) Ellen running the steps. Stallone ended up there in the movie. Now the location is part of Rocky lore.
* Makeup! The Art And Form With Michael Westmore (15:09): "Makeup, to me, is an artform," Westmore says. "It is a temporary artform that is created and destroyed on a daily bais but it is still an artform."
* Staccato: A Composer's Notebook With Bill Conti (11:29): "The music," says Conti, "is anti-intellectual stuff. It's all about emotion." Conti's now famous music may be as important to the success of the original Rocky as any other one component. But it is significant that the subtle, melancholy passages are just as important as the triumphant Rocky theme.
* The Ring Of Truth (9:35): Art director James Spencer explains his role, especially on a low-budget picture such as Rocky.
* Behind The Scenes With Director John Avildsen (12:24): The filmmaker shot "home movies" on 8 mm film to use as test shots, for casting, for mapping out fight scenes and to inspire Stallone to work out, especially when he zoomed in on the actor's paunch (which eventually disappeared). The sparring scenes with Stallone and Weathers are fascinating.
* Tribute To Burgess Meredith (7:44): Burt Young tells a fun story of a drunk Meredith at the "after-after" Oscar party going ass-over-teakettle without spilling a drop of his booze.
* Tribute To James Crabe (3:34): Avildsen explains the importance of cinematographer Crabe, who died in 1989.
* Video Commentary With Sylvester Stallone (28:53): This extended interview, shot in Toronto in 2000, has Stallone buzzing along at his best, and his most emotional. "Every day I truly miss that character so much," he says. "I have to tell you, sometimes I could just cry because I'll never have a voice like that again where I can just speak whatever I have in my heart. That's the thing I'll always chermish about that character. If I say it, you won't believe it but, when Rocky said it, it was the truth."
* Sylvester Stallone On Dinah! (17:19): These vintage clips from 1976 show most of Stallone's interview on Dinah Shore's talk show, with the budding superstar in a hideous and now hilarious disco shirt and salmon-coloured suit. But he seemed so fresh, so naive, so earnest on the show.
