Of the 6 Rocky movies Sylvester Stallone made, two were released during the 80s. While Rocky III clearly has its roots in the previous two installations, the overall theme has now changed to that of the consumeristic 80s.

And herein lies the most interesting aspect of the movie: How the money and success corrupts a once hungry athlete. The depictions of Rocky’s new found extravagant lifestyle are as hilarious as they are scary.

Otherwise Stallone seems to have run out of ideas, and most of the second half of the movie consists of training montages and the actual showdown. The iconic Mr.T debuts creditably as the big mouthed challenger, but the end bout between him and Rocky is mostly anticlimatic.

80s-o-meter: 88%

Total: 78%